It’s viral: How to film videos that blow up online
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Watch where you’re going, content creators are everywhere. They’re underfoot, shooting Reels at the mall. They’re dancing in the Metro, doing mini-reviews at the restaurant, touching up makeup on the bus, possibly unboxing something in the house next door.
Everyone’s trying to be different. Everyone’s trying to get their moment on social media. Is there a way to beat the algorithm? There are new rules on how much text is too much, on how to share, tag and like. Camera angles are changing. Paras Sharma, Meta India’s director of global partnerships, and Abrar Vadgama, founder of the media production company AV RenderCut, offer updates on video- making and -sharing.
Go native. For Insta, viewed on phone, shoot in vertical rather than cropping to fit later. Make sure there are humans in the frame, and that there’s movement. Add text stickers, voice overs, lo-fi music. Add your hook in the first few seconds, so viewers know what’s going on immediately. All the little things matter, says Sharma. The more native or purpose-built the content, the better it performs.
Declutter. It’s a video, not a Christmas tree. “Make frames less busy so that what you are doing stands out. Save some space in case you want to add text. Don’t add too many props,” recommends Vadgama. And chalk out the script before you shoot. “It saves filming time and gives a fair idea about what the video will look like. Don’t just rely on post production,” says Vadgama.
The right angle. “For tech videos, you’ll need close-up shots of the product. For a commentary, a single camera, a little distance away, will do,” says Vadgama. “If you are a storyteller, mix closeups, mid-shots and wide ones, from various angles. For food reviews and unboxings, top-down works, because that’s how we’d view them in real life.”
Get some action. For dance videos and comedy, use a mix of wide shots. “Zoom in only during the key move or step or punchline,” says Vadgama. Zooms help “blend the cuts, and breaks the monotonous flow of a video.”
Keep it crisp. Comedy and reaction videos shouldn’t be longer than 10 seconds, “like the works of creator-actor Barkha Singh,” says Sharma. “A more meaningful conversation, picked up from a podcast and published as a Reel, can be 60 to 90 seconds.” The primary text, in an unfussy font and contrasting colour, should be three lines at most. Don’t let it obstruct the visuals, leave at least 60% of the screen free of text, points out Sharma.
Put captions to work. On Insta, the text in the picture should be minimal, but captions can be chattier. Think of how Zeenat Aman tells her stories in her captions, or how accounts such as Humans of Bombay let their tales unfold, bit by bit. “But on YouTube, the descriptions need to be long and informative,” says Vadgama.
Make music matter. Insta has a way of making obscure tunes popular via Reels. “Try sharing a video with your own music or audio effects to give it a personalised feel,” says Sharma. “For creators, music often serves as the starting point for an idea. It also acts as a unifying force, encouraging followers to interact.” It’s why Karan Aujla’s song Tauba Tauba shows up in nearly 4 million Reels. For commentary, “invest in a decent mic rather than the one on your phone,” says Vadgama.
Track data. Paid services within Instagram allow users to see exactly how their content fares. “A key factor is ‘sends per reach’, to see how many viewers sent your Reel to a friend via DM,” says Sharma. The best way to create shareable material is to analyse what’s already working for you. And, as always, do a final check from start to end, before publishing. It’s cheaper and less embarrassing than apologising to the fans later.
