Meta Opens A 45-Day Edits Film Festival For Indian Creators

A halftone paper cutout of a film clapperboard and a smartphone on a flat coloured background

Meta has launched the Edits Film Festival in India, a 45-day initiative asking creators to turn everyday footage into cinematic Reels made entirely in Edits, Instagram’s standalone video app.

Open: 24 August to 8 October
Entry: publish an original Reel made only in Edits, caption the features used, tag #EditsFilmFestival, @metaindia and @weareyuvaa
Jury: Ahsaas Channa, Dolly Singh, Nikhil Taneja and Rajeev Masand
Selection: 10 to 20 Reels screened at a festival event
Meta lead: Ankit Rihal, head of global partnerships, India

What The Edits Film Festival Is Actually Testing

Entries are judged on three things: how distinctive the story is, how effectively ordinary or unpolished footage is transformed, and how creatively the app’s features are used.

The middle criterion is the whole exercise. Meta is not looking for the best short film, which would reward whoever owns a camera and a tripod. It is looking for the largest gap between what went into the app and what came out, which is a demonstration of the product rather than of the film-maker.

A Year Of Edits Features Needs Somewhere To Be Seen

Meta describes the festival as spotlighting emerging talent while showcasing the tools added to Edits over the past year, and creators can use filters, effects, fonts, audio effects, overlays and music.

Ankit Rihal said India’s creator community is redefining storytelling every day and framed the festival as a way of celebrating that, with Edits positioned as a creative studio. A feature list is difficult to advertise. Several hundred creators competing to push those features is a more persuasive demonstration than any launch film.

The Reward Is Access, Not Money

Selected makers get a screening, recognition from the jury, a feature on Meta India’s social accounts, and early access to some upcoming Edits features.

Nikhil Taneja, the Yuvaa founder on the jury, said Gen Z creators and editors are usually the ones behind whatever is trending on Instagram. That is the audience the reward is designed for. Early access to unreleased tools is worth more to someone whose livelihood depends on being first to a format than a cash prize would be, and it costs Meta nothing it was not already building.