Cameo app review: create and share high-quality short films with your iPhone

Introduction

Part filmmaking app, part social network, Cameo allows filmmakers, first-timers and professionals alike, to create and share short-format movies with the world.

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Cameo is an extremely interesting app; unlike most video apps, the final product isn't limited to a 10- or 20-second time limit. You have a full two minutes to tell your story. Then you can share it immediately on the Cameo social network, as well as Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. It also allows you to save the full video to embed on websites and blogs, or share it on YouTube, Vimeo, or Instagram.

Short Film Made Easy

If you've used any of the other video apps on the market, the initial controls for Cameo are nothing new. You have your record button which records video in six-second intervals. Now I know that doesn't seem like much time to tell a story, but what sets this app apart from all others is that to create your Cameo you need to link many videos together to maximum time of two minutes.

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If you're an aspiring filmmaker or have already shot a number of short format movies you probably have realized that you can shoot coverage of multiple characters, environments, or objects and they will automatically be placed to a single two-minute project. You can also import video and photos from your library into the video's timeline which is huge plus if you manage to capture something on the fly and didn't have the presence of mind to open the Cameo app.

 

Editing is Like Writing Another Draft

Here is where Cameo gets really interesting. Now that you have multiple video clips linked together you can trim, move, and add titles to your video. Want to add a soundtrack? No problem: just click on the "Soundtrack" button and import the music directly from your iTunes playlist. You can add professional grade filters and borders to your project. With all the options included in the app it's surprising that it hasn't become the most widely used video social network on the planet. What you can do with Cameo is absolutely incredible.

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Now that your video is complete you can share it to the Cameo network, as well as Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr all within the app. Or you can save it to your phone in true 720p for embedding on your blog or website, or share it on YouTube, Vimeo, or Instagram.

 

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Maximum video clip time is two minutes
• Can trim, move, and edit clips
• Can add titles to clips
• Ability to add a soundtrack from your iTunes library
• Can share immediately to Cameo, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr
• Saves video to your phone in 720p for embedding and sharing

 

Cons

• There is nothing negative to say about this app

 

Final Thoughts

Cameo was utterly impressive and surprising. As someone who uses his iPhone for video and photography, and has a background in filmmaking, this has been the most intuitive and fun video app I've seen in a long time. If you have any inclination to tell a short form story Cameo is a must-have for a budding filmmaker or videographer.