Julia Sachs writes on Grit Daily that Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok Are Eating Each Other.

“Snapchat, which launched its own version of TikTok this week called Spotlight, will pay creators through a program similar to the TikTok creator fund. Spotlight runs through the Snapchat app, and will run similar to competing platforms like Instagram Reels—which also mimicked TikTok by allowing users to create short-form videos that will automatically loop.”

Got that?

Basically, these three social media platforms all now have similar short-form (<60 seconds) video capabilities.

She recounts the short history of short-form video (remember Vine?) and singles out Kylie Jenner (yes, of those Kardashians) as an instrumental figure.

Her article makes fascinating reading.

See also TikTok’s 2020 in review.

My take: I love short-form video! Kinda surprising for someone who aspires to make feature films, but I say the shorter the better. Vine was fantastic in its day! The creativity on TikTok is amazing and assures me that the new batch of storytellers will have no trouble keeping us entertained. Two hashtags to check out are #maincharacter (5 billion views) and #RatatouilleMusical (191 million views.)