Meta Launches Edits Film Festival to Spotlight India’s Emerging Creators

Meta has launched the Edits Film Festival, a new initiative designed to spotlight emerging creator talent in India and celebrate short-form storytelling. The 45-day festival invites creators to take ordinary, unpolished footage and transform it into cinematic Reels using Edits, Instagram’s standalone video creation app. Creators can submit their original work over the next 45 days, with the submission window running until October 8.

What Is The Edits Film Festival?

The Edits Film Festival is positioned as a celebration of India’s creator community and its approach to storytelling through Reels. Instead of asking creators to produce elaborate short films from scratch, the festival focuses on the creative process of transforming ordinary footage into something visually striking. Participants can use features available within Edits, including filters, effects, fonts, audio effects, overlays and music.

The idea is simple: take something that may not initially look special and use editing and storytelling to give it a cinematic treatment. Meta says the festival will feature a selection of the top 10-20 Reels, which will be screened at an exclusive Edits Film Festival organised by the company.

How Can Creators Participate?

Creators participating in the festival need to create and publish a Reel using Edits.

The Reel should transform ordinary or unremarkable footage into something visually distinctive. Participants can use different creative tools available on the app, including:

• Filters and effects
• Fonts and text treatments
• Audio effects
• Overlays
• Music
• Other creative features available within Edits

The content must be original and freshly created during the 45-day submission window. Creators also need to mention the Edits features they used in the caption of their post. To enter, creators must include #EditsFilmFestival in their post and tag @metaindia and @weareyuvaa.

What Happens After Submission?

A selection of the top 10-20 cinematic Reels will be screened at the exclusive Edits Film Festival. Some of the creators behind these selected Reels will also receive recognition from the festival jury and have their work showcased on @metaindia’s social media accounts. Selected makers will also get exclusive access to some upcoming features on the Edits app, giving the festival an additional opportunity for creators to experience new editing tools.

Meet The Jury

The festival has brought together a jury featuring names from acting, content creation, youth media and film criticism.

Ahsaas Channa

Actor Ahsaas Channa is part of the jury and is known for her work across films and popular web series.

Dolly Singh

Content creator and actor Dolly Singh will also evaluate the submissions. She was the only India-based creator to win the Instagram Rings Award in 2025, according to Meta.

Nikhil Taneja

Nikhil Taneja, founder of youth media company Yuvaa, is another member of the jury. He is a writer, producer and podcaster whose work focuses on youth culture, mental health and gender equality.

Rajeev Masand

Film critic and media personality Rajeev Masand, who is also COO of Dharma Cornerstone Agency, rounds out the jury.

Together, the jury will evaluate the submissions based on three key aspects: the uniqueness of the story, the creator’s ability to transform ordinary footage into something extraordinary, and the creative use of Edits features.

Meta Wants Creators To Find The Cinematic In The Everyday

At the heart of the Edits Film Festival is the idea that cinematic storytelling does not necessarily require elaborate sets, expensive equipment or perfectly planned footage. A random clip from a day out, an unnoticed moment on the street or footage that was previously sitting unused on a phone can potentially become a finished story through creative editing.

Speaking about the initiative, Ankit Rihal, Head of Global Partnerships, Meta, India, said the creator community is redefining storytelling and that the festival is intended to give creators a platform to bring everyday moments to life through Edits. Nikhil Taneja also highlighted the role Gen Z creators and editors play in shaping trends on Instagram, describing the festival as an opportunity to help more emerging talent get discovered.

How To Enter The Edits Film Festival?

Creators interested in participating need to:

1. Create an original Reel using Edits.
2. Transform ordinary or unremarkable footage into a visually striking video.
3. Use Edits features such as filters, effects, fonts, audio effects, overlays or music.
4. Publish the Reel during the 45-day submission period.
5. Mention the Edits features used in the caption.
6. Include #EditsFilmFestival.
7. Tag @metaindia and @weareyuvaa.

The submission window runs until October 8.