The rise and rise of vertical video

Friday, 13 July 2018

Holding a phone horizontally can feel uncomfortable.

OPINION: It may be hard to stomach for film buffs but one day we might be watching the latest blockbuster movies in portrait mode.

Nearly 100 years of watching movies in the traditional landscape (horizontal) format is being challenged by the popularity of vertical videos.

Smartphones are changing the way we watch record and watch videos, and more people now prefer to hold their phone upright.

Vertical is already becoming dominant for short clips found on social media.

This trend has prompted one company to start work on re-formating television shows so they can be watched vertically on a smartphone.

The start-up, Dreams, claims long-form vertical video is the next big thing in television.

This move is backed up by last month's release of Instagram TV which will allow you to watch videos of up to one hour in length, up from the usual one minute.

It aims to take on YouTube, the world's most popular video platform, which has only recently started supporting vertical videos.

Blayne Slabbert: 'While vertical video is popular with many users, some people think it's an insult to the appreciation of video.'

This format war will initially feature 'creators' - those who make a living by producing videos for the platforms.

But it won't be long before we see our first television series in vertical format.

After decades of hosting user-created videos, YouTube recently released Cobra Kai, a TV series designed to take on Netflix as well as traditional broadcasters.

With one billion users, it won't be long before Instagram commissions a television show too.

But while vertical video is popular with many users, some people think it's an insult to the appreciation of video.

There are plenty of memes and 'public service announcements' dedicated to stopping it.

It's largely become popular because it's more comfortable to hold a phone vertically.

However, humans are designed to watch images and footage in landscape since our eyes are side-by-side. It's jarring to watch something with a vertical view.

Also, vertical videos are limited for showing certain events such as sports games or a large fight scene in a movie.

But despite the popularity of vertical videos, I don't expect to buy a vertical television in the future. I expect the two formats to live happily side by side with the occasional crossover with creators choosing what suits their video the best.