How to make a chat story video, step by step
A chat story video lets the viewer read a tale one message at a time. This guide takes you from a single idea to a finished export, with a small worked example you can open in the editor.
Try it: start from this sample
Did you take my spare key?
No. Why?
Because it is on my desk and I never put it there.
Stay where you are. I am coming over.
Start with one situation and one question
A chat story works when the viewer wants to know what happens in the next bubble. Pick a single situation, such as a key that appears where it should not, and decide the question the viewer will carry through the video. Everything you write should either raise that question or answer it.
Keep the cast small. Two people is enough for most stories, and the Free plan allows exactly two, so you can test the idea before you pay for anything.
Script it in beats before you type a bubble
Write the story as four beats on paper: the hook, the complication, the turn and the last line. In the sample on this page, the hook is the question about the key, the complication is the denial, the turn is the discovery on the desk and the last line is the cliffhanger.
Then read each line aloud. If you stumble, a viewer will stumble too. Cut anything that explains what a bubble already shows, and cut any line that repeats the one before it.
Build and check it in the editor
Open the sample, rename the people, replace the messages and turn the typing indicator on where a pause adds tension. Use the live preview to see how each line wraps on a phone-shaped screen. Export a PNG of the whole chat first. It is quick, it works on every plan, and it shows you any message that runs too long.
Once the text is right, choose how it should play. Creator animation controls set the speed to slow, normal or fast and the style to fade-in, slide-up or instant.
Export for the place it will be watched
Video export is a Creator feature, as are animated GIF, sound effects and voiceover. Choose the aspect ratio before you export: 9:16 for vertical feeds, 16:9 for a normal video, 1:1 or 4:5 for square and portrait posts. The plans page lists everything each plan includes.
Free exports carry a visible watermark and every export carries an invisible mark, so keep a short line in the caption saying the story is fiction.
Tips
- Open on the most intriguing message, not on a greeting.
- Leave a one-word reply on screen alone for a beat; silence is also a line.
- Use voiceover only if the story is read better than it is seen.
- Keep each video under one situation and cut the rest for a part two.
- Watch the finished video on a phone with the sound off before you post.
Questions
Can I make a chat story video on the Free plan?
The Free plan exports a PNG image, so you can write and check your story there. Video export, in MP4 up to 4K, is part of the Creator plan. The plans page lists exactly what each plan includes.
How long should a chat story be?
Short enough that every message earns its place. Most stories need only a handful of bubbles to land one idea. If a story needs more, split it into parts and end each on a question.
Can I add sound to the video?
Yes, on the Creator plan. You can add typing and notification sound effects and a voiceover, either with each message spoken by its own voice or with one narrator telling the story.
Do I have to say the story is fictional?
If anyone could take it for a real conversation, yes, say so in the caption or on screen. Clearly comic or obviously invented stories need less, but a short label costs you nothing.
Use it for simulated, labelled content. ChatsRat makes mock-ups and fictional conversations for creators, designers and teachers. Do not use it to pass off a made-up conversation as a real one, to impersonate a real person, or as proof of anything. See the Acceptable Use policy.
About the watermark. Exports on the Free plan carry a visible ChatsRat watermark, and every export carries an invisible mark that the verify page can read. Plans list what changes on paid plans.
ChatsRat is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any messaging app. App names on this page describe a style only.