Parents' Guide to

Magisto

By Erin Brereton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Moviemaking made easy, with photos, videos, and music.

Website http://www.magisto.com
Magisto Poster Image

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What’s It About?

Kids can upload videos and photos, choose a theme, and select a song from about a dozen pop hits or their own libraries to create a MAGISTO movie. The site uses artificial intelligence and analyzes speech, camera motion, and other elements to select key emotional moments from videos; kids can title their movies, and, only a few minutes after everything is uploaded, they'll receive an e-mail with a link to their finished films. Movies are automatically private; users can make them public, send the URL to friends, or share them on social media.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say Not yet rated
Kids say (2 ):
Magisto, which was created by a scientist looking to organize photos into a short film after the birth of his first child, helps users create compelling, brief movies from uploaded video footage and photos. The tool is easy to use, but kids could stumble across a few roadblocks while making their movies. If users happen to get a length-related or other error message, they won't get much guidance on how to fix it; if they try to make a simple photo slide show, they'll quickly learn that they need to upload a combination of video clips and photos for the tool to work. Parents' biggest concern likely will involve the site's popular movies section. Although many movies center on tame content like kittens, kids could, in theory, come across inappropriate content. Because there's no easy way to search through the user-submitted videos, finding films with iffy images isn't all that easy; however, providing adult supervision can help ensure kids have a safe experience.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how visual style choices affect the overall message. Does the Roaring Twenties option invoke a different mood than Love or other filters? Does it help display or detract from the information you're trying to share?

  • What kind of information is easier to explain using both pictures and words instead of only images or text?

  • Magisto movies are private by default, but kids can easily share them through Facebook or other social media sites. What kinds of problems could come from publicly posting a movie you made? Use our Social Networking Tips as a guide to discuss social-media safety concerns with your child.

Website Details

  • Subjects: Language & Reading : discussion, presenting to others, Arts : film, photography
  • Skills: Creativity : making new creations, Communication : conveying messages effectively, multiple forms of expression, Tech Skills : digital creation, social media
  • Genre: Creating
  • Pricing structure: Free, Paid
  • Last updated: November 5, 2015

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