Australians can now create their own YouTube Shorts

Those of us who consume a lot of YouTube will already know about YouTube Shorts — YouTube’s answer to Instagram Stories. Now its creation tools are available to Aussies who want to share short-form video with others.

YouTube Shorts are designed for users to create “short, catchy videos” from their mobile phones and since beginning in the US late last year has expanded to over 26 countries. Today’s announcement brings a host of other countries online with the supported countries now listed as 100.

So what exactly is here in Australia now? The Shorts’ creation tools which include a multi-segment camera to piece multiple video clips together, the ability to record the video with music, control speed settings and more.

Entirely new features introduced today include:

• Add text to specific points in your video
• Automatically add captions to your Short
• Record up to 60 seconds with the Shorts camera
• Add clips from your phone’s gallery to add to your recordings made with the Shorts camera
• Add basic filters to colour correct your Shorts
• Ability to sample audio from other Shorts along with videos across all of YouTube

YouTube Shorts can be viewed via the row on your YouTube homepage but will soon gain their own dedicated tab for quick and easy access. Monetisation is also possible with a YouTube Shorts Fund, a US$100 million fund distributed over the course of 2021 and 2022.

The YouTube Shorts Beta is rolling out globally and will reach all users “soon”. For Aussies though, it is here now and is a great way to quickly interact with followers and hopefully earn a few dollars. Open up your YouTube app now to check it out.