Moment, best known for its line of popular smartphone lenses, released a new iOS app designed to inject a retro vibe into your TikTok or Instagram stories. Called Rtro Camera, the app lets users record up to 60 seconds of footage using a number of free and paid filters based on classic film and TV looks.
Rtro is free to download from the App Store and includes three filters at no charge, while additional looks can be purchased for $2 apiece. Alternately, the entire collection of 14 filters can be unlocked as part of the Rtro+ subscription plan, at either $2 per month or $15 annually.
The filters, which were developed with help from filmmakers, are varied and well designed, simulating everything from film grain and scratches to light leaks and VHS tracking distortion. The intensity of any filter can also be adjusted, letting creators be as subtle or extreme as they like.
Beyond filters, Rtro+ subscribers also have access to a selection of “retro” frame rates, ranging from 24 fps, the cinematic standard, all the way down to a stop-motion-like 6 fps. Subscribers can also choose to remove the filter watermark, which is applied by default.
A unique feature of Rtro is that it allows for stacking multiple short clips within the same 60-second timeline. Record and pause as many times as you like and the clips are automatically edited together. You can even resume recording on previously saved videos, provided you haven’t already bumped into the 60-second limit.
On the downside, you cannot mix and match styles within the same clip, at least in the beta version of the app provided to Digital Trends. Once you begin recording, your filter, frame rate, and lens selections are locked in, although you can at least drag to zoom.
Rtro Camera is a 180-degree turn from Moment’s first app, Pro Camera. As the name implied, that app focused on bringing manual controls and advanced video settings to mobile filmmakers. Moment is clearly targeting a different kind of video creator with Rtro.
But what if you want to take things a step further, past film-inspired filters and retro frame rates? Don’t worry — one feature Rtro borrows from Pro Camera is the option to de-squeeze anamorphic footage, so you can present your TikToks in ultra-wide format with the Moment Anamorphic iPhone lens. Although, considering this is vertical video, we suppose it would have to be called ultra-narrow format.
