How to make a texting-story video for Facebook Reels
A walk through the whole job, from a four-line script to a 9:16 file ready to upload as a Facebook Reel, using a Messenger-style sample you can edit.
Try it: start from this sample
Start with a script of four to eight lines
Before you open the editor, write the story on paper as plain lines: who speaks, what they say, and which line is the twist. The sample has Tom reveal a small disaster in the first message, so the viewer is curious before the thumb moves on. Count your lines. Reels are short, so four to eight messages is a good first target, and the Free plan already lets you draft four of them.
Pick the look and the settings
Choose the Messenger look, which needs the Standard plan or above. Set the colour scheme and device shape, then decide on the typing indicator. It builds suspense, but each one costs about a second, so use it only before the line that matters. Give the two people plain first names. The preview updates as you type, so read it on your own phone at arm's length before moving on.
Export 9:16 and upload
Video export is a Creator plan feature, and so are the 9:16 ratio, sound effects and auto-generated captions. ChatsRat's video export offers 9:16, 16:9, 1:1 and 4:5, and a preset opens the export dialog at the shape named, when your plan allows that shape. Confirm 9:16, choose a speed, save the file, then upload it as a Reel from your own account.
Check the limits on the day
The numbers on this site are typical as of November 2026. Reels are short, typically up to about 90 seconds, and Meta has been lengthening limits, so read the platform's own help page before you publish. Say in your caption that the story is fictional.
Tips
- Write the twist line first, then build two or three lines of setup before it.
- Keep each message under about twelve words so it reads in two seconds.
- Watch the finished file once with the sound off and once with it on.
- Save your project so part two can reuse the same two people.
Questions
Do I need the Creator plan to make a Reel?
You can write and preview on a lower plan, but video export needs Creator. The Free plan exports a PNG only. The pricing page lists what each plan includes.
Why is this sample in the Messenger look?
Because it matches the destination in general style. ChatsRat draws its own interface and uses the name only to describe the kind of layout. It is not affiliated with Facebook, Meta or Messenger.
Can I use a real conversation?
Do not. Use invented adults and invented names, and never post a simulated chat as if it were a real one. Label it fictional in the caption.
Can I add a voice?
Yes, on the Creator plan. Voiceover comes in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Polish and Hindi, either one voice per message or one narrator.
Is there a watermark?
Free exports carry a visible ChatsRat watermark. Paid plans change the visible watermark; the plans page lists how. Every export also carries an invisible mark.
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.