Old Filter (TikTok)

About

The Old Filter (TikTok), also known as the Cool Old Filter, Old Face Filter or the Old Effect (TikTok), refers to a face filter on TikTok that makes a person look old in a photo or selfie. It became well-known in 2023 as many believed that it was made using TikTok. However, people making "Old Filter" TikToks were not using TikTok to make their videos. Instead, the people were putting their photos through the FaceApp Age Filter (called "Cool Old") and then going back to TikTok to use a CapCut template (called "Antes e depois" by Lucas Pinheiro) that transitioned between the before-and-after photos of them. Many creators set their videos to the songs "Young Forever" by JAY-Z or "Forever and Ever, Amen" by Randy Travis.

Origin

On April 5th, 2023, TikToker^[1] @thatgirlfromwork posted a video that showed a photo of her and her partner which transitioned through an old age filter. The video was set to the song "Young Forever" by JAY-Z.^[2] Over the course of two days, the video gained roughly 3.8 million plays and 245,000 likes (shown below).

How To / Tutorial

In the comment section of TikToker^[1] @thatgirlfromwork's video, she explained how she made the video. First, she used the app FaceApp to transition her photo using the "Cool Age" filter. Then, she inserted the original photo and the filtered photo into a CapCut^[3] template called "Antes e depois" by Lucas Pinheiro. Lastly, she used the "Young Forever" by JAY-Z TikTok^[2] sound.

Spread

After TikToker^[1] @thatgirlfromwork's video, various users on the app posted their own video set through the "Old Filter." For instance, on April 5th, 2023, TikToker^[4] @krystalgarcia1993 posted her own iteration, gaining roughly 4.4 million plays and 121,300 likes in two days (shown below, left). On April 6th, 2023, TikToker^[5] @gratefuldevv posted her iteration, gaining roughly 2.7 million plays and 178,200 likes in one day (shown below, right).

Various iterations followed going into April 2023, leading to a tutorial video uploaded by TikToker^[6] @curatingcontentmarketing on April 6th, 2023, that gained roughly 747,200 plays and 23,800 likes in less than a day (shown below).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References