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How to change the background of a video on iPhone
To blur what is behind you, shoot in Cinematic mode and adjust the blur later in Photos, for free. To replace the background of a video you have already shot, an editor has to cut the person out of every frame — person segmentation — or you shoot against a green screen and key the colour out, which iMovie does for free. To put the people somewhere new entirely, AI can redraw the place around them. In Talk all of these are on Talk Pro: People & Background for a blur, a colour or an AI-made picture, Green screen, and AI Video’s Change the setting.
Which way fits your clip
| Method | What changes | Needs | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cinematic mode, then Photos | How blurred the background is | A video shot in Cinematic mode, iPhone 13 or later | Free, built in |
| iMovie — Green/Blue Screen | Everything behind the subject | Footage shot against a green or blue screen | Free |
| Talk — People & Background | A blur or a colour behind a person, or a picture made with AI | Any footage with a person in it | Talk Pro |
| Talk — Green screen | Everything behind the subject | Footage shot against a green screen | Talk Pro |
| Talk — AI Video, Change the setting | The whole place, redrawn around the people | Up to 15 seconds of footage, and about ten minutes | Talk Pro, video credits |
As of October 2026. iMovie and Cinematic mode are Apple’s; check their current features before you shoot for them.
Replace or blur it, with no green screen
- Open People & Background In Talk, select the clip, tap Masking, then People & Background. Talk finds the person in every frame, on the device.
- Choose a blur or a colour Under Background, choose Blur to soften the place, or Color to replace it with a flat one, as for a title card or a product shot.
- Or ask for a picture Type or say “replace my background with a beach at sunset” in the prompt bar. Talk makes the picture with AI and puts it behind the person.
- Check the edges Play it through, watching hair, hands and quick movement, where the cut-out is most likely to show. One or two people against a plain background give the cleanest edge.
Key out a green screen
A green screen gives the cleanest edge of any method, because the editor removes one known colour rather than guessing where the person ends. In Talk, select the clip and tap Green screen. Then add the new background as an overlay and tap Background, which moves it under the clip. In iMovie, put the playhead over the background clip, add the green-screen clip from the media browser, tap the More button (…) and choose Green/Blue Screen. Light the screen evenly and keep the subject a step or two in front of it, so no green spills onto them.
Put the people somewhere new, with AI
- Select the clip AI Video works on the whole clip when it is 15 seconds or shorter. For a longer one, put the playhead where the change should start: it takes the 15 seconds from there.
- Describe the place Open AI Video, choose Change the setting, and describe it — “A neon-lit Tokyo street at night” — or pick a photo of the place.
- Generate, and come back The price in video credits is on the Generate button. A new setting takes about ten minutes; a notification says when it is ready, and the result replaces that stretch on the timeline with its sound kept. Undo brings the original back.
The model redraws the whole shot rather than pasting a picture behind a cut-out, so there is no edge to give it away. The cost is that the people are redrawn too, and a face or a hand can change slightly. For a talking head that must look exactly like the speaker, People & Background is the safer choice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I blur the background of a video on iPhone?
Shoot it in Cinematic mode, on iPhone 13 or later, and you can change the blur afterwards: open the video in Photos, tap Edit, then the f button, and drag the slider. For a video shot normally, you need an editor that finds the person in each frame, such as Talk’s People & Background, on Talk Pro.
Can I change a video background without a green screen?
Yes. Person segmentation finds the person in every frame and replaces everything else, with no green screen. It works best on one or two people against a clear background, and hair and fast movement are where the edge shows. AI Video’s Change the setting goes further and redraws the place around the people.
Is there a free way to change a video background on iPhone?
Yes, in two cases. iMovie, which is free, keys out a green or blue screen if you shot against one, and Cinematic mode lets you blur the background afterwards in Photos. Talk’s background tools are part of Talk Pro.
What is the difference between replacing the background and changing the setting?
Replacing cuts the person out and puts a colour or a picture behind them. It runs on the phone, works on any length of clip and is quick, but the light on the person stays as it was. Changing the setting with AI redraws the whole shot with the people kept and a new place around them. It takes about ten minutes, works on up to 15 seconds and costs video credits.
Does changing the background upload my video?
In Talk, People & Background and Green screen run on the phone, and an AI-made picture sends only your description. Changing the setting with AI Video sends up to 15 seconds of the clip to Qwen Cloud, Alibaba Cloud’s AI service, which keeps it for up to 2 days. The privacy policy has the detail.