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How to do the stars hands effect

To do the stars hands effect on your phone, open Mote, pick Stars and make a fist in front of the camera: the stars rush into your hand, and when you open it they burst out, all live with no editing.

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AI-generated actor · real Mote effect, recorded in the app

The gesture, step by step

  1. Open Mote and pick Stars.
  2. Make a fist: the stars rush into your hand.
  3. Open your hand: they burst out.

Tap the effect name at the bottom of the camera to switch looks, or turn on AUTO.

  • Gather
  • Comet
  • Split
  • Spell

What makes it work

Live hand tracking
Stars reads your hand shape rather than just its position: a closed fist pulls the particles in and an open palm pushes them out. Stars is new in Mote 1.3.0 (October 2026); if you don't see it, update the app.
No editing
The effect is drawn on the live camera, so the clip you record already has it.
Phones
iPhone (iOS 16.0 or later) and Android (Android 7.0 or later).
Price
Mote Pro (free download; Bubble, Light Trails and Web are free).
Recording
Up to 15 seconds free, 60 seconds with Pro. Save to Photos, or from Mote 1.3.0 share straight to Instagram Stories.

Questions

Is the Stars effect free?

Stars is part of Mote Pro. Mote itself is free to download, and Bubble (iPhone), Light Trails and Web are free to use. Mote Pro is a weekly subscription with a 3-day free trial for eligible new subscribers, an annual plan or a one-time lifetime purchase; prices are shown in the app before you buy.

Do I need to edit the video to get the stars effect?

No. Mote draws Stars on the live camera while you film, using real-time hand tracking. What you see on screen is what gets recorded, so there is no timeline, keyframing or green screen.

Which phones can do the stars effect?

Stars works in Mote on iPhone (iOS 16 or later) and Android (Android 7.0 or later). On a phone where live hand tracking cannot start, Mote falls back to the Web effect.

Can I share it to Instagram or TikTok?

Yes. Record the clip in Mote, save it to Photos, and post it anywhere. From Mote 1.3.0 there is also a Share to Story button that sends the clip straight to Instagram Stories.

Do I need an account?

No. Mote works without an account, and hand tracking runs on your phone; camera frames are not uploaded.

More hand effects

All Mote effects