Titles and Text

starixiom wrote on 4/30/2003, 2:46 AM

What technique do professionals use in order for the title of a movie to appear like it belongs with the movie?

Everytime i create a title it looks flat and unresponsive. Its as though i took a crayon and drew on top of the frame. I tried to add shadows and few other suggestions found on this forum but for some reason it just doesnt look right. Then i explored 3d title programs. I manipulated perspective and light sources but it comes out as "cartoonish."

Generally i use an easy to read font with either a black or white color depending on the scene. I guess what i am looking for is a tip or trick that somehow brings together the movie and the text element.

Comments

TorS wrote on 4/30/2003, 2:58 AM

Colour, texture, background, movement and sound (yes: sound) works to integrate or disintegrate text with video. Typography too, by the way.
Tor

Grazie wrote on 4/30/2003, 4:24 AM

Star - "What technique do professionals use in order for the title of a movie to appear like it belongs with the movie?"

This is a massive subject and your further comment - "Everytime i create a title it looks flat and unresponsive. " really says it all for me. You've entered the world of Graphic art! PLUS moving pictures and sound. My advice would be to take your time. You have the correct approach when you say you aren't satisfied - THI IS WHERE IT STARTS - sorry not to be able to give you a quick fix. You appear to be very aware of the functions available to us all - this is only the start.

Here are some tips:

1 - Start REALLY seeing and looking at titles you percieve.

2 - Sit down with a notepad and pencil and NOTE down both good and bad reasons why YOU think something on your TV looks Excellent:Great:Average:Bland:Bad:Terrible - I promise you there is stacks of rubbish graphics.

3 - Try and disassemble what you think the Art Dept has done. What methods and how you think you could replicate it in Vegas. Note where a graphic adds to OR BETTER where you think it detracts from the activity on the screen. Now have a go in Vegas.

4 - Tape Newscasts; adverts; clips of things you wish to refer to. Make your own library of Horrors and Heroes. Get them listed and easily retreivable for your further viewing. - Oh yes the web is an excellent place to start in finding some real horrors and heroes.

5 - If you haven't had any arts training - apologies if you have - get a primer on graphic art and study the many and SIMPLE rules - Rule of thirds; Negative space; colour theory; publications and art layout methods etc etc

6 - Really study and analyse newspapers; brochures; handouts etc etc - Again take written notes on what you think works.

Big APOLOGY here - "I guess what i am looking for is a tip or trick that somehow brings together the movie and the text element. " - sorry Star, there aint one!

When I get booked to do, even the simplest of graphic work, I spend much time considering who the final audience is going to be; what the client thinks they want; will it get over the message; does it have to be straightforward - technical stuff; should it appeal to all age ranges; do I know and understand what the product/item/reason is being put over; do I have enough and suitable source/research material to go ahead . . . yes it is vast . .. bit it is great fun!

See if you can get on some simple arts/graphics course - yeah? - Aplogies if you've already taken one. Then maybe you need to consider upskilling further. It takes time and it is a fun journey . . . relax into it . . . let it flow . . . oooh I'm getting quite lyrical!

And don't forget your initial post here, and stand by it, " . . i am looking for is a tip or trick that somehow brings together the movie and the text element. " . . may your search continue! This is the true sign of an artist!

Best regards

grazie

kameronj wrote on 4/30/2003, 7:20 AM

Grazie...

Damn good answer!! :->

craftech wrote on 4/30/2003, 7:49 AM

Here's the abbreviated version:
....Stick with white letters..

John

rextilleon wrote on 4/30/2003, 8:09 AM

It depends upon what your goals are--Saul Bass did the titles for many Hitchcock films---they kind of prefigured what was to come. Then again your titles can be purely for purposes of information.

bakerja wrote on 4/30/2003, 2:31 PM

This is a particularly interesting subject. I have been doing credits and titles for a while now and I just finished my first project in v4. I was not at all satisfied with the overall quality of the text generator in Vegas. I was always able to produce acceptable results in previous vegas versions, but everything looks softer in V4. I can't quite put my finger on it. I ended up using Xara 3d to generate the text and made photoshop files with transparency for the timeline. The photshop files look clean and crisp and put the text generator to shame. Has anything changed in V4 or am I just getting old?

JAB

stormstereo wrote on 4/30/2003, 7:58 PM

For starters I would use 90% white instead of 100% (or somewhere around there). Maybe add the film grain plug-in too. Absolutely motion blur, it adds film feel. Experiment with it and supersampling 'til you find a good setting. Maybe this helps.
Best/Tommy
www.stormstereo.com

starixiom wrote on 4/30/2003, 8:09 PM

Thanks to everyone for their replies. In answer to a few questions, no i never attended art school or even a graphic design class. I might look into a class at the local university or maybe just spend some time at the library.

One thing that i had never thought of but is important is what TOrs said about sound. I think if i can focus on movement as it applies to sound then maybe it would be presented with more of a polished look.

Keep it simple is the philosophy i like to apply. I always think that bold/simple/white letters will always be impressive.

Side Note: When creating titles in Swish or any other program is it better to use a green or blue background? I never understood the diffences be between the two.

dmurf wrote on 4/30/2003, 9:27 PM

I'll tell you want I do, and it's pretty quick once you've invested some time. I use Photoshop, create a new image at 655 x 480 and a transparent background, then place the text where I'd like it to appear on the video. You can always move it around once inside Vegas. Then I'll use a layer style to create simple, yet quite impressive type settings. Choosing the best font is also important, but it sounds as though you've figured that out already.
For less than $30, you can pick-up a book called One-click Wow. It's been the best money I've ever spent. Then once you create a layer style that looks good, you can save it, and then reuse it whenever you like. It'll take some experimentation, but it did not take me long to figure out all of the tools under the layer style menu.
Fyi, another cheap, but invaluable tool I use is called Font Xplorer. You can download it at www.moonsoftware.com. You can type in the text you need for the video, and then browse through all of your fonts to see which one looks the best.
Take luck.