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How to Create a Title Sequence in After Effects

Although the artistic value of a film or TV show may be obvious, many consider the title sequence to be a work of art in and of itself. The title sequence is the short clip of film that prefaces a film or television show. The clip often combines music along with film and provides a hint about what will be explored or discussed later in the film. Title sequences also often display information about who made the film or show as well as the actors. Although television and film title sequences are professional creations, more basic title sequences can be created using Adobe's After Effects.

Instructions

    • 1

      Download and install Adobe After Effects directly from the Adobe website (see Resources). A fully functional trial is available in addition to the version available for purchase.

    • 2

      Launch the software from its installation location on the computer's hard disk and create a new composition by clicking "Composition," "New Composition" from the top of the After Effects home screen.

    • 3

      Import the different media that will be used in the title sequence by clicking "File," "Import." From within the "Import" menu, choose "File Import" to import a single file or choose "Multiple Files" to import many media files.

    • 4

      Introduce the text that will be used in the title sequence by inserting a new layer. Click "Layer," "New," "Text." Enter the text that will be used in the box that now appears.

    • 5

      Use the "Effects" menu to manipulate the text and multimedia now displayed on the screen. Because After Effects offers a wide variety of manipulation and effects options, experimentation yields the best results. To add an effect to a specific item, click on the object to select it and then select "Effects." Next, select an effect from the "Effects" menu. For instance, to make the text glow, click the "Stylize" option and then click "Glow."

    • 6

      Ensure that all of the text and multimedia needed for the title sequence has been properly manipulated and appears as it should in the actual title sequence. If necessary, import more media files or add more text using the appropriate menus.

    • 7

      Complete the title sequence creation process by adding the composition to the render queue. Click on the "Composition" menu and select "Add to Render Queue." In the Render Queue panel that now appears, click on the "Output To" link and choose a location for the movie to be saved. Click "Render." A status indicator shows how much progress has been made in rendering the title sequence.

Film Production

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