The title should be informative, describe the contents of the movie, and arouse interest. If it’s also a striking turn of phrase, so much the better.

When it comes to presentation, the Title Editor gives almost unlimited scope for creative visuals. It’s one place in your production where you’re not tied to the reality of actual footage, so you can let your fancy run free.

Of course, the ultimate goal is to communicate, so some basics almost always hold true. For instance, a concise title in a large, legible font is likelier to get its message across than one that is over- decorated or too long.

The following combinations of background and text are easy to read: white with red, yellow with black, and white with green. Exercise caution with very white titles on a very black background. Some video systems are unable to handle contrast ratios in excess of 1:40 and are unable to reproduce such titles in detail.

As a rule of thumb, a title should be displayed long enough to be read twice. Allow about three seconds for a title with ten letters. Allow an additional second of on-screen time for every five additional letters.

Besides postproduction titles, natural titles like directional signs, street signs or title pages of local newspapers also create interesting possibilities.