Formatting On-Screen Text Inside Video Scripts

The short answer

On-screen text is any word the viewer reads in the frame, such as titles, captions, and labels. Marking it clearly in the script keeps it from being invented in the edit by someone guessing at your intent.

Write the exact words you want on screen rather than a description of them. The artist copies what you wrote instead of paraphrasing and drifting away from your meaning.

Keep each on-screen line short enough to read in the seconds it stays visible. If the viewer cannot finish it in time, the words are decoration rather than information.

Writing for the eye

People read slower on screen than they hear speech. Cut on-screen text down to the few words that carry the point, and trust the narration to handle the rest of the context.

Keep one idea per title. A card with several thoughts gets skimmed and then lost before the viewer absorbs any of it, which wastes the space it takes.

Write the visible words in full so nobody has to interpret shorthand later. A complete phrase in the script becomes a complete phrase on screen.

Marking text in the script

Flag on-screen text with a consistent marker so it stands apart from spoken lines. A bracket or a short label works when you use it every single time without exception.

Note the position when it matters, such as lower third or center. Otherwise leave placement to the designer who knows the frame better than the page does.

Record timing for each text element, anchored to the spoken line it supports, so the motion build lands on the right beat instead of floating loose.

If the viewer reads it, write it, and keep it short.

Accessibility and review

Spell out tricky names and numbers so caption tools and artists get them right on the first pass. A misspelled name on screen is hard to unsee once it ships.

Read every on-screen line aloud at the speed it will display. If it feels rushed in your own mouth, trim it before the build starts and the read gets slower.

Check contrast and size in the script notes so the designer is not guessing about readability on a small phone screen in bright daylight.

Matching text to the voiceover

On-screen text should support the narration rather than repeat it word for word. If the narrator says the phrase, the title can carry the number instead.

Read the script once with the text elements in place and listen for overlap. When the ear and the eye receive the same message at once, one of them is wasted.

Adjust the script when the two clash. A small rewrite to the narration often fixes a crowded screen faster than shrinking the type.

On-screen text and captions are not the same job even when they share a line. A caption repeats what the viewer hears for accessibility, while a title adds a point the narration does not cover. Mark them differently in the script so the artist does not merge the two by mistake. When the distinction is clear on the page, the final frame shows only the text that earns its place. That discipline keeps the screen calm while still serving viewers who cannot hear the track. If a label repeats the narration, cut it rather than shrink it, because a smaller duplicate is still a duplicate.

Key takeaways

• Write the exact words that will appear on screen.
• Keep each title to one short idea.
• Use a consistent marker for on-screen text.
• Spell out names and numbers for captions.
• Note position and timing when they matter.