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Is it possible to align text and add simple text with no animation?

I really want to edit a video but I want simple text which can also be aligned easily. Is it possible?

If so, how??

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 12.1

Posted on Jan 3, 2022 10:07 PM

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Posted on Jan 4, 2022 10:26 AM

There's not much flexibility with iMovie titles. They are animated and generally their position on the screen cannot be adjusted. There are alignment tools in the title toolbar, but often awkward to use with the various title text boxes in different templates. Sometimes using the space bar to align text is easier. You can create multiple lines of text by placing your cursor at the end of a line, holding down the Option key, and pressing the Return key. That works for most of the titles.


To create a non-animated aligned text you can create a transparency screen with the Preview app on your Mac and type in a title, and then overlay the transparency title onto your clip in the timeline, using the Picture in Picture feature.


To create a transparency screen, open a duplicate of any random photo in the Preview app on your Mac. Do an Edit/Select All, Edit/Delete. That will leave you with a blank transparency screen. Then go to Tools/Annotate/Text to create a text box on the transparency screen. Chose your font, font size, and color from the font selection button (the large A). Type your text into the text box. Save and drag into your iMovie project. Overlay it onto your desired clip in the timeline, or over a black background. Use Picture in Picture to insert the title and adjust its size and position.



-- Rich

2 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Jan 4, 2022 10:26 AM in response to w_w0_0

There's not much flexibility with iMovie titles. They are animated and generally their position on the screen cannot be adjusted. There are alignment tools in the title toolbar, but often awkward to use with the various title text boxes in different templates. Sometimes using the space bar to align text is easier. You can create multiple lines of text by placing your cursor at the end of a line, holding down the Option key, and pressing the Return key. That works for most of the titles.


To create a non-animated aligned text you can create a transparency screen with the Preview app on your Mac and type in a title, and then overlay the transparency title onto your clip in the timeline, using the Picture in Picture feature.


To create a transparency screen, open a duplicate of any random photo in the Preview app on your Mac. Do an Edit/Select All, Edit/Delete. That will leave you with a blank transparency screen. Then go to Tools/Annotate/Text to create a text box on the transparency screen. Chose your font, font size, and color from the font selection button (the large A). Type your text into the text box. Save and drag into your iMovie project. Overlay it onto your desired clip in the timeline, or over a black background. Use Picture in Picture to insert the title and adjust its size and position.



-- Rich

Is it possible to align text and add simple text with no animation?

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