How to Make Scrolling Credits in Final Cut Pro

One thing that seems standard at the end of a movie is the scrolling credits. This is done so that a large number of cast and crewmembers can get their due, without having to use lengthy text slates for each one. This is an easy process to do in Final Cut Pro and can be a great way to classically end your video.

Once you have all your final sequences in the Timeline, you are ready to place your credits at the end. To do this go to the Effects tab in the Browser. Go down to Video Generator, and select the Text option. From this go to the Scrolling Text option and drag it into the viewer. Once here you can click on the Control tab, where you are given the menu where you can type in the desired text, select size and font, and the placing of the text on the screen. Once you are done you click on the Video tab, drag the video from the Viewer down into the Timeline, and then you have your scrolling text.

How fast the text on the screen goes depends solely on how long the video box is in the Timeline. If you want the credits to go by rather quickly you can shorten it up, and if you want it to be slower and more dramatic you can stretch it. To make it look very much like standard move credits you want the text to be relatively small, the lines to be close together, and to move very slowly. To do this you set a small font size in the control setting, lower the spacing, lower the leading, and stretch the actual text clip out significantly. The best way to use the scrolling text is to put stationary text slates at both the beginning and end, for above the line positions and copyright information, respectively.

This is just another function in Final Cut Pro that will add to the professional look of your final video project. Try playing around with spacing, size, and speed, until you find settings that suit your vision. This is just another aspect that needs to be well considered before using.