Video Captions

To comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, all videos must have captions available. The worst option is to provide no captions at all. 

Consider where your video will be displayed or published when making a decision about what type of captions to provide. For videos posted on social media, we recommend providing closed captions, or if that is not possible, use open captions. You can reference the social media platform guides for additional information.

Closed captions versus open captions — yes, it can be confusing!

  • Closed captions are created as a separate file and not burned into the video. If you plan on posting the video to a social media platform, closed captioning allows a person the flexibility to adjust the size and visibility of the text. Some social media platforms provide the option to upload a SubRip file (.srt) at the same time you upload the video file for closed captioning.  
    • Be aware: Some social media platforms auto-generate closed captions. These are often incorrect, so be sure to proofread and check them for accuracy.
    • Consider using a tool like Trint to transcribe your video's audio. Trint allows you to proof the transcript and export certain files, including .srt files.
  • Open captions are burned into the video during export. If you plan to share the video outside your organization or are unsure how it will be displayed, open captioning ensures the captions are always on screen. When using open captions, consider the text visibility and color contrast on screen.

Adding captions in Adobe Premiere Pro

To create captions, you can use the UC Davis motion graphics template (.mogrt) or use one of Adobe Premiere Pro’s workflows. Remember to create your video with captions in mind to prevent the captions overlapping your video’s text and graphics.

Follow these steps to add captions using the .mogrt in Adobe Premiere Pro. You can also watch a screen recording of the process. 

  1. Download the .mogrt file (16x9 or 9x16 aspect ratio).
  2. Open the Essential Graphics panel and click the “Install Motion Graphics template” button found in the lower right-hand corner.
  3. Open the .mogrt file you downloaded.
  4. Drop the graphic on the top layer in your timeline. (Note: The .mogrt files are sized to fit on 4K sequences and may require repositioning/resizing on smaller sequences.)
  5. Select the graphic and write your first caption (up to 40 characters) in the Essential Graphics panel under the edit tab.
  6. Cut the graphic and select the new section to write your next caption.
  7. Continue cutting sections of the graphic for all of your captions.

Live broadcasts

Captions for live broadcast events are also important. Consider using a service such as Vitac, which provides a live transcription during an event and integrates with platforms such as Zoom.