How to add animated text messages to a video in Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, CapCut, Final Cut Pro and After Effects

A chat overlay is only useful if your editor agrees to show what is behind it. There are three exports, five editors, and no single answer. This is normal: the answer depends on the editor, and the editors have not been asked to agree. Below is what each one documents, what it does not, and the export that works anyway.

Which export for which editor

WebM with alpha: small file, uneven support

Video · WebM with alpha is VP9 video with a transparent background, one small file, recorded at 30 fps in real time. It is the right export for browsers and for editors that read it. For the five editors here, treat it as a bonus rather than the plan.

Premiere Pro: PNG sequence

1. 1Export a PNG sequence. In Text Message Animator choose PNG sequence, with the background set to transparent, and unzip the .zip into its own folder.
2. 2Set the frame rate. Open Preferences › Media and pick 30 fps under Indeterminate Media Timebase, because the frames are 30 fps.
3. 3Import it as one clip. File › Import, select the first numbered file, tick Image Sequence and open. Adobe says each numbered file then becomes one frame of a video clip.
4. 4Place it above your footage. Put the clip on a track over the video. The transparent areas show the footage underneath.

Premiere reads the sequence from the equal-length numbers at the end of the file names, so leave the names as they came. If you still get hundreds of separate stills, the tick box was missed.

After Effects: PNG sequence

1. 1Export and unzip the PNG sequence as above.
2. 2Import. File › Import › File, select the first PNG, tick PNG Sequence and open.
3. 3Check the rate. Adobe says a still sequence uses the Sequence Footage preference, 30 fps by default, which matches the export.
4. 4Drop it into the composition above the footage layer.

DaVinci Resolve: PNG sequence

1. 1Export and unzip the PNG sequence.
2. 2Show sequences as clips. On the Media page open Media Storage, use the three-dot menu and set Frame Display Mode to Sequence.
3. 3Import. Browse to the folder. The frames appear as a single clip; drag it into the media pool.
4. 4Place it on a track above your footage. PNG with alpha is on Blackmagic's supported list, so the transparency stays.

Final Cut Pro: green screen

Apple's list of media formats does not include WebM or VP9, and Apple documents PNG as a still image, not as a sequence you import as a clip. So the plan is an ordinary opaque video with a green background, which Final Cut Pro has a keyer for.

1. 1Export on green. Choose the green screen background (#00B140) and export Video · WebM.
2. 2Convert to MP4. An opaque green video needs no alpha, so any converter will do. With FFmpeg: ffmpeg -i chat.webm -c:v libx264 -pix_fmt yuv420p chat.mp4.
3. 3Import the MP4 and connect it above the clip in the storyline.
4. 4Add the keyer. In the Effects browser choose Green Screen Keyer. Apple's effect samples the green and removes it, with spill removal on by default.

CapCut: green screen

1. 1Export on green and, if your CapCut version refuses the WebM, convert it to MP4 as above. CapCut's own import list names MP4 and MOV.
2. 2Add it as an overlay on a track above your footage.
3. 3Key it. Select the clip and click Cutout, tick Chroma key, and pick the green with the colour picker.
4. 4Adjust. Raise Strength until the green is gone without holes, then use Shadow to clear the green fringe on the edges.

New to the format? How to make a text message video covers the script and the settings. Choosing a tool? Best text message animation tools compares seven. For music and sound effects, Music & SFX has openly licensed tracks.