# Phrase captions on a chip

Edit / Edit effect / Captions. Checked 2026-11-13.

The muted viewer follows word for word, and the captions never cover the face or the board.

- Use when: Talking heads and split layouts.
- Phrase: captions of two or three words, white bold sans on a dark box, timed to the words
- Page: https://directorchair.ai/effect/caption-chips
- JSON: https://directorchair.ai/api/effect/caption-chips.json

## Watch out

- Six of the nine measured reference edits use phrase captions of two or three words per chunk. More than three or four words in a chunk is a listed failure in the board styles. (measured; Director Chair measurements of published shorts (nine entries, measured 22 and 23 Oct 2026))
- On a split layout the chip sits on the seam between the two zones, so the eye moves between face and board without crossing either. (practitioner; Director Chair measurement of a published short, Oct 2026)
- An automatic edit shows captions per chunk. A word that pops or colours on its beat needs an animated layer. (practitioner; Director Chair field notes on editing)

## Prompts

### Any chat model

```
Give me an edit brief: where it goes on the timeline, the exact settings, and what to check before export, for a short video about [your product], for [your audience]. The technique is phrase captions on a chip: the muted viewer follows word for word, and the captions never cover the face or the board. How it works: captions of two or three words, white bold sans on a dark box, timed to the words. It is right for: talking heads and split layouts. Six of the nine measured reference edits use phrase captions of two or three words per chunk. On a split layout the chip sits on the seam between the two zones, so the eye moves between face and board without crossing either. Be concrete: numbers, seconds and settings, no theory. Ask me one question first if something you need is missing.
```

## Goes well with

- Coloured keyword in the caption: https://directorchair.ai/effect/caption-keyword-colour
- Speaker over a board: https://directorchair.ai/effect/stacked-speaker-board
- Caption safe zones: https://directorchair.ai/effect/caption-safe-zones

## Source

Own words from our measurements of published shorts and Director Chair field notes on editing

Text CC BY 4.0, Director Chair (directorchair.ai). Reference clips and their card texts belong to their makers.