How to Animate a Text Message Conversation in a Video

Step by step

1. 1

   Choose the kind of exchange

   Chat Thread carries a whole back-and-forth between two people. Typing Bubble is for the suspense before one important reply. DM Notification suits a single message arriving from above. Comment Stack shows audience reactions under a video, and Reaction Float adds rising reactions to a live moment.

2. 2

   Write the messages

   Messages takes up to 8 lines of 120 characters. On Chat Thread, type them in order and the sides alternate by themselves. Typing Bubble and DM Notification use the first line, and DM Notification's Title is the sender. Comment Stack takes handles in Labels. Set Primary and Secondary for the bubbles.

3. 3

   Let Duration set the pace

   Chat Thread spreads its entrances across the clip, so add time when you add messages: four lines fill the 10-second default. Typing Bubble spends about 45 percent of its clip on the dots, so a longer Duration means longer suspense. Choose 9:16 first, then raise Size.

4. 4

   Decide what sits behind it

   All five start transparent, so a conversation can land on a gameplay clip or a video of the room. Export WebM with alpha for CapCut or Resolve, and a PNG sequence for Premiere Pro or After Effects. When the chat owns the whole frame, set a solid background and export MP4.

5. 5

   Cut the beats together

   In CapCut, import the WebM to an overlay track above your background footage, then add a sound effect on each bubble's entrance. In Premiere Pro, import with Image Sequence ticked and cut from Typing Bubble straight into the next Chat Thread so the reply lands on the cut.

Where it is used

• Text story videos

  A vertical story told entirely in messages, laid over satisfying gameplay footage, with Typing Bubble holding the last reply back until just before the twist.

• Comedy sketches

  A sketch where a character's phone conversation appears beside them in the frame, so the audience reads the awkward reply while the actor reacts to it silently.

• Creator comment replies

  A creator answering viewers, with Comment Stack bringing questions in one at a time under the face camera, and handles typed in by hand from the actual comment section.

Presets

5

Default duration

5 to 10 seconds, up to 60

Messages per clip

Up to 8, 120 characters each

Aspect ratios

16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:5

Which format should you export?

Transparent WebM so the conversation lands on your background, and you are not stuck with a plate that does not match the scene.

Format

MP4 · WebM · PNG sequence

Alpha

WebM or PNG sequence

Resolution

720p to 8K

Aspect

16:9 · 9:16 · 1:1 · 4:5

License

Commercial use included

Three tips that make it look intentional

• Short messages only: long paragraphs break the illusion.
• Leave a beat on the typing indicator before the reply appears.
• Avoid copying a specific messaging app's exact colors and shapes.

Three things people get wrong

• Delivering every message at the same interval, which reads as a script rather than a conversation.
• Writing messages longer than anybody types on a phone.
• Copying a real messaging app's exact colors and bubble shape, which is a trademark risk for no creative gain.

Frequently asked