Cutsio Blog

POP UP Text Tutorial in Davinci Resolve | Text Bounce Effect

Learn how to create a dynamic pop-up text bounce effect in DaVinci Resolve using the Fusion page, Transform nodes, and advanced spline easing.

To create a dynamic pop-up text bounce effect in DaVinci Resolve, you must animate the scale of a Text+ node within the Fusion page. By setting three specific keyframes on a Transform node (start small, overshoot large, settle normal) and using the Spline editor to smooth the motion curve, you create a kinetic, bouncy title animation that is perfect for high-retention social media videos.

What is the pop-up text bounce effect?

The pop-up text bounce effect is a kinetic typography animation where a word scales up rapidly from zero, slightly overshoots its final size, and then snaps back down to its resting position.

This creates a spring-like, elastic motion that draws the viewer's eye. It is heavily utilized in short-form content (TikToks, YouTube Shorts, Reels) to emphasize keywords, visualize sound effects, or maintain high visual energy during dialogue-heavy segments. Unlike a simple fade-in, a bounce effect feels physical and snappy.

How to set up the Text+ node for the bounce effect?

To animate the scale of text with precise control, you must use a Text+ node and access the Fusion page, as standard titles do not offer the necessary graph editing tools.

  1. Add a Text+ Node: On the Edit page, open the Effects Library. Go to Titles and drag a Text+ title onto your timeline above your video track.
  2. Format the Text: In the Inspector panel, type your desired word. Choose a bold, high-impact font (like Montserrat Black or The Bold Font), as thick fonts show scaling animations better than thin ones.
  3. Enter Fusion: With the Text+ clip selected, click the "Fusion" tab at the bottom of the screen. You will see your Template (or Text1) node connected to MediaOut1.

How to keyframe the pop-up bounce animation?

The core of the bounce effect requires three specific keyframes applied to a Transform node.

  1. Add a Transform Node: Click the line connecting your Text node and MediaOut. Press Shift+Spacebar, type "Transform," and press Enter to insert a Transform node (XF).
  2. Set the Starting Keyframe: Move the playhead to the very first frame. In the Transform Inspector, drop the "Size" value to 0.0 (the text disappears). Click the diamond icon next to "Size" to set the first keyframe.
  3. Set the Overshoot Keyframe: Move forward exactly 4 to 6 frames. Change the "Size" value to 1.2 or 1.3 (20-30% larger than its final size). A new keyframe is automatically set.
  4. Set the Resting Keyframe: Move forward another 3 to 4 frames. Change the "Size" value to exactly 1.0.
  5. Preview the Motion: Press play. The text will pop up, scale too large, and shrink back down. However, the motion will currently look stiff and robotic.

How to use the Spline Editor to smooth the bounce?

To make the pop-up effect feel elastic and organic, you must adjust the interpolation curve of the keyframes using the Spline editor.

  1. Open the Spline Graph: Click the "Spline" button at the top right of the Fusion interface.
  2. Reveal the Keyframes: Check the box next to your "Transform" node in the Spline list to display your three keyframes on the graph.
  3. Smooth the Curve: Click and drag a box to highlight all three keyframes. Press S on your keyboard to smooth the curve (converting them from linear to bezier).
  4. Adjust the Handles: Click the middle keyframe (the overshoot). Drag its bezier handle slightly to the left. This makes the initial pop-up incredibly fast, with a slightly slower, smoother settle into the resting position.

How to add motion blur to the pop-up effect?

A fast scaling animation looks unnatural without motion blur. Adding blur bridges the gap between the rapid keyframes.

  1. Select the Transform Node: Click your Transform node in the Fusion tree.
  2. Enable Motion Blur: In the Inspector panel, click the "Settings" tab (the gear icon).
  3. Check the Box: Check the box labeled "Motion Blur."
  4. Increase Quality: Increase the "Quality" slider to 4 or 6. This tells DaVinci Resolve to render more sub-frames, resulting in a smoother, more cinematic blur during the fastest part of the pop-up animation.

How to save the pop-up effect as a reusable preset?

Building a pop-up effect from scratch for every word in a YouTube Short is impossible. You must save this node tree as a Macro to drag and drop it instantly.

  1. Select Nodes: In Fusion, highlight both your Text node and the Transform node.
  2. Create Macro: Right-click the selected nodes and choose Macro > Create Macro.
  3. Name the Macro: Name it "Pop Up Text."
  4. Publish Parameters: Check the boxes for "Styled Text," "Font," "Color," and any other text formatting options you want to be able to change quickly on the Edit page. Do not check the Size parameters, as they contain your animation.
  5. Save to Library: Click File > Save As and save it to the DaVinci Resolve titles folder (Templates > Edit > Titles). You can now drag this exact bouncing text effect from your Edit page Effects Library onto any project.

How to speed up captioning workflows?

If you are adding pop-up text to emphasize individual words in a fast-paced social media video, manual placement is extremely time-consuming.

Professional editors speed up this process by using AI text-based workflows:

* Pre-Edit the Audio: They upload the raw video to Cutsio and extract the exact sentences they need using FCPXML or standard XML exports.

* Auto-Caption: Once the timeline is built in DaVinci Resolve, they use the Studio version's native auto-captioning tool to generate the text layer automatically.

* Apply the Macro: Instead of manually typing words, they simply apply their saved "Pop Up Text" macro to the specific words they want to emphasize within the auto-generated caption track.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Can I create a bounce effect without going into the Fusion page?

Yes, you can manually keyframe the "Zoom" parameter of a standard basic title in the Edit page Inspector. However, the Edit page does not offer a robust Spline editor for adjusting the easing curves. A manual Edit page bounce will always look stiff and linear compared to a Fusion bounce.

Why is my text popping up from the corner instead of the center?

If the text scales from the corner, your anchor point is off-center. In the Transform node within Fusion, ensure the "Center" X and Y values are set to 0.5. If you need to move the text to the top or bottom of the screen, move it using the Transform node after the animation, or adjust the layout in the Text node itself, leaving the Transform node centered.

How do I make the text bounce out (disappear) at the end?

To make the text pop away, you reverse the keyframes at the end of the clip. Go to the end, set a keyframe at Size 1.0. Move forward 3 frames, set Size to 1.2 (overshoot). Move forward 4 frames, set Size to 0.0. Apply the same Spline smoothing to these ending keyframes.

By mastering the Transform node and Spline easing in Fusion, you can create a dynamic, elastic pop-up text effect that dramatically increases viewer retention in your DaVinci Resolve edits.