Web Development: How to Make a Display Video in Premiere Pro + Free Templates

How to Make a Display Video in Premiere Pro + Free Templates

Have noticed that LCD displays are everywhere? As costs have fallen, digital displays have quickly replaced printed bulletin boards.

This format is called a display video. They're usually left on loop and share news, updates, and information in shared spaces. You'll rarely walk into an office now that doesn't feature a large screen with a display video on loop.

In this tutorial, I'm going to show you how to create a display video in Adobe Premiere Pro. We'll use an Envato Elements template to create a looping, easy-to-sample video in less time than ever.

What is A Display Video?

Display videos are helpful for those large-format screens that you might have in a meeting room or lobby. Instead of printing handouts or hiring someone to repeat a message, a display video can share information.

Display videos usually play on loop. You'll see them broadcasting important company updates or key information. It might seem like a simple tool, but it can help spread messages that your co-workers might have overlooked in their inboxes.

Premiere video on wall — With the help of Adobe Premiere, you can easily create a display video. (Mock-up courtesy of Placeit.)

In this tutorial, we're going to learn how to create a display video that you can leave on loop. Creating a display video makes it easier to share news and keep everyone in your area up-to-date.

How to Make a Display Video in Adobe Premiere Pro

If you're ready to create a display video, you might be wondering how. In this section, we're going to use a pre-built template to make this process easy. Let's learn.

1. Choose a Display Video Template

The best way to create a display video is by starting with a template. In this tutorial, we're going to work with the Classic Display template. This Premiere Pro template makes it easy to create a display video of your own. It's just one template included with Envato Elements, the all-you-can-download service for creatives.

Classic Display Video — Use the Classic Display video template and this tutorial to create a looping display video of your own.

This template features a neutral design and easy-to-update scenes. That makes it easy to constantly update it with the latest in workplace news.

Free Template Alternatives

For a free template alternative, check out Fragment Blur Opener and Split Frame Opener from Mixkit. You can download and use these Premiere Pro templates completely free of charge.

2. Open the Scenes

Every Premiere Pro template is made up of a series of compositions. If you're coming from a world of working in Photoshop, for example, you can compare these to layers.

On Premiere Pro's timeline, you'll see these compositions in sequence. In our selected project, these are labelled as Scenes. Each one is a different set of animations and placeholders that we'll update in this tutorial.

Update scene composition — Double click a layer titled **Scene** to open individual compositions and start to edit them.

To open a scene, double click on it. Premiere Pro will jump to the specific composition with the details for the scene.

3. Update the Scene

Each scene is simple: it's a series of text layers and images that are easy to update. After you open a scene, you'll see those layers on the timeline. Then, double click on a layer to update it.

While you're editing a video, press Spacebar to play the preview. You'll see the playhead progress on the timeline. This helps you pinpoint what layer to update as you edit the video template.

In our example, let's double-click on Text 4. This opens the individual text layer. Then, just click in the text box and type over it with your customizations.

Update text on the layer — After you click through a text layer, just click in the boxes and type over the placeholder with your specifics.

Jump back to the tab labelled "Scene (#)" to play a preview. Then, switch back to Final Comp to play the finished video with all updates.

After you've updated one scene in the template, you've got the hang of creating a display video. Just update the other scenes with your selected content and you're all finished. Every scene functions similarly and features the placeholders you need to create a display video.

4. Export the Finished Video

Once you've finished customizing the display template, it's time to export the finished video. Playing the template in Premiere Pro isn't practical because it continually re-renders the file, leading to slower playback.

To export a video, go to the File > Export > Media menu. On the pop-up window, leave the settings on Format H.264 for a slightly compressed video that's easy to play. Many times, you'll use a repurposed, low power device to drive playback. Compressing the video ensures that you won't stretch the device too far.

Export video — Use a compressed format like **H.264** to downsize the finished file and make it easy to play for any device (like a repurposed computer or Android TV stick, for example.)

Press Export. You'll find a finished MP4 video that's ready for playback. Read on to find out how to play it on loop on your display.

5. (Optional) Use a Looping Video Player

The important part of working with a display video is leaving it on loop. That makes it easier to maintain your display without constantly restarting the playback.

I use VLC Media Player for all of my video playback, including running displays. You can download it for free on VideoLAN's website. This open-source software makes it free and easy to play video files.

Once you open the video in VLC, use the Playback > Repeat All option. This will loop the video repeatedly so that your screen continues showing the display video.

VLC Repeat All — Use VLC's **Playback > Repeat All** option to continually play the video file.

With the help of looped playback, you'll never need to touch your screen and update the options. Simply set it to turn off at certain times on the panel itself to save energy.

The Best Source for Video Template Downloads for Adobe Premiere Pro

This tutorial shows the power of using Adobe Premiere Pro templates. As you saw, creating a display video is a breeze when you leverage the power of pre-built videos.

The best source for video templates is Envato Elements. Why not use an unlimited service like Elements for your next video? You can experiment with and test as many videos as it takes to find the perfect fit. Each comes at no additional cost.

Envato Elements library — Use these Premiere Pro templates - and so much more - to produce your next video on a shoestring budget.

In addition to video templates, Elements features tons of extras that make any video better. That includes stock footage, graphics, and background music. One subscription unlocks all of those for a flat rate.

There's truly a template for everything when you use Envato Elements. You don't have to produce everything on a blank canvas with the help of templates.