What Is "Safe Title" And "Safe Action"?

Red is unsafe. Safe action is in yellow. Safe title is in green.

What Are Safe Title and Safe Action?  And why do animators need to know? The answer is that an understanding of the language of cinematography and film is part of what our students learn on their professional journey.

After all, animators are film-makers, and we need to be familiar with industry standard terms. We need to know not just about animation but also about cameras; how to use them and what to do with them.

So, what exactly, do the words "safe action" and "safe title" mean?

Look at the graphic above. This is your screen, the area you are working in. The area in red is unsafe. This means that you can't necessarily rely on anyone seeing anything that is in this area, when it is broadcast. Why? Because broadcast often tends to crop at the edges, meaning that part of your work gets lost.

Safe action is the bit in yellow. Safe action ensures that the most important parts of the image are seen by the majority of viewers.

Safe Title is the smaller bit - the section in green. This area is where your graphics (i.e. your titles) will go. be safely seen by all television screens, no matter when they were made, unless the user has modified the settings. This is where it is safe to display text or full-screen graphics.

A similar and related concept is that of the "Magic Circle", which I learned from director Brad Bird. You can read about it here.

And for more on the art of cinematography, follow this link.

To find out more about Animation Apprentice, click here for a link to Frequently Asked Questions. To sign up for our next classroom at Animation Apprentice, follow this link.