PE: Editable Subtitle For The Disc Menu's Main Menu Page

INTRODUCTION

The main menu page and scene selection page of the Adobe Movie Menu theme each comes with an editable page title. A few offer an editable subtitle* to accompany the main menu editable page title.
Examples of the title plus subtitle design are

• Slideshows/Pan and Zoom (See Figure 1)

• Slideshows/Wedding Doves

• Kids Corner/Toy Train

• Movie Genre/Musical

• Travel/Beach Resort

• Wedding/Outdoor Wedding 

Figure 1. Subtitle Editable Text Found In Movie Menu Customization Area For Slideshows/Pan and Zoom Main Menu.

ISSUE

What to do if the Movie Menu theme that you prefer to use does not come with an editable subtitle in that theme's main menu page?

SOLUTION

To add an editable subtitle in the theme's main menu page, the .psd file for the theme is edited in Photoshop CS or higher.

• The target for the edit is the Title major layer group in the Layers Palette of the main menu's .psd file.

• A text layer is created with text being the word Subtitle, and the layer is given the coding appropriate for the program's language setting. For English, the code would be (en_US), and the name of the layer would be (en_US) Subtitle.

• Then a new layer group is created above the new text layer and named (^^). The new text layer is dragged into the folder icon on the panel of that new (^^) layer group in order to place the new text layer within the new (^^) layer group.

• The new (^^) layer group is next dragged into the folder icon on the panel for the existing Title major layer group above it in order to place the new (^^) layer group in the existing Title major layer group.

HOW TO

The example shows how to add a subtitle to the General/Aquarium Movie Menu main menu page. The Movie Menu theme's file that is edited in Photoshop CS5.1 extended to add the subtitle to the main menu is the one named Aquarium_pal_w_mm.psd. And, it is found in the Windows 7 Professional SP1 64 bit path
Local Disk C\Program Data\Adobe\Premiere Elements\13.0\Online\DVD Templates\All_Lang\General\Aquarium.

 STEP 1

Open the Aquarium main menu .psd file in Photoshop CS5.1 extended. And, see the Title major layer group at the top of the other major layer groups in the Layer Palette of the .psd file. See Figure 1.

Figure 1. Aquarium Main Menu Page In Photoshop CS5.1 Extended. Title Major Layer Group And The Title That It Provides On Screen.

STEP 2

When the Title major layer group is opened, it is seen that it contains the (^^) layer group which contains text layers, each with the text "Movie Title Here" but each in a different language. The text layer selected in this example is the one for English since Premiere Elements was installed for English as the setup language. See Figure 2.

Figure 2. Photoshop CS5.1 Extended Editing Of Aquarium Main Menu Psd. Title Major Layer Group Opened To Reveal Its (^^) Layer Group Containing The Text Layer Responsible For The Main Menu's "Movie Title Here".

Close the (^^) layer group containing the text layer for "Movie Title Here". Click on the Title major layer group to highlight that panel. Using Photoshop's horizontal type tool, create a new text layer which should appear immediately above the closed (^^) layer group for "Movie Title Here" The text for this new text layer is "Subtitles". The new text layer is named (en_US) Subtitle. Drop Shadow is applied to the Subtitle text using the selected new text layer and Photoshop's Image Menu/Layer Styles/Drop Shadow. See Figure 3.

Figure 3. Photoshop CS5.1 Extended Editing Of Aquarium Main Menu PSD. Creation Of New Text Layer For Subtitle Text In Main Menu Page.

STEP 3 

Click on the new text layer named (en_US) Subtitle to highlight it. Then create a new layer group above that new text layer, using the Layer Palette's "create a new group" icon. Change the name of this new layer group to (^^),

STEP 4

Drag the text layer named (en_US) Subtitle into the folder icon on the panel for the newly created (^^) layer group. See 1 in Figure 4.

STEP 5

Drag that newly created (^^) layer group into the folder icon on the panel for the Title major layer group. See 2 in Figure 4.

Figure 4. Photoshop CS5.1 Extended Editing Of Aquarium Main Menu Psd. Dragging The Newly Created Text Layer for "Subtitles" Into The Newly Created (^^) Layer Group And Then Moving The Newly Created (^^) Layer Group Into The Existing Title Major Layer Group.

At this point, the Title major layer group contains two (^^) layer groups, one for the "Movie Title Here" text and the other for the "Subtitle" text. Mission accomplished.

COMMENTARY

Some preparation is recommended for obtaining the properties needed for the added text subtitle so that it blends in with the existing text title. In this example, information was gathered from the text that existed for the text "Movie Text Here"

"Movie Text Here"
Tekton Pro
Bold
50 pt
Crisp
Color 99eeff
Drop Shadow

And, the following were used
"Subtitle"
Tekton Pro
Bold
48 pt
Crisp
Color 99eeff
Drop Shadow

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* Difference here between title and subtitle can be a matter of font, font size, or other attributes of the titles. So, besides the title and subtitle aspects of the study, this study could be looked at as just "How to add more than one text title to a Movie Menu main menu page or a scene selection page?"


ATR