How to Create Glowing Neon Text in DaVinci Resolve 17

A glowing neon text title can be a great opener for your videos. Fusion in DaVinci Resolve 17 makes it easy to create a simple neon text effect for your project if you are looking to do it yourself and your own touch. We will cover the best way to use this new text effect and blend it with your videos.

Motion Array also offers some great downloadable and quick-to-use alternatives to save you time and frustration for those last-minute updates and changes. They are great to use with your YouTube videos and add an extra glow to your custom titles and promo copy.

Part 1: Create a Glowing Neon Text Effect in DaVinci Resolve 17

While previous versions of DaVinci Resolve had a built-in neon title template, version 17 no longer has this option. Thankfully, with the power of Fusion in DaVinci Resolve, you are still able to create a simple neon text effect and we will show you some shortcut options as well.

Follow the steps below to create your glowing neon text with Fusion! 

Step 1: Start with Text Nodes

1. In the Edit page, drag a background clip or still image of your choice to the timeline.
2. Make sure the clip is the right duration for your title. We are using 5 seconds.
3. In the Effects panel, find the Fusion composition and drag it on top of the clip in your timeline where you would like the title to appear. A new video track will be created. With the Fusion clip selected, go to the Fusion page.
4. Now add a Text Node and connect it to the MediaOut Node. View the node in the left viewer by selecting the left button on the lower-left corner of the Text1 Node or by pressing 1 when the node is selected.
5. With your Text1 Node selected, change your text, font, size, and other settings in the Inspector until you are happy with the appearance.
6. This Text1 Node will be the bottom layer, so change the Color to something very dark, near black. 
7. Now add a Merge Node and make sure your Text1 Node is linked as the background.
8. Select your Text1 Node and press Ctrl or Cmd + C to copy it, then click on an empty space. Now press Ctrl or Cmd + V to paste a copy. This node will be named Text1_1. View it in the left viewer.

Tip: It is good practice to rename your nodes if you will have a lot of nodes.

Step 2: Add Neon Color & Glow Effects

1. Change the color of your Text1_1 Node to something bright that resembles a neon color like bright yellow, blue, or pink.
2. If you would like the color to change during the animation, you can create keyframes at the start and middle of your animation with a different color in the middle. Now the color will change as the animation plays.
3. Next, you need to add the Soft Glow and Glow effects to your Text1_1 Node. You can do this by pressing Shift + Spacebar and searching for the effects.
4. Adjust the various settings of the Soft Glow and Glow effects until you have good-looking results.
5. Link your Text1_1 Node and the glow effects as the foreground of the Merge1 Node. This will place it over the dark background text.

Step 3: Add Flicker Effect

1. The last step in Fusion is to add some flicker to the neon text. We will do this again using keyframes.  
2. Select the Merge1 node and go to the first frame of your animation. Now create a Keyframe by clicking the small diamond next to the Blend slider. The button will turn red. Now move to the next frame and drag the Blend slider to the left until it is 0. 
3. The bright text will disappear, leaving the dark shadow only. Move another frame forward and drag the Blend slider to 1. Repeat this process a few times to create a flicker effect at the start of your animation.

Step 4: End with Sound Effects

1. Back in the Edit page, you can play back and see your result.  If your background clip is too bright behind your text, select it and drop the Opacity in the Inspector or Gain in the Color page if you have another clip below it.
2. It’s good, but let’s add some finesse to it with a neon light sound effect from Motion Array. We will use the Neon Light Flicker Sounds. 
3. Import the sound effects from the pack and choose one that works with the flicker in your title. Drag it to your timeline as a new audio track and line it up with the flicker in your animation.
4. If the sound effect is not long enough, just copy a matching section of it and add it to the end.
5. For a smooth result, you can use the Fade handles on the title, clip, and audio to fade everything in and out.

Part 2: Easy Neon Text Effect in DaVinci Resolve using Fusion Title Templates

If you are short of time and the above tutorial seems too long and detailed, why not check out some cool resources that are available for DaVinci users? Motion Array offers a range of downloadable neon macros, templates, and titles for DaVinci Resolve that make life a lot easier. 

1. Master Neon

With a resolution of up to 8K, a variety of Neon Title options and the ease of macros this may be all the neon titles you will ever need.

Download Master Neon Now

2. Neon Liquid Titles

The 9 different neon titles and the ability to customize them will allow you to add a splash of color to your projects. The neon liquid titles will help your content stand out on social media and could be perfect for your YouTube channel.

Download Neon Liquid Titles Now

3. Cyber Brush Titles

Another great template for social media with 10 dynamically animated colorful cyber-themed brush titles. Easy to use, just change the text and render for use in any project.

Download Cyber Brush Titles Now

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DaVinci Resolve 17 with Fusion is a powerful tool that enables you to create amazing content including neon text titles and Motion Array offers a wide range of templates, macros, and titles that will save you time and frustration whether you are a full-time filmmaker or a YouTube starter.

If you are also interested in learning additional text and title tutorials in DaVinci Resolve, we have 2 articles just for you – how to create animated titles and write-on text effects.