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Brand Guidelines Brand Guidelines
  1. UC San Diego Brand Guidelines
  2. Using the Brand
  3. Video

Video

UC San Diego communicates to audiences in a number of ways through broadcast and online video. Below is an overview of visual and technical best practices to ensure your videos reinforce the UC San Diego story.

All visual brand guidelines regarding colors, fonts and graphic elements should be followed when creating videos. Learn more about available templates at the end of this guide.

Download motion graphics tool kit

Storytelling Best Practices

Know your audience

  • Make a list of your primary and secondary audiences. Set your content, tone and storytelling style according to your primary audience.
  • Consider: What do they already know about this topic? What is the takeaway?

Have a clear message

  • Preproduction messaging planning is essential for a successful video. Make sure you have one clear message and reflect it in the script and/or interview questions.
  • Create an outline to keep your messaging on track.

Keep it short

  • For YouTube or other web content, aim for a length of less than 3 minutes.
  • For social media, 1 minute or less.

Be on brand

  • Ensure your video is brand compliant. Key elements are color, typography and logo use.
  • Use the assets throughout this guide to help you hit the mark.

Use b-roll, music and graphics to help tell the story

  • B-roll (supplemental footage) can help break up repetitive visuals, add meaningful context or illustrate what’s being discussed.
  • Music can help set the mood and pace.
  • Graphics can explain complex or abstract ideas efficiently.

On Location Filming Best Practices

By following these steps, your videos will look polished and on brand wherever UC San Diego audiences watch them.

Sound

Clear audio gives the video a professional, trustworthy feel and improves the accuracy of autogenerated closed captions. Poor sound makes it hard for viewers to understand the message and can create accessibility barriers. To ensure the best sound quality:

  • Record with an external microphone, such as a lavalier or shotgun.
  • Choose a quiet location; close doors and windows.

Lighting

Proper lighting makes your video look clean and professional. By eliminating harsh shadows and odd color tints on location, you won’t have to spend a lot of time fixing colors later. Adequate, even illumination also helps the video look great on any screen — phone, tablet or laptop — and keeps the visual style consistent with the UC San Diego brand.

You don’t need expensive equipment or extensive postproduction work. Start with natural daylight whenever possible. Position the person so light falls evenly across their face: perpendicular to a window or using the window itself as a soft key light works well.

If you’re shooting indoors and can’t set up a full three-point lighting kit, you can still get good results with a few simple tricks:

  • Key light: Use a bright lamp or the window as your main light source. Point it toward the face but avoid shining directly into the camera.
  • Fill light: Add a second, less intense light (a desk lamp with a shade works fine) on the opposite side to soften any shadows created by the key light.
  • Back light (optional): A small lamp placed behind the subject can help separate them from the background, but it’s not essential for a basic shoot.

For more tips on basic lighting setup, check out this lighting tutorial on YouTube.

Interview Framing

Camera Position and Framing

  • Eye level (or slightly above): Places the speaker’s eyes in a natural, conversational spot.
  • Soft off-camera glance (30-45°): Gives a relaxed feel instead of a stiff, head-on stare.
  • Rule of thirds: Imagine a tic-tac-toe grid; position the eyes in the upper third, left or right, not dead center.
  • Headroom: Leave about 10% of the frame above the head so the speaker isn’t clipped.
  • Clear side space: Reserve the side opposite the subject for lower thirds, captions or name tags.

Background and Setting

Video recording recommendations for UC San Diego.
Aspect Recommendation Why it works for the UC San Diego brand
Clutter free Choose solid neutral walls (light gray, off-white) or a tidy office/lecture hall backdrop. Keeps focus on the speaker and avoids visual distraction.
UC San Diego brand Include a subtle UC San Diego element (small logo patch, branded banner, campus-colored accent). Reinforces institutional identity without overwhelming the frame.
Even lighting Position the subject facing a soft, diffused light source (window with curtains, softbox). Avoid strong backlights that create silhouettes. Produces clear, professional footage and reduces postproduction work.
Depth of field Allow at least 2-3 feet between subject and background. Gives the speaker separation from the setting, adding visual polish.
Noise-free environment Choose a quiet room, turn off fan/air conditioner if possible, and close doors/windows to limit ambient sound. Improves audio quality, which is as important as visual clarity.
Do a quick test recording Take 5-10 seconds to verify framing, lighting backgrounds and sound before the full take. Ensures everything is working properly.

Technical Standards

YouTube

Resolution and Orientation

  • Record in the highest high-definition setting your device offers (4K or 1080p).
  • Keep the camera in landscape (wide rectangle) mode.
  • Shoot in 4K resolution so you can frame wider and safely crop for both horizontal (16:9) and vertical (9:16) outputs without losing quality.

Frame Rate

  • Use the camera’s native frame rate (most devices default to 30 frames per second).

Export Settings

  • Container: MP4 (recommended) or MOV
  • Video codec: H.264 (AVC)
  • Audio codec: AAC

File Size

A file under a few gigabytes uploads without trouble; YouTube will process it automatically.

Instagram

Orientation and Aspect Ratios

  • Feed videos: 1080 x 1080 pixels for square posts, or 1080 x 1350 pixels for slightly taller portrait posts.
  • Stories and reels: 1080 x 1920 pixels for full-screen vertical (smartphone upright)

Length Limits

  • Feed videos: 1 minute or less
  • Story segments: 15 seconds or less (you can chain several segments for longer stories)
  • Reels: 90 seconds or less

Export Settings

  • Container: MP4 (recommended) or MOV
  • Video codec: H.264 (AVC)
  • Audio codec: AAC

File Size

  • Keep each clip under 100 megabytes (Instagram’s upload limit).

Permissions

Refer to the University Communications Photography and Videography Best Practices for information about permissions and model releases.

Typography

Incorporating clean, engaging typography into your video highlights your message while aiding comprehension and accessibility.

  • Use brand-approved fonts. We recommend Brix Sans for general use and Refrigerator Deluxe for larger, high-impact headlines. More information on brand fonts can be found on the Typography page.
  • Be mindful of contrast and legibility of text, particularly when overlaid on video footage. Refer to the Accessible Brand Color Combinations chart.

Captioning and Audio Descriptions

All UC San Diego videos with dialogue must be captioned with closed or open captions.

Caption files that are automatically generated by YouTube, Vimeo or Facebook but must be reviewed for accuracy. Files can be exported from YouTube for use on other platforms. Paid captioning services can be utilized when necessary.

Closed Captioning (Preferred)

  • Can be turned on or off by the viewer.
  • Maximizes compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines.
  • Delivered as a separate file from the video. Many platforms, like YouTube and Facebook, offer automatic closed captioning, but these can often contain errors and misspellings. When using autogenerated captions, be sure to edit for accuracy before posting.

Open Captioning

  • Baked into the video file, meaning captions are always onscreen.
  • Should be used when the subject is difficult to understand, if applicable for social media use (to increase post visibility and engagement), or for videos that will appear on sites that do not support closed captioning.
  • Allows the most control over the content and styling of the captions.
  • Must meet ADA standards for visibility, with proper contrast and character limits per line.

Audio Descriptions

All UC San Diego videos posted publicly must include an audio description (AD) track that narrates essential visual details — including scene changes, onscreen text, gestures and other visual cues — to meet WCAG 2.2 Guideline 1.2.5 and ensure accessibility for blind or low-vision viewers. For social media platforms that do not support separate AD tracks, creators should incorporate essential visual descriptions directly into the primary audio (e.g., through narration or voice-over) whenever possible. You can find more information on the UC San Diego Accessibility website.

Music

Use only licensed music. This protects UC San Diego from copyright infringement and ensures that all videos can be shared publicly without legal risk.

Intro Screens and End Cards

Intro screens and end cards help bring our visual brand to life. End cards must be added to all YouTube videos. Transitions to these should be done with minimal animations.

  • The UC San Diego logo or appropriate unit sub-brand logo should appear at the end of all videos. This ties your message back to the campus, providing context and credibility.
  • End cards may also include a relevant website or call to action.
intro and outro screen example

Download Motion Graphic Tool Kit

Lower Thirds

Lower thirds are text overlays used to identify a featured speaker or subject. They include a person’s name and title or other relevant information.

When to Use

  • Identify speakers on their first appearance.
  • Provide context to footage (b-roll of a featured location or event).

Format

  • Line 1: Name
  • Line 2: Title
  • Line 3: Affiliation

The viewer should be able to easily read the information at a glance. Since space is limited, if an individual has several titles or affiliations, we recommend choosing the most relevant title and affiliation for the video’s audience.

For guidance on formatting UC San Diego schools and colleges or an alum’s class year or academic degrees, please consult the University Communications Editorial Style Guide.

two examples of lower thirds showing people

Placement

  • Position on the right or left side of the frame, depending on the composition of the shot.
  • Avoid the bottom of the frame, where the lower third could overlap with captioning. As a general rule, keep the bottom eighth of the screen clear.

Timing

  • Lower thirds text should remain onscreen long enough for viewers to read it (ideally long enough for the viewer to read twice). For shorter titles, aim for 3-6 seconds.

Download lower thirds templates

Thumbnails

A well-designed video thumbnail captures the content of the video at a glance and grabs the viewer’s attention. Leverage campus brand elements to create a consistent look that aligns with your unit and message.

If you’re including text in the thumbnail, make sure the size and color contrast are accessible and easy to read on a mobile device.

  • Optimal size: 1280 x 720 pixels
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9
  • File format: JPG or PNG

Branded YouTube thumbnail templates are available on the UC San Diego Canva account.

Branded Motion Graphics Tool Kit

The Motion Graphics Tool Kit is a shared library of editable video assets designed to help you create polished, brand-aligned content. Built for a range of formats and use cases, the tool kit makes it easier to bring UC San Diego’s visual identity into original video projects while streamlining production. Whether you are creating a quick social edit or a more fully produced video, the tool kit offers a flexible system for a consistent, recognizable look.

The tool kit includes a suite of branded assets to support video production from start to finish, including:

  • Animated bumpers and intro and end cards
  • Lower thirds
  • Titles and text overlays
  • Transitions
  • Light leaks

Available in Adobe After Effects and MOGRT formats, these assets can be used individually or together to create everything from simple social videos to more developed storytelling packages.

Download motion graphics tool kit