The more you can design your video to maximise accessibility, the easier it will be for all audiences to comprehend your messages and information.

Planning your video

When producing a video, tips to achieve accessibility are to:

  • choose an effective combination of colours and contrast levels against the background

  • avoid patterned backgrounds and strobe effects

  • not convey information using colour only 

  • ensure that audio levels of content (e.g. talking) are high enough relative to background sound or music

  • align the time on screen with the complexity of visual components such as diagrams, figures and maps

  • provide an alternative format of the video’s content, preferably in text or HTML.

Writing alt text for videos

People with visual or aural impairment may not be able to perceive videos. The alt text should contain a transcript of the audio content and any text elements, and descriptions of visual elements or sequences not adequately described by the audio transcript (as you would do for a still image or figure). It may be appropriate to also provide an audio description, and closed or open captions.

Additional resources for video accessibility