Every film has a set of titles and opening and closing credits that runs at the beginning and end of the film. These credits list all of the individuals who participated in your film's production, from actors to accountants to assistants. This is an opportunity to give credit where credit is due and let everybody and their mother see their name on the silver screen. Creating the opening and closing credits can be as plain or elaborate as you can afford. Some films have a simple scrollbar as a closing credit that moves from the bottom of the screen to the top, others include jokes or even bloopers. More recently, filmmakers have been eliminating opening credits altogether, instead running an extended credit list at the end.

If you're a filmmaker on a tight budget, you can have an optical company or title house create very basic titles and credits for a reasonable price. If you've got a big budget, you'll still need to plan for your titles and credits, because it's easy to go overboard. Titles that are designed optically with special effects such as fade-ins, drop shadows, or animation are primarily used on larger budget operations due to their expense.

When compiling a list of credits, be sure to check everyone's title and the spelling of everyone's name. Then double check them. You'll also need to establish the order in which you'd like the credits to run, paying close attention if certain contracts call for an actor or crew member's name to appear in a certain position.