"Green-screen effect over a screenshot — that's the explainer format"

"Green-screen effect over a screenshot — that's the explainer format"

The received wisdom: green-screen yourself in front of the source and react. It works, so it's overused into a reflex.

The mechanism it's good at is presence — your face anchors the viewer while a static image sits behind you. But green-screen pins you full-frame, hiding detail in the image, and the FYP can't tell it's an "explainer" — it just sees a talking head.

What's true: green-screen when you are the credibility and the image is context. Use a corner overlay (or split layout) when the image itself is the payload — a chart, a receipt, a DM people need to read.

Green-screen sells the messenger. Overlay sells the evidence. Don't bury the receipt behind your head.