Video Modal turns a Cover or Button block into a click-to-play video launcher. Visitors click your beautifully designed cover image or button, and the video opens in a clean, accessible lightbox — no cluttered inline embeds, no leaving the page.
Setting It Up
Select a Cover or Button block and open the Video Modal panel in the sidebar. Choose your Video Source:
- YouTube — paste any YouTube URL into the YouTube URL field: regular watch links, short youtu.be links, Shorts, and embed URLs all work. You’ll see a thumbnail preview to confirm the right video, and a Start Time field (like
1:30, or plain seconds) if you want to skip an intro. If your URL already carries a timestamp, it’s picked up automatically. - Media Library — click Select Video to use any video file from your WordPress media library instead.
That’s it — as soon as a valid video is set, the block becomes clickable. There’s no separate enable switch; remove the video and the block goes back to normal.
Options
- Autoplay video — on by default, so the video starts the moment the modal opens.
- Play Icon (Cover blocks) — control the play button overlay: Show it always, reveal it on Hover, or Hide it entirely if your cover design has its own call to action.
Good to Know
- The modal is fully accessible: it opens as a proper dialog, traps keyboard focus, closes with Escape or a click outside, and returns focus to where the visitor left off. Cover triggers are keyboard-operable too.
- Links or buttons placed inside a video Cover block still work normally — clicking them won’t open the modal.
- The modal’s scripts and styles only load on pages that actually use a video modal.
- A great pattern: pair a Cover block video modal with the Motion Gradient or Texture extensions for a designed video section with zero stock imagery.