Subtitling Software
Thread poster: Sonali Hegde
Sonali Hegde
Sonali Hegde  Identity Verified
Local time: 18:06
Member (2007)
German to English
+ ...
Dec 6, 2012

Hello,

I am currently working as a (freelance) subtitler (the word apparently doesn't exist) for a company, which has provided it's own software. However I would like to buy my own software so that I can work for other clients as well. Which one should I go for? I am well versed with Spot & Subtitling Workshop because those were the softwares used during my subtitling course. I have been working with the trial version
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Hello,

I am currently working as a (freelance) subtitler (the word apparently doesn't exist) for a company, which has provided it's own software. However I would like to buy my own software so that I can work for other clients as well. Which one should I go for? I am well versed with Spot & Subtitling Workshop because those were the softwares used during my subtitling course. I have been working with the trial version of Spot, but the actual software is pretty expensive.

I have heard that Swift is good as well. Haven't used it though and it is pretty expensive as well.

Thanks in advance!
Sonali
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José Henrique Lamensdorf
José Henrique Lamensdorf  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 09:36
English to Portuguese
+ ...
In memoriam
Options Dec 6, 2012

Sonali,

This depends on how far you want to go with subtitling, I mean how far your clients want you to go.

A subtitles file is simply a text file with a variety of carefully formatted data. Apart from the subtitles text itself and the in&out times for each subtitle, there are simpler formats, like SRT and TXT which will leave formatting to higher-end subtitles burning or DVD authoring software. On the other end, there are more complete formats, like SSA, which will inc
... See more
Sonali,

This depends on how far you want to go with subtitling, I mean how far your clients want you to go.

A subtitles file is simply a text file with a variety of carefully formatted data. Apart from the subtitles text itself and the in&out times for each subtitle, there are simpler formats, like SRT and TXT which will leave formatting to higher-end subtitles burning or DVD authoring software. On the other end, there are more complete formats, like SSA, which will include all formatting, so that actual subtitles burning can be accomplished with lower-end software (often freeware) with great quality.

The more expensive subtitling programs offer you more comfort and productivity and automated accuracy. The cheap or free ones require you to do everything manually; they only show what you are doing.

Some of the expensive subtitling programs use proprietary file formats, and many clients who use on-the-fly subtitling (usually cable TV stations) demand it. On the other hand, if you'll be serving direct clients, who require finished subtitled videos, the choice will be yours.

So before you invest in some $4-digit any software, check your most likely higher volume prospects, and what they require. The worst that could happen would be for you to buy the wrong $4-digit software, i.e. your best prospect(s) demand a different one, with its very own proprietary format files.

If your clientele is composed mostly of end-clients who want finished subtitled videos and/or DVDs, and you are comfortable with the free Subtitle Workshop, you can burn the subs with the (also free) VirtualDub and its proper plugin (great quality!... if you know how to do it). This might spare your money to invest in high-end video editing and DVD authoring software, for which there are no both good and cheap or free options.

You can learn a lot from http://www.videohelp.com . The information there (plus some extensive and focused self-study and carefully selected software) led my way from a video-for-dubbing translator into a complete interactive subtitled DVD producer.
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Sonali Hegde
Sonali Hegde  Identity Verified
Local time: 18:06
Member (2007)
German to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Comprehensive ;) Dec 6, 2012

Wow José! That was pretty comprehensive. Thanks a ton for taking the time out to answer my queries.

I am still reading and re-reading it, to understand most of it.

But I think I get the gist: a more expensive software is more comfortable to use and allows a lot more flexibility. And it basically depends on what the client expects from me.

Well, at this point in time I don't think that my cl
... See more
Wow José! That was pretty comprehensive. Thanks a ton for taking the time out to answer my queries.

I am still reading and re-reading it, to understand most of it.

But I think I get the gist: a more expensive software is more comfortable to use and allows a lot more flexibility. And it basically depends on what the client expects from me.

Well, at this point in time I don't think that my clients expect me to burn subtitles on to DVDs. May be sometime later, once I establish myself in this field, I will venture into that.

May I ask, which software you personally use?

regards
Sonali
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José Henrique Lamensdorf
José Henrique Lamensdorf  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 09:36
English to Portuguese
+ ...
In memoriam
Answers Dec 6, 2012

Some folks on this forum like to throw stones at me because I use Subtitle Workshop and deliver far-better-than-cable-TV subtitles.

Maybe the reason is that I came from the translation for dubbing realm. I spent 18 years translating corporate video for dubbing before I ventured into subtitling. No, one is not more difficult than the ot
... See more
Some folks on this forum like to throw stones at me because I use Subtitle Workshop and deliver far-better-than-cable-TV subtitles.

Maybe the reason is that I came from the translation for dubbing realm. I spent 18 years translating corporate video for dubbing before I ventured into subtitling. No, one is not more difficult than the other, though the Brazilian Translators Syndicate suggests (at the bottom of the page that translation for dubbing should cost 70% more than for subtitling. I charge them the same, use mostly the same tools (for translation only), just a completely different frame of mind.

Am I less productive? Definitely! ... because I specialize in corporate video (i.e. training, institutional, product launch, etc.). In a nutshell, this means Disney-like quality plus technical vocabulary. So I charge what it costs, can't compete with sweat shops that work for cable TV.

I translate using Express Scribe and Windows Notepad for subtitling (MS Word for dubbing - that's the way studios want it). Then I use Media Subtitler just to convert my TXT file into SSA (if I'll do the subtitling myself) or any format the client wants. And then I use Subtitle Workshop for spotting, proofreading, and reviewing... all done at the same time.

Then I burn the subtitles on the video (if so requested) using VirtualDub and its author's Subtitler plugin. If you master it, subtitles come out really impressive on a 40" TV, or even on a 100" screen. My subtitles are usually sharper than the original video itself.

If they want a video with overlaid switchable subtitles I use the long defunct Ulead's DVD Workshop, which delivers amazing results, in spite of all technology advances after its demise.

If they want a complex interactive DVD, but without switchable subtitles, after I've burnt them onto the videos, I use Sony's DVD Architect. Not so easy to learn, however very powerful after you've mastered it.

For video editing I use Sony Vegas, also not easy to master, but very powerful after you've learned to use all its features. There is a screenshot of a dubbing project of mine on this page.

You may watch a few samples of my work here, though significantly downgraded to spare bandwidth.

And finally you may find some articles - mostly educational for clients - on video translation on my web site. Be welcome to browse from any of the links above. Apart from the "Video" section, there are more in the "Blog? Almost..." section.
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Sonali Hegde
Sonali Hegde  Identity Verified
Local time: 18:06
Member (2007)
German to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you Dec 7, 2012

Thank you José for sharing all this information with me.

You seem to be the "All-in-one". Where as I am just starting out, so I guess I will first concentrate on subtitling and then explore the other aspects. But it is really interesting to know that the subtitler can be involved in everything from the start to the end. I hope I will get there soon as well.

I enjoyed watching the clips that you had tran
... See more
Thank you José for sharing all this information with me.

You seem to be the "All-in-one". Where as I am just starting out, so I guess I will first concentrate on subtitling and then explore the other aspects. But it is really interesting to know that the subtitler can be involved in everything from the start to the end. I hope I will get there soon as well.

I enjoyed watching the clips that you had translated and subtitled. That was some varied work. Hopefully I will also get some equally interesting work. Fingers crossed.

Thanks again for sharing this with me and for my benefit.

regards
Sonali
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Annelise Brincker (X)
Annelise Brincker (X)  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 13:36
English to Danish
+ ...
Wow Dec 7, 2012

José

That was a very impressive list of software and options. I really enjoyed reading it. I do subtitles with Swift, and that works quite well, but you really know your business. I've been subtitling for three years, but I do not do dubbing, maybe it was worth looking into.


 
José Henrique Lamensdorf
José Henrique Lamensdorf  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 09:36
English to Portuguese
+ ...
In memoriam
All-in-one Dec 7, 2012

Sonali Hegde wrote:
You seem to be the "All-in-one".


It happened naturally. While I had been translating from VHS tapes, whose audio track I transferred to open-reel audio tape (for their instantaneous start&stop - differently from the audio cassette tapes), I got acquainted with the ex(t|p)ensive equipment required to implement my translations on video.

When digital video came to be, ever more often I had to research on software to convert the different file types/codecs of the varied material I received, which led me to discover - among other things - that my PC was fully capable of doing it, without all that equipment. So I learned more and more, until I managed to cover the full nine yards and deliver top quality.

You don't have to go there, however the more you know about what and how people will do with your deliverables, more you'll be able to spare them from unnecessary (re)work.


 
José Henrique Lamensdorf
José Henrique Lamensdorf  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 09:36
English to Portuguese
+ ...
In memoriam
Translation for dubbing Dec 7, 2012

Annelise Brincker wrote:
That was a very impressive list of software and options. I really enjoyed reading it. I do subtitles with Swift, and that works quite well, but you really know your business. I've been subtitling for three years, but I do not do dubbing, maybe it was worth looking into.


Repeating, I spent 18 years translating into dubbing until I ventured into subtitling. Some people spend their lives in either area and never go into the other.

I got into translation for dubbing on a client's suggestion to 'give it a try'. He had been doing it for years, showed me how he did it, and I adapted it into my own m.o. The outcome was that we discovered I had a natural talent for it. My first video was dubbed verbatim as translated.

However I had to learn translation for subtitling, and master the tools. Translation for dubbing is more like an art + typing. The technical side of it will only come up at the dubbing studio. Translation for subtitling has objective measurements, and requires mastering some software.

I adapted my translation for dubbing technique for subtitling, so I still do it more as an art than using objective measurements. Of course I objectively check how many chars per line there are in a subtitle, however I check its length/duration ratio with my "dubbing feeling", and it works!

It's like the cook who will carefully measure/weigh the ingredients from a recipe, versus that kitchen genius who will just mix a bit of this with a lump of that and a bunch of those to make delicious food. You probably know people of both types.


 
Aaron Smith
Aaron Smith
United States
Local time: 07:36
English to Hebrew
Automatic software May 18, 2020

You could try using Maestra (https://maestrasuite.com/add-subtitles-to-video), which is an automatic captioning and subtitling software.

 


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