Subtitling Norms Both For Hearing Impaired And Non Hi

[JustPassing]

Hello,

 

I'm looking to start subtitling movies that don't have subtitles or have crappy ones. I've been using Addic7ed subs for a while now so thought I would start here

 

Can anyone direct me to subtitling norms, a tutorial giving the basics of subtitling in terms of punctuation, vocabulary, standards to respect, etc. I recently completed basic training to be an audio transcriber and there were some really good norms and standards to respect, concerning punctuation and stuff, and I'm looking for the equivalent for subtitling.

 

For example, how to subtitle for hearing imparied (which sounds to subtitles, how to subtitle inaudible or overlapping dialogue, where to place the subtitles, in the middle or at the left, etc). Or for punctuation issues, such as if someone says "There's an e in it", how to subtitle the letter e (if it should be "e" or 'e' or just e or something else entirely). Or when we should use show two sentences each with a - instead of just showing one and then moving on to the other sentence (For example, -I'm Joe. -Jack. VS I'm Joe, then Jack). Or when to use italics, or how to subtitle foreign language parts, when to use color and which colors for what, etc.

 

Basically, I'm looking for a guide on what the norms are for subtitling that covers every aspect. I still need help with the technical aspects of it but for right now, just a basic Subtitling Norms Guide would be useful.

 

I've come across the Addic7ed corrections guide, https://docs.google.com/document/d/1M3a-nv5aDu_0mEERydFK9kotVFlMRfHJzRyFY_iDBG0/edit , but I'm not even at the correction stage yet. I'm in the creation stage, so that guide doesn't really help.

 

Thanks!

[taytoy]

JustPassing

 

What you're asking is nothing less than a gigantic task for which no one will ever be able to give you just the one golden rule you're looking for. They vary not only between countries, but also between networks, companies, etc. 

Nevertheless, here are some useful links that will give you a comprehensive look at the world of captioning and let you decide what's best for you.

There's a slight difference between closed captioning (CC) and subtitling, but know that "subtitles" were first aimed at deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers—or HI (CC), then passed on to the general public (subtitle).

 

For punctuation, just follow the English common practice for punctuation:

• Oxford Dictionaries: Punctuation
• CCC: Punctuation
• Grammar Book: Punctuation

 

General transcription guidelines for CC:

• Aberdeen Broadcast Services: Transcription Guidelines for Captioning
• Joe Clark (Acessibility/Design/Writing) — Many useful documents and personal links on subtitles and accessibility, such as "Best practices in online captioning".
• Independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries: Guidance on Standards for Subtitling
• Closed Captioning Standards and Protocol for Canadian English Language Television Programming Services
• Federal Communications Commission (FCC): Guide for Closed Captioning on Television

 

Specific guidelines from broadcast networks:

• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Online Subtitling Editorial Guidelines V1.1 — For me, the most comprehensive guideline on CC. It includes all the questions you have on colours, positioning, etc. British captioning slightly differs from captioning in the USA.
• Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Captioning Style Guide

 

Good luck!

[JustPassing]

Thanks for your reply. Yeah, I figured that norms differ from country to country or from company to company. What norms do Addic7ed subtitlers use? I mean, they must follow some kind of guidelines, right? I think if I make my subtitles so that they are in the Addic7ed format, that'll be good enough.

 

Thanks again.

[taytoy]

JustPassing

 

Most of it can be found in the Google Doc you mentioned above.

 

We don't do positioning tags, nor coloured subtitles (CHI — As I said to another user, this is time consuming and it has evolved from a matter of clarity to a matter of taste among some HOH users, for better or worse), we dont do three lines sequences either (it's a British thing). 

 

Those are some general rules, but the easiest way to know without bothering our devoted team is to check our subs marked with the Addic7ed banner

 

Cheers.

 

Reminder: We don't do British nor Australian series, those are made by other users.

[JustPassing]

Ok, thanks a lot for all the links and for your replies! Now I'm off to subtitle my first movie!  After that, I will try subtitling same-language subs for non-english movies/shows, since they very rarely have any.

 

Thanks again!

[taytoy]

Good luck!