Your images, your words, your message. Precise and concise.

Subtitles are a very interesting way to open up film documents to the world. For viewers somewhat familiar with the original language they serve as a back-up option to clarify important concepts or key plot elements. And for all other audiences they are a quick and inexpensive way of opening up new markets. From the translator's standpoint, they pose a very interesting problem: How to bring across as much of context, tone and subtext while displaying a minimal amount of text.

The Process of Subtitling

The task appears simple: Show a text translation of spoken dialogue and on-screen-text in time with the events on the screen. But starting from scratch, several steps are necessary to end up with good subtitles:

Transcription

Based on the script and the video document, a transcript of dialogue and on-screen-text is created. This serves as the basis for translation into the target languages and is often annotated with cultural references.

Timing & Spotting

Based on the video document, a log of all dialogue and on-screen-text is created. This serves as the basis of the subtitles and contains timings for beginning and end of each subtitle.

Translation

The transcription is combined with the timing and spotting file and the actual translation takes place. Special care has to be taken with core concepts, formal and informal treatment, transliteration and other potential issues.

Re-timing

The translated dialogue and on-screen-text may not have the same length - something that can be said quickly in one language may require a lengthy bit of text in another. To ensure legible subtitles, the subtitles-timing may have to be adapted.

Proof

The translators pass on their work to a proofer, who checks the subtitles for translation errors, grammar and spelling mistakes, timing-problems and other flaws.

Export and testing

The subtitles get exported into the delivery format specified by the client. Before delivery they get tested for QA-problems.

Projects

We take on a wide variety of projects: Ads and image films, documentary films, features or tv-series - we help you find the right words at the right time to make your content shine.

Rates

Pricing for subtitle-translation is relatively straightforward. Depending on the project, a certain number of "passes" (complete work-through of the video file) is necessary. Each pass gets billed with a price per minute of material (some exceptions to this rule apply). From the number of necessary steps, the duration of the material and the price, the price is calculated. We broke it down in the following table:

Pass Price Comments
Transcription $4 per minute Creation of translation template, can be supplied by customer, only done once per project
Timing & Spotting $4 per minute Creation of subtitle-timing-template, only done once per project
Translation $5 per minute Translation of subtitles into target language, necessary for each language
Re-Timing $2 per minute Adjustment of display lenght of subtitles, necessary for each language
Proof $4 per minute Check of grammar, spelling, consistency and other issues by seperate translator, necessary for each language
Export and testing $4 per minute Creation of delivery files and final QA, delivery, necessary for each language

We can offer rebates or work pro rata for certain projects, as long as they are non-profit oriented. Drop us a line to inquire if your project qualifies!

© Transkriptum 2013