Special case study: Video subtitling

05/10/2022

Video subtitling at oneword level. We present the numerous challenges that have to be overcome in the complex translation and localisation process of videos, present our tool that can implement all these aspects and give a little practical insight with an application example.

In the age of digital channels and devices, video is the most popular communication format. Influenced by social media and video platforms, such as YouTube or Vimeo, many people today prefer to watch a short video rather than read an article. In marketing, according to the latest Wyzowl report, 86 per cent of companies now use video. Techsmith has recorded similar results in the education sector: 83 percent of people prefer videos to audio or text when it comes to instructions and learning content. And the entertainment sector would simply be unthinkable without video.

In all areas, reaching international markets and a wide variety of people is crucial to success. Most videos therefore require subtitles in several languages so that the audience is able to understand the spoken and written audiovisual content and remember the messages.

Ensuring this is video subtitling’s task as perhaps the most important service in multimedia localisation. To use a video worldwide, the process includes translating the source language subtitle files, including checking/shortening the length, quality assurance and, optionally, a client review.

In order for these steps to interlock as seamlessly as possible and for all those involved in the process to have access to all the information they need, a tool is needed in the professional application that integrates all the components mentioned and makes the complex communication and translation process efficiently manageable.

oneSuite is our proprietary browser-based translation tool. Whether it is translation, review, evaluation, terminology management or video subtitling, as a kind of digital Swiss army knife, the tool offers everything for professional use in language services.

The “What you see is what you get” support is particularly convincing, i.e. the preview function for a wide range of file formats in real time. For subtitling, for example, the video sequence to be translated is always visible in the preview. oneSuite also makes it possible to check translation results easily and conveniently in the layout and to make final revisions.
Therefore, it is also used for customer reviews and in post-editing. The multitool also supports the smooth integration of terminology and translation memory data as well as relay languages for revisers.

oneSuite can therefore be used for a wide variety of applications:

• Country corrections/review processes
• Translations
• Post-editing
• SEO revisions
• Providing terminology in the company
• Data-secure instant translation based on TMs and MT
• Machine translation with terminology integration
• Website translation
• App translation
• Subtitle localisation

By assigning it to several users, oneSuite is also suitable for urgent translations that a team is working on together. The tool enables several participants to work on a text in parallel, and only the segment currently open is locked for the other users.

In general, it is ideal for translation projects where the preview function makes it easier to understand the text and where you can or have to see concretely where the texts will end up. This is a decisive advantage especially for video subtitling as part of multimedia localisation.

Our current example of this being applied with our customer KOSTAL Industrie Elektrik GmbH shows how effectively oneSuite and its multi-functions can be used. The quality provider of electronic, electromechanical and mechatronic solutions uses videos in a wide variety of applications, from product communication to employee training.

In spring 2022, KOSTAL needed to translate a video of approximately ten minutes and its subtitles from English into seven languages. An Excel file with the subtitle texts was attached to the order, but without a time stamp for the video sequences.

To implement the project in the best way possible, oneword proposed directly processing the SRT files (SubRip, the common file format for video subtitles), which could be used not only for translation but also for a review by the client’s subsidiaries. The translation was then based on the SRT files with the English texts and with the video in MP4 format as a reference so that it could be used as a preview within the translation project.

After the SRT and MP4 files were imported seamlessly, both the existing translation memories and the terminology database were integrated into the project. Editing became particularly efficient and convenient thanks to one feature in particular: the link between the video file and the text being edited.

In the editing view, oneSuite displays a window with the video and the editor below it. When you click on a specific point in time in the video, the corresponding segment is highlighted in the editor. Clicking on a segment in the editor does the same: the video shows exactly the passage that belongs to this text. In real time, the target language that is entered overwrites the displayed source language subtitle.
This way, translators can see immediately when a translated text is getting too long. In addition, compared to other systems, it is possible to send all settings, including the embedded video, directly to the translator, so that everything is available as soon as they open the project in the browser.

The customer review was also convenient with the same settings and enabled text and video to be directly assigned. Thanks to the browser-based availability of oneSuite, the customer review and final verification could start seamlessly without requiring another tool.

The project was implemented entirely in oneSuite, from the integration of the files and the video to the translation, revision, quality assurance and client’s review. Unlike other tools that support subtitle localisation, translators and revisers do not have to install a plug-in and integrate the video themselves, but receive a ready-made project setting that they can work with directly.

Using SRT files made the work easier for both the client and oneword, as unnecessary copy and paste work was eliminated compared to working with the Excel file and the target files could also be imported directly on the client side.

Therefore, oneSuite offered a convincing start for KOSTAL for the first video and subtitling project in several languages. Further similar joint projects are now being prepared.

As mentioned at the beginning, oneSuite, with its comprehensive functions, opens up numerous opportunities for the most diverse use cases. In an assessment and initial consultation, we find innovative and creative solutions for our clients’ specific needs and requirements. All formats can be achieved, whether that is a video, website, app or other projects with complex localisation processes/levels and the need for a real-time review.

Do you run or manage multimedia, audiovisual services and want to localise content for different target groups, languages and applications? Then talk to us. Our experts will be happy to advise you on sensible and effective measures and options.