Many international companies nowadays work with video translations and foreign subtitles to reach audiences worldwide. Subtitle translation comes in three stages. Transcription, translation and subtitling. Some companies work regularly with typing services to produce document translation for subtitles, or have international employees to do this. In these cases, when looking to add foreign subtitles to video, it maybe tempting to work on the transcription and translation aspects in-house, whilst outsourcing the technical subtitling element to an outside company.
This has become an increasingly popular approach for production companies and international firms but there are some very clear drawbacks. In this blog, we’ll look at what can be expected work using document transcription and translation as a starting block to creating subtitles. Here are some of the pros and cons to consider when working with do-it-yourself video transcription and translation.
Pros to DIY Video Transcription
- Outsourcing your videos can save time, with most professional transcriptionists working at typing speeds of 70wpm+.
- If you are also working with subtitling and translation, most subtitling companies can provide transcription services at a discount price as part of a package.
- Subtitles should be broken up grammatically in a way that aligns with video pauses, shot changes and other useful visual information. A professional subtitler should have the skills and experience to ensure this happens.
- Professional transcriptionists can work with audio optimisation to help ensure nothing is missed.
Cons to DIY Video Transcription
- Transcribing your own videos can save you money in the short term if have suitably trained staff to take on the task.
- If your videos contain a lot of industry or company specific jargon and/or employee names, transcribing yourself can ensure accuracy first time around.
Pros of in-house Document Translations for Subtitles
- Using in-house linguists to translate your transcripts and documents can save costs in the short term.
- By working in-house, it’s easy to ensure that your translations are suitably localised for worldwide distribution.
Cons of In-House Document Translations for Subtitles
- Working with video translation via an online subtitling company cam mean cost savings when working as a package. For example, including transcription, translation, subtitling and voiceovers.
- Documents maybe translated in almost a summary format, very different to subtitles which should be translated as much as possible to a structure that suitably syncs with the audio within 2-7 seconds of the average subtitle.
So there you have, the pros and cons using document translation for subtitles. Remember transcribing your own videos can save time but only if you have suitably trained staff to be able to do this efficiently, otherwise you could find it takes hours more time for very little cost saving.
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