One-stop accessibility for your media
QuickSilver Translate offers a subtitling service for TV, cinema, DVD, teletext and festivals — we can produce any existing format. By using cutting-edge, professional software, we can guarantee the subtitling is accurate, informed and consistent. Our audiovisual team only works with professional subtitlers (translators who are specialised in subtitling), and our service includes linguistic proofreading, using a single reviewer for each project.
Subtitling is almost always about summarising, more than translating. Summarising, contrary to popular belief, does not involve changing the message, nor leaving out information. Instead, it enables us to read the subtitles comfortably, almost without noticing, and thus understand the content, and enjoy the image, at the same time. One of the main tasks of the professional subtitling editor is to recognise which information is important, and which content is inessential, and can therefore be left out.
Our subtitling service uses professional software which ensures that all subtitles appear at exactly the right time (in the correct frame). We adhere to an appropriate reading speed — so viewers can read and watch at the same time — whilst always respecting the shot changes.
Finally, we can deliver your subtitle file in any format, alternatively we can simply return your video complete with subtitles.
Typical problems with subtitling:
- Linguistic mistakes.
- It is impossible to follow: the subtitles are too long, and/or appear for too short a time on the screen.
- Technical errors: subtitles on the screen after the corresponding dialogue has finished, unsubtitled fragments of dialogue, etc.
- Inconsistency.
QuickSilver’s solutions:
- Linguistic quality-checking.
- Experienced subtitlers.
- Use of professional subtitling software: zero technical errors.
- Use of the QuickSilver subtitling style guide, which enables us to be consistent across all of our subtitling projects.
Closed Captions (subtitling service for the deaf and hard-of-hearing)
Our service begins with a pre-analysis to identify lapses between dialogue and significant sound elements. After analysis, we write a script — bearing in mind the age of the target audience, consideration is given to the appropriate reading speed (ie. different speeds for different ages).
We can supply an audio file, or our technicians can overlay audio track/captioning onto the original media. A DCMP Captioning Key ensures adherence to guidelines and industry standards.
Typical problems with closed captions:
- Linguistic mistakes.
- It is impossible to follow – the subtitles are too long, and/or appear for too short a time on the screen.
- Technical errors: subtitles on screen after the corresponding dialogue has finished, unsubtitled fragments of dialogue, etc.
- Uniformity: the same complexity and reading speed for both adult and children’s audiences.
- Lack of information on aural effects.
QuickSilver’s solutions:
- Linguistic quality-checking.
- Use of professional subtitling software: zero technical errors.
- Subtitlers experienced in SDH.
- Adaptation of factors, such as quantity of information and reading speed, to the age of the audience at which the program is aimed.
- We regularly attend industry seminars and conferences to ensure we are up to date with all the latest developments.
