Forum: Subtitling
Topic: Netflix Hermes test
Poster: José Henrique Lamensdorf
Post title: Can't be sure
[quote]MK2010 wrote:
That said, I have a question for anyone who's translated for them before. Is there a proprietary software you use on an online platform? Do you have do to the time-coding and other technical aspects yourself? Someone up-thread mentioned having to invest in expensive subtitling software if you do get the gig, so I'm a little confused. [/quote]
I translated a couple of movies for a local vendor of theirs. I guess they were getting started as such, since they sent me the first one for translation in pristine HD, no overlaid logo or notice, ready to show on any screen, or make available at torrent sites for download. I phoned them (found out their offices were less than two miles from me), and talked to the person in charge. I warned him about the risks, and he agreed, but he argued that it took too long for computers to render the videos downgraded, and there were too many of them. The second one came in 640x360 with a "do not distribute" notice on it.
The videos came with no script, and they required time-coded, quality-checked STL or SRT files. Style guides (the same available on the test site) were provided. Pay was low, however turnaround time was ample, one week per feature film.
People who use expensive subtitling software always try to justify (maybe to themselves) the hefty investment. They say that cheap or free subtitling software is inaccurate, and renders poor quality. It's like people who say it's "unsafe" to drive a car without power steering, automatic transmission, 4WD and air conditioning, when the truth is that they are unable to handle a stickshift and clutch properly.
Of course, these pricey subtitling software packages have their proprietary format files, If Netflix chooses to use one of them, and will not undertake conversion from, say, the popular SRT, they'll be a must. However this may lead to a secondary subtitle file format conversion "industry".
Topic: Netflix Hermes test
Poster: José Henrique Lamensdorf
Post title: Can't be sure
[quote]MK2010 wrote:
That said, I have a question for anyone who's translated for them before. Is there a proprietary software you use on an online platform? Do you have do to the time-coding and other technical aspects yourself? Someone up-thread mentioned having to invest in expensive subtitling software if you do get the gig, so I'm a little confused. [/quote]
I translated a couple of movies for a local vendor of theirs. I guess they were getting started as such, since they sent me the first one for translation in pristine HD, no overlaid logo or notice, ready to show on any screen, or make available at torrent sites for download. I phoned them (found out their offices were less than two miles from me), and talked to the person in charge. I warned him about the risks, and he agreed, but he argued that it took too long for computers to render the videos downgraded, and there were too many of them. The second one came in 640x360 with a "do not distribute" notice on it.
The videos came with no script, and they required time-coded, quality-checked STL or SRT files. Style guides (the same available on the test site) were provided. Pay was low, however turnaround time was ample, one week per feature film.
People who use expensive subtitling software always try to justify (maybe to themselves) the hefty investment. They say that cheap or free subtitling software is inaccurate, and renders poor quality. It's like people who say it's "unsafe" to drive a car without power steering, automatic transmission, 4WD and air conditioning, when the truth is that they are unable to handle a stickshift and clutch properly.
Of course, these pricey subtitling software packages have their proprietary format files, If Netflix chooses to use one of them, and will not undertake conversion from, say, the popular SRT, they'll be a must. However this may lead to a secondary subtitle file format conversion "industry".