Captioning & Subtitling for Film & TV
Broadcast, streaming and digital-cinema captions that pass ingest and clear QC on the first delivery. True CEA-608 and CEA-708, SCC and SMPTE sidecars, MXF OP1A embeds and DCP subtitle XML, every file independently decoded before it reaches you.
- True CEA-608 + CEA-708
- Independently QC-verified
- NDA on unreleased titles
Built to standard
Built to the standards your delivery is checked against.
Output ready for the delivery specs of
Selected clients and partner agencies
Some work is under NDA; logos available on request.
Every delivery target, mapped to a format
No guesswork on the spec: I map your delivery target to the exact caption format it ingests.
What the work looks like
Placement, SDH detail and QC, shown rather than described.
Three-layer QC before anything ships
Broadcast and cinema files fail on decoders, not in an editor preview. Every delivery goes through three passes and an independent decode.
1. Rough pass
Spot and draft every caption against the script, source audio and shot changes.
2. Alignment and timing
Tune reading speed, line breaks and positioning; align to shot changes and clear names and lower-thirds.
3. Independent senior QC
Decode the result on a separate decoder, check conformance to the target spec, and sign it off.
Security and handover
Unreleased masters and pre-air screeners are handled to recognized industry standards, from the moment a file moves to the moment it is destroyed. Every control below maps to a named specification.
Inside your pipeline
Aspera, Signiant Media Shuttle, MASV, or your own studio portal. Never a consumer service.
MPA Best PracticesEncrypted end to end
AES-256 at rest, TLS 1.2+ or SFTP in transit. Time-limited links only.
AES-256 / TLS 1.2+NDA per title
Signed before any file moves. No exceptions.
ISO/IEC 27001Locked-down workstation
Full-disk encryption, no consumer cloud sync, auto-locking.
CIS BenchmarksWatermarks respected
Your forensic and burn-in watermarks stay intact, never stripped.
MPA / TPNSecure deletion, confirmed
Erased after sign-off, with written confirmation.
NIST SP 800-88Aligned with the MPA Content Security Best Practices and TPN Common Guidelines. I apply these controls directly as an independent contractor and work inside your existing security program.
Specs and tolerances
- Reading speed: CPS 15 to 17
- Characters per line: CPL 37 to 42
- Formats: SCC, MXF OP1A, SMPTE ST 2052-1, DCP XML, Interop, SRT, VTT
- Frame rates: 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97 DF, 59.94
- Positioning raised to clear names and lower-thirds
- Independently QC-verified with caption-inspector
- Throughput: up to ~60 video minutes per day
- Toolchain: caption-inspector, CCExtractor, FFmpeg, Subtitle Edit, Aegisub, Adobe Premiere Pro
How a project runs
- 1
Scope and spec
Built withFFprobe · MediaInfofps · timecode · drop-frame - 2
Author
Built withSubtitle Edit · AegisubCompatible withEZTitles · OOONANetflix TTSG · EBU-TT - 3
Encode and wrap
Built withFFmpeg · Adobe Media EncoderCompatible withTelestream Vantage · Marquise MISTCEA-608/708 · SMPTE 436M · DCP ST 428-7 - 4
QC and deliver
Built withcaption-inspector · CCExtractorCompatible withInterra Baton · Telestream VidcheckerCEA-608/708 · IMSC
Recent delivery
The brief
A US localization agency needed English SDH for a streaming series: captions that decode cleanly on a real decoder, not just look right in an editor, carrying speaker IDs, sound cues and positioning that never covers an on-screen name.
The work
I authored pop-on SDH across all six episodes, timed to reading-speed and line-length limits, with >> speaker changes, [MUSIC] and sound cues, and captions raised to clear names and lower-thirds. True CEA-608 and CEA-708 were embedded in the master.
QC and sign-off
Every file was decoded independently with caption-inspector to confirm the 608 and 708 text and positioning on a real decoder before delivery. The end client reviewed the captions and signed off.
Title and studio under NDA. NDA available on request.
“Just reviewed the captions and they look great.”
End client, via a US media-localization agency
Frequently asked questions
Do you work to the Netflix Timed Text Style Guide?
Yes. I build subtitles and SDH to the Netflix Timed Text Style Guide targets, including reading speed, characters per line, line breaks and positioning, and I deliver iTT or IMSC (SMPTE ST 2052-1) when that is the required format. I build to the public spec and am not affiliated with Netflix.
Can you sign an NDA?
Yes. NDA and secure handling are standard for unreleased films and pre-air episodes. Screeners are deleted on delivery.
What is your turnaround?
Throughput is up to around 60 finished video minutes per day, so a typical episode turns around in a day or two once the spec is confirmed. Send the runtime and deadline and I confirm an exact schedule.
Which delivery formats do you provide?
SCC and MXF OP1A embeds for broadcast, SMPTE ST 2052-1 (IMSC) and iTT or TTML for OTT, DCP subtitle XML (SMPTE ST 428-7) and Interop for cinema, plus SRT, WebVTT and a burned-in preview.
How do you verify the captions decode correctly?
Every file is decoded on a separate decoder with caption-inspector, so the exact CEA-608 and CEA-708 output and positioning are checked before delivery, not just previewed in the authoring tool.
Do you meet US accessibility requirements?
Yes. Captions are built to WCAG 2.1 AA, ADA and CVAA expectations for readable, well-timed and correctly positioned captions.
Request a quote
Send the master and target profile. Typical response within 10 minutes.
Related captioning services
Typical response within 10 minutes