Subtitle problem.. help! at DVinfo.net

Alfred Okocha · September 4th, 2004, 04:03 AM

Sorry posted these twice.. Just thought this forum would be more apropriate..

This is my problem.. I need to somehow put subtitles on a 30-minute show that is currently on Beta SP..
Could I ask the client to transform the tape to a quicktime file and then import it all in FCP? Then I could print a DVD copy for him.. Is this possible without losing too much quality? I'd rather lose no quality at all but..

Do you have any other suggestion how to do it? (My set up is a dsr 370 and FCP4.. using a DCR-trv 19 as a deck..) Would it be better to through DV perhaps? The original tape is in PAL and my gear is NTSC.. (we live in different countries..) Would my cameras playback PAL even though they are NTSC?

Thanks!

Rob Lohman · September 5th, 2004, 04:20 AM

No your gear will most likely not playback a PAL tape. I think the
easiest would be to go to a TV station for they have subtitling
machines there and a way to easily convert the tape to NTSC
most likely.

Otherwise there are houses that can transfer a Beta SP tape to
a DV tape for example and might be able to convert it to NTSC
for you as well.

It all depends on budget and your client ofcourse. If your client
is a TV station (most likely?) I'm wondering why they are asking
you for subtitling...

Alfred Okocha · September 5th, 2004, 07:45 AM

HI Rob, thanks for your reply. Your assumption is correct and not... It's a guy working for a TV station but the program is his, and the subtitling is a language not so commonly known there.. The is to be exported to new markets..

So I think I'll ask the guy to send it to me on a DVtae and then I can either play it back on my camera or somewhere else without too much hazzle..

Thanks.

Rob Lohman · September 5th, 2004, 10:39 AM

Or if you know the language and they have a titling machine
you could perhaps do the work there?

Alfred Okocha · September 5th, 2004, 01:14 PM

Physically were separated by the Atlantic but otherwise you are right.. I guess I could translate it and send it to them as a word doc.. But to be sure all the titles come on the right place, I think it's better to do it here..

Thanks anyway!

Ryan Spicer · September 5th, 2004, 05:28 PM

Since BetaSP has absolute timecode, so long as you can view the tape and timecode, you can probably just provide the folks at the station with a text file containing the in- and out-timecodes for each subtitle, and the text for each title. You can even work out the timing from a VHS w/burned in timecode, if they can ship you one, or if you can get one dubbed by somebody with a PAL BetaSP machine and an NTSC converter. Find out what hardware they use, get the specs, and prepare an input file for them to process locally, or barring that, just give them the titles and timings, and have them get it encode-ready. Its probably the simplest solution, if they have a subtitler over there already. I did some work for a company that did closed-caption encoding for various shows on Digibeta this summer, and that's more or less how our workflow went, minus the transatlantic gap..

September 4th, 2004, 04:03 AM	#1
Alfred Okocha Major Player Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: London Posts: 427	Subtitle problem.. help! Sorry posted these twice.. Just thought this forum would be more apropriate.. This is my problem.. I need to somehow put subtitles on a 30-minute show that is currently on Beta SP.. Could I ask the client to transform the tape to a quicktime file and then import it all in FCP? Then I could print a DVD copy for him.. Is this possible without losing too much quality? I'd rather lose no quality at all but.. Do you have any other suggestion how to do it? (My set up is a dsr 370 and FCP4.. using a DCR-trv 19 as a deck..) Would it be better to through DV perhaps? The original tape is in PAL and my gear is NTSC.. (we live in different countries..) Would my cameras playback PAL even though they are NTSC? Thanks!

September 5th, 2004, 04:20 AM	#2
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	No your gear will most likely not playback a PAL tape. I think the easiest would be to go to a TV station for they have subtitling machines there and a way to easily convert the tape to NTSC most likely. Otherwise there are houses that can transfer a Beta SP tape to a DV tape for example and might be able to convert it to NTSC for you as well. It all depends on budget and your client ofcourse. If your client is a TV station (most likely?) I'm wondering why they are asking you for subtitling... __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

September 5th, 2004, 10:39 AM	#4
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	Or if you know the language and they have a titling machine you could perhaps do the work there? __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

September 5th, 2004, 07:45 AM	#3
Alfred Okocha Major Player Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: London Posts: 427	HI Rob, thanks for your reply. Your assumption is correct and not... It's a guy working for a TV station but the program is his, and the subtitling is a language not so commonly known there.. The is to be exported to new markets.. So I think I'll ask the guy to send it to me on a DVtae and then I can either play it back on my camera or somewhere else without too much hazzle.. Thanks.

September 5th, 2004, 01:14 PM	#5
Alfred Okocha Major Player Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: London Posts: 427	Physically were separated by the Atlantic but otherwise you are right.. I guess I could translate it and send it to them as a word doc.. But to be sure all the titles come on the right place, I think it's better to do it here.. Thanks anyway!

September 5th, 2004, 05:28 PM	#6
Ryan Spicer Regular Crew Join Date: May 2004 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 46	Since BetaSP has absolute timecode, so long as you can view the tape and timecode, you can probably just provide the folks at the station with a text file containing the in- and out-timecodes for each subtitle, and the text for each title. You can even work out the timing from a VHS w/burned in timecode, if they can ship you one, or if you can get one dubbed by somebody with a PAL BetaSP machine and an NTSC converter. Find out what hardware they use, get the specs, and prepare an input file for them to process locally, or barring that, just give them the titles and timings, and have them get it encode-ready. Its probably the simplest solution, if they have a subtitler over there already. I did some work for a company that did closed-caption encoding for various shows on Digibeta this summer, and that's more or less how our workflow went, minus the transatlantic gap..