Media Translation & Subtitling

For US streaming platforms, broadcasters, production companies and podcasters.

Media translation has its own physics. Twelve syllables on screen for two seconds. Lip-sync that has to land within a fraction of a frame. A joke that has to be funny in two languages but can’t be the same joke. The difference between a good subtitler and a great one is whether the viewer ever notices the subtitles exist.

Prism Linguistics handles subtitling, closed captioning, dubbing scripts, voice-over translation, transcription and full media localization for US streaming platforms, broadcasters, production companies, podcasters and news agencies. Linguists work to the style guides your platform expects (Netflix Timed Text, BBC, Amazon Prime Video, broadcast SDH) and to your delivery formats (SRT, VTT, TTML, EBU-STL).

Netflix TTSG compliant
BBC subtitle guidelines
SRT / VTT / TTML / EBU-STL
NDA-bound by default

What We Handle for Media Clients

Work we deliver most often for US streaming, broadcast and production clients.

Subtitling & Captioning

Inter-lingual subtitles, same-language SDH captions, forced narratives. Reading-speed and character-per-second compliant to platform spec.

Dubbing Scripts

Lip-sync, phrase-sync and voice-over scripts — with linguist-actor friendly formatting and emotional / paralinguistic cues marked.

Voice-over Translation

Corporate video, e-learning, ad voice-over and audiobook translation with timing notes so the studio can record clean on first take.

Transcription

Interviews, raw footage, podcast episodes and broadcast tape transcribed verbatim, edited or with time-codes. Speaker labels and inaudibles marked.

News & Editorial

Translated copy for newsrooms, fact-checked quotes from foreign-language sources, op-eds and feature articles for US publications.

Podcast Localization

Episode transcripts, translated show notes, dubbed or voice-over episodes and translated promotional copy for cross-market podcast releases.

Standards We Work To

Platform style guides, delivery formats and accessibility standards.

Netflix Timed Text Style Guides

Linguists trained on the Netflix Timed Text Style Guide (TTSG) for each target language: reading speed, line breaks, on-screen text handling, dual-language scenes and forced narratives.

BBC Subtitle Guidelines & Broadcast SDH

Same-language captioning (SDH) follows BBC Subtitle Guidelines or platform equivalents: speaker identification, music and sound effects, off-screen sources and timing tolerances.

Delivery Formats

Native handling of SRT, VTT, TTML, EBU-STL, SCC and SMPTE-TT. Final files conform to platform spec for upload directly to Netflix Backlot, Amazon SLU, YouTube Studio or your MAM.

NDA-Bound, Embargo-Aware

Pre-release content handled under NDA with restricted-access teams. Embargo windows respected, watermarked screeners only, deletion from active systems after final delivery.

How We Work With Media Clients

A typical episode or title, start to finish.

1. Secure Upload & NDA

Send the master file or screener link. NDA signed within the business hour. Spotting list, style guide and delivery format confirmed.

2. Subtitler / Adapter Matching

Subtitler or dubbing adapter matched by genre — drama, comedy, factual, kids, sports, news — with documented prior work in the target language.

3. QC Against Platform Spec

Reading speed, line breaks, character counts and timing checked against your platform’s style guide before the file is signed off.

4. Delivery in Spec Format

Files delivered in SRT, VTT, TTML, EBU-STL or your platform’s required format, with QC report and free revisions on first round of internal review.

Series launch in 326 languages?

Surge-capacity subtitle teams for season drops and global launch windows. Send the screener under NDA.

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