Subtitles and captions

Subtitles are timing. Text alone will not sit right on the picture.

KolWrite transcribes your video into timed, speaker-separated text you can edit, then exports SRT subtitles. Because the timing comes from the video itself, translated tracks for other markets reuse the same timeline instead of starting again.

Subtitle a video See multilingual transcription
SRTstandard subtitle export
100+languages transcribed
Translatebetween supported languages
Editablefix names before you export

What separates usable captions from auto-generated noise

Anyone can generate captions. The gap between generated and shippable is short, specific and almost entirely about the pass a human makes in the middle.

Timing taken from the video

Cues are derived from the recording itself, so lines appear when the words are spoken. Text transcribed elsewhere and pasted into a subtitle file drifts, and viewers notice drift long before they notice a wrong word.

An editing pass that actually matters

Proper nouns, product names, jargon and acronyms are where automatic transcription fails most visibly, and where captions embarrass a brand fastest. Fix them once in the transcript, then export.

Multiple voices on screen

Speaker separation keeps an interview, panel or two-hander readable, so a viewer following captions can still tell who is speaking when the shot does not make it obvious.

One timeline, many languages

Translate between supported languages from the same timed transcript rather than transcribing the video again for each market — the cues stay aligned to the picture across every track.

Why teams caption in the first place

Four different pressures land on the same file, and each of them ends with somebody asking for an SRT.

Accessibility obligations

Deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers need captions, and accessibility standards for prerecorded video expect captions that are accurate, complete and synchronised. Automatic output is a starting point for that; the review pass is what gets you there.

Sound-off viewing

A large share of social and feed video is watched muted. Captions are not an accessibility extra there — they are whether the video communicates at all in the first three seconds.

Searchable video libraries

A transcript makes a video archive findable. Training libraries, conference recordings and product footage stop being opaque files once the words inside them are text you can search.

Reaching other markets

Translated subtitle tracks open a finished video to audiences it was never made for, at a fraction of the cost of re-recording or dubbing it.

Video in, subtitle file out

  1. 1

    Upload the video

    Bring in the video file from desktop, mobile or the web app — the same account works across macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, iPadOS, Android and the browser.

  2. 2

    Transcribe with timing

    Get a timed transcript with speaker separation, aligned to what happens on screen.

  3. 3

    Review and correct

    Play back any line you are unsure about, fix names and terminology, and make the text say what the video says.

  4. 4

    Translate and export

    Translate to other supported languages if you need more tracks, then export SRT and load it into your editor, player or publishing platform.

Questions

What subtitle format do I get?

SRT — the most widely accepted subtitle format, which video editors, players and publishing platforms will take directly. You can also export the same content as plain text, Word or PDF when someone needs the script rather than the captions.

Can I get subtitles in a language other than the one spoken?

Yes. Transcribe the video in the spoken language, then translate between supported languages to produce additional subtitle tracks from the same timed transcript. KolWrite supports 100+ languages for transcription.

Do automatic captions satisfy accessibility requirements?

Not on their own. Accessibility standards for prerecorded video expect captions that are accurate, complete and properly synchronised, and no automatic system guarantees that unreviewed. KolWrite gives you an editable, timed transcript so a person can review and correct it before export — which is the step that makes captions compliant, not the generation.

Can it handle a video with several people speaking?

Yes. Speaker separation marks distinct voices with timestamps, which helps when captioning interviews, panels and discussions. Heavy crosstalk is harder for any system, so review those passages before exporting.

How do I fix a mistake before the subtitles go out?

Edit the transcript in the app, using playback to check anything you are unsure of, and export the SRT afterwards. Do the corrections in the transcript rather than in the subtitle file — the timing stays intact and every translated track you generate afterwards inherits the fix.

Caption one video and check the timing yourself.

Upload a video with real speech in it, export the SRT, and drop it onto the picture. Timing and names are where captions are won or lost.

Subtitle a video
Subtitle a video