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Overview
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Viewing Pane and Video Playback Controls
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Waveform and Shot-Change Display
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Event Editor Panel
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Annotations/Comments
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View/Export Options
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Viewing Pane
Click anywhere in the video panel or on the [►] button to start/stop the playback.
Mouse over the "Volume" icon to adjust amplitude level.
Toggle Fullscreen
Jump back or ahead 10 frames
To view Video Playback Controls, click here.
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Waveform and Shot-Change Display
The Waveform and Shot-Change Display window graphically represents the audio of a project.
In addition to using the “Nudge” feature [Numpad 4] and [Numpad 6] to audibly find the beginning/end of the character dialogue, this display also allows the editor to visually confirm the start of the audio.
During playback, the red timeline indicator will scroll from left to right across the screen.
As it scrolls, the color of the waveform changes.
This panel also displays shot changes that the CE has found, indicated by a vertical yellow line and a thumbnail of the first frame of the new shot.
NOTE: The Waveform and Shot-Change Display can also be zoomed in and out, both horizontally and vertically.
To view Waveform and Timing controls shortcuts, click here.
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On-Screen Text and Narrative Titles
The CE Editor Panel has two separate columns for Dialogue and On-Screen text.
Only the Dialogue column is visible by default.
Clicking the “On-Screen Text” header toggles the display of the column.
Select the type of on-screen text from the listed options that the narrative represents.
Enter "Location" information for on-screen text, or "Effect Type" information for burn-in narratives.
Enter the narrative text here
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Revision Mode
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Comments/Translator Notes
Revision mode is used to track all changes from one proxy version to another. Typically, this is used in a theatrical script, where the film may go through several edit versions before being locked down and finalized. We must track these incremental updates.
One thing not currently addressed in the “Revision Mode” section of the CE Manual is "Translator Notes." Currently, the below button is only available when you work in Revision Mode.
Pressing the previous button adds the text below in the “Comments” field. We can then modify that text with whichever note we want to make. It gets exported out into the final script deliverable as a merged so that the translator can see the note.Oftentimes, we will have a note along the lines of: “TRANSLATOR: NOTE THE BELOW SONG CANNOT BE TRANSLATED AND MUST BE MAINTAINED IN ENGLISH DUE TO RIGHT ISSUES. Or TRANSLATOR: CHECK WITH LOCAL TERRITORY TO CONFIRM THE BELOW VIDEO CLIP FROM “WAR OF THE WORLDS” CAN BE DUBBED LOCALLY”, etc.
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Enabling Revision Mode
When a client updates the video for a project, CE’s Revision Mode is used to track all changes made in the Composition Editor.
The editor will receive an assignment with the new video already loaded in the project, as well as an Excel sheet that must be imported into the CE.
Importing the Excel sheet is the trigger that will enable all Revision Mode functions in the CE.
An indicator shows that the CE is now in Revision Mode.
Another indication that you are in Revision Mode is the “doubled” fields in the event box.
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Dialogue Text
The “top” field in the event box is where the editor will revise the text that has been added, changed, or removed by the client.
In the below example, the audio in Event #1 has changed from the original version. The dialogue is now, “So, these guys just… vanished?”
As the text is revised in the top event box, the CE automatically adds “revision markings” to the bottom. Revision markings are used to visually track what net changes have been made to the text. A record of these revision markings is made into a “Change List” document and delivered to the client.
Additions are automatically formatted in blue underline and deletions are automatically formatted in red strike-through, as shown below.
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Character Names
Likewise, changes to character names are tracked in Revision Mode. Below, "Mac" is being revised to "Mack"
The editor simply deletes the existing name by clicking the “X”.
The old character name is given red strikethrough formatting.Note that the deleted name can be reinstated by clicking the “+” sign next to the removed name.
The new name can be added in the usual manner.
As with text, the added name is formatted blue and underlined.
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On-Screen Text
Likewise, with changes made in the On-Screen Text column, the bottom box displays revision markings as you type.
Changes can be made to the “type” of On-Screen Text using the drop-down list.
Note that the revision of the On-Screen Text type is displayed in blue bold-underline, but that no red-strikethrough markings are displayed.
The back-arrow icon performs an “undo,” essentially resetting the event to its unrevised state.
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Annotations
Changes can be made to annotations. Revisions are marked in the same manner as text; deleted text is colored in red and newly added text is colored in blue and underlined.
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Events
Entire events can be omitted or added as they would during origination. Below, Event #2 will be omitted by clicking the "X" in the top-right corner of the box.
In CE’s Revision Mode, the omitted event is no longer visible and has been replaced by a red line, as shown below. The omitted material also does not appear in the video, as Review Mode is used for reviewing a project in video playback.
In the CE’s "Edit Mode," the omitted event remains visible, though greyed out, and displays the revision markings. NOTE: the omitted event can be reinstated by clicking the “+” icon
When an event is added during the Revision mode, its number is highlighted in red.
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Saving Your Work
Your work is periodically saved at regular intervals. If you would like to manually save your work, simply click on the below button or hit [Ctrl/Cmd] + [S]
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Gear Dropdown
For dialogue script importing, exporting, going to a specific translation event or adjusting the text overlay, click the 'gear.'
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Exporting
If you are exporting your work to a document or template, click on the "gear" icon to access the "Export Dialogue List."
Select the client name to which you wish to create an exported version of the script custom-built for this client.
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Find
To search for text, click ‘Find’ or hit [Ctrl + ‘F’] / [Cmd + ‘F’]
The Find dialogue box will appear at the bottom of the page.
Choose Dialogue to find text within the Dialogue Timeline.
Choose On-Screen Text to find text within the On-Screen Text Timeline.
In this example, there was only one result found in the On-Screen Text timeline.
This counter shows the search results, i.e., which instance is highlighted and the total number of instances found.
Select the Whole words option to ignore partial matches, and Match case to only search for text which matches the casing of the text typed in the Find field.
With the focus on the Find dialogue box (cursor appears in the Find field), you can also press [Enter] to Find Next or [Shift + Enter] to Find Previous.
If in a Revision session, select ‘Exclude hidden events’ to ignore omitted events that are hidden in Review mode.If 'Exclude hidden events' is not selected, the CE will switch to Edit Mode automatically to display omitted events and will also search for text in those events.
NOTE: if the CE is not in Revision Mode, the Exclude hidden events option will not have any effect.
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Find and Replace
To find and replace text, click ‘Find and Replace’ or hit the shortcut [Ctrl + Alt + ‘R’] / [Cmd + Option + ‘R’].
The Find dialogue box will appear at the bottom of the page selecting the ‘Find and Replace’ function.
Please note that the ‘Replace’, ‘Replace & Find’ and ‘Replace All’ functionalities are disabled until you ‘Find’ text first.
To replace text, enter the text to be replaced at the top textbox and the text to replace it at the lower one. Once a match is found, click ‘Replace’ to replace this instance of text or ‘Replace & Find’ to replace and find the next matched text.
To ‘Replace’ text, enter the text to find and the text to be replaced and click ‘Replace.’ In this example, ‘disappeared’ is to replace ‘vanished.’
After replacing the first instance, a dash ‘-’ is shown indicating that there are 3 more instances to be replaced.
This counter indicated that the highlighted text is the second instance of 3 found results.
After clicking ‘Replace All’, the counter shows the total number of text instances that were replaced.
When trying to replace text that is part of a tag, please note that the ‘Replace All’ will not be applied to a Tag that is among the found and match the text.
In this example, ‘Nah’ is part of an Annotation tag. It can be replaced using the ‘Replace’ and ‘Replace & Find’ functions directly, but not ‘Replace All.’
Similarly, when trying to ‘Replace All’ for text tagged as KNPs or Profanity.
To replace tagged text (Annotation, KNP or Profanity), click ‘Replace’ or ‘Replace & Find.’
In this example, an Annotation tagged ‘Nah’ is replaced with ‘No.’
For example, when trying to ‘Replace All’ and the text is tagged as a KNP or Profanity.
A warning message is shown to indicate that the tagged text was not replaced because it is part of an Annotation, KNP or Profanity tag.
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Go To
Select ‘Go To…’ to go to a specific subtitle event or hit [Ctrl + ‘G’] / [Cmd + ‘G’]
You can go to a specific subtitle event using its event number or time code.
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Offset
Select ‘Offset’ to shift the start/end time of one event or a group of events.
This first option is to offset (shift the time-codes of) "All" the events in the timeline.The second option is to offset starting the "Current" event "to the end."
The third option is to offset a "Range" of events, specifying their numbers.
"Define offset amount" -> It’s here where you specify the amount of offset whether in frames or seconds. NOTE: the offset amount can be positive (forward) or negative (backward).
Or instead of defining an offset amount, you can "Set a new start time" for the first event affected by the offset.
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Text Overlay
Click ‘Text Overlay’ to display/hide the subtitles in the media player in order to see some object/text on the video behind the subtitle that is covered by it.
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Review/Edit Modes
Click on 'REVIEW' to switch to 'EDIT' mode and vice versa. You can also toggle between 'EDIT' and 'REVIEW' modes by hitting the shortcut [Ctrl + "."] / [Cmd + "."]
In 'REVIEW' mode, when playing the video, the subtitles “play” in sync with the video.
It is the same as watching the actual movie with subtitles; they appear on the screen based on their start time. If you move through the subtitles using shortcuts, the video jumps to the start time of the subtitle that you jumped to. Also, if you start editing the subtitle in focus, the video will stop/pauses automatically.In 'EDIT' mode, when the video is playing, the subtitles do not play in sync with it. The subtitle remains in focus until you manually jump to another subtitle. When you move through the subtitles, the video does not move; it stays where it is. The video and the subtitles function independently.
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Submitting the File
When finished with the file, click on the Submit option.
This will finalize the file, complete the task, and activate the next step in the production chain.
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Event Editor-
Event Editor Panel
The Event Editor Panel is where editors transcribe and format text set the in- and out-times of events, and annotate dialogue.
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Event Timing
Event in-time: Use the navigation controls to pinpoint the beginning of the dialogue, then “stamp” the in-time by hitting [Numpad] + [0]
Event out-time: At the end of the dialogue, the editor can “stamp” the out-time by hitting [Numpad] + [Enter]
Duration is automatically generated.
Editors can fine-tune an event’s in- and out-times by:
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Using the arrows (as shown below)
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Navigating video playback and re-stamping
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Using the CE keyboard shortcuts
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Character Names
Character names are entered in the location shown below.
Begin by typing the name of the character who is speaking
If the character appears in the drop-down list, select it. It will appear in the field.
If the character doesn't appear in the list, finish typing the name and select either 'M' or 'F'. This will add that character to the "Cast List." The next time the editor begins typing the character name, the fill name will immediately appear in a drop-down list.
Repeat with the intended target of the dialogue.
For translation purposes, it is important to indicate whether a character is speaking formally. If so, the "Formal" designation can be selected from the drop-down menu.
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Entering Dialogue
Dialogue is entered here
Buttons for italics and bold formatting
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Buttons for merging events up or down, or splitting them.
Automated buttons for "ON", "OFF" and "VO" notations
NOTE: All new events are inserted following the current, active events.
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Narrative Titles
A 'Narrative Title is text that has been added graphically (i.e., “burned in”) to the film during post-production. They are "non-diegetic." That is, they communicate directly with the audience, and do not belong in the fictional world of the film. They are meant to aid the audience in their understanding of the film.
Examples of Narrative Titles can include:
- Location markers: ("New York City")
- Temporal markers: ("FEBRUARY 1968")
- Other text:
- ("The End")
- ("Chapter One")
To begin entering a Narrative Title into the CE, first, open the "On-Screen Text" column by clicking the orange header. This will allow you to enter information on Narrative Titles and On-Screen Text.
You will see a list of the types of narratives that can appear in a project.
Choose “Narrative Title”.
Narrative Titles also need to be tagged in the CE with the transitional “effect” with which they appear on-screen. In the second drop-down list, the editor may select from a number of common transitions.
All the transition include the following:Cuts In: Narrative Title appears in the first frame of a new shot.
Fades In: Narrative Title appears gradually from transparent into solid.
Pops In: Narrative Title appears immediately during a shot.
Rolls In: Narrative Title scrolls in from either side of the frame.
Scrolls Down: Narrative Title scrolls in from the top of the frame.
Scrolls Up: Narrative Title scrolls in from the bottom of the frame.
Zoom In: Narrative Title gradually expands within the frame.
Zoom Out: Narrative Title gradually retracts within the frame.
Other: Any transition that doesn’t fit into the above categories.
In this example, “LOS ANGELES 1947” has faded into the shot, the editor has tagged the transition, and the entry of the event is complete.
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On-Screen Text
ON-SCREEN TEXT is "diegetic" – i.e., it is text that interacts with the fictional world of the film, and could potentially be read by the film’s characters.
It is captured during the principal photography stage of film production and can include elements like signs on a store window, phrases on a t-shirt, writing on a Post-It, etc.Not all text that appears on-screen can, or should, be localized. In general, the text should be included if it is “meant” to be seen by the viewer.
Being that there may be hundreds of examples of text being captured in principal photography, not all text that appears on-screen can, or should, be localized.In general, text that is plot-pertinent (i.e., it contributes in some way to the experience of the production) or is “meant” to be understood by the viewer, should be included.
The irrelevant on-screen text can be included if it occupies a significant portion of the frame for a significant amount of time, even if the text is not pertinent to the plot.
If that text was not localized, the viewer might wonder if they’re missing important information.
Though the "HOLLYWOOD HOTEL" sign in the image to the left is not necessarily plot-relevant, it does add "flavor" to the setting, is in the foreground of the frame long enough to read it, and is the first element on-screen that the eye is drawn to. This should be included for localization.
Here, knowing that the character on screen is a police officer, the out-of-focus sign on the door panel, reading “LAPD DETECTIVE SQUAD,” would not add much value to the scene, and titling and dubbing for the on-screen text would interfere with the speaking character’s dialogue.
However, when in doubt, it’s always better to err on the side of inclusion. Clients may remove content at their discretion.
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Entering Annotations
- To create an annotation, first, highlight the dialogue to be treated.
- Click the button shown in the below video (or hit [Alt] + [A]) to bring the highlighted dialogue to the Annotations window.
- The term will be added to the 'Dialogue Annotations' window on the top left.
- The editor may now enter the annotation.
NOTE: Annotations are automatically saved.
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Adding KNP/Profanity
To add the term as a KNP (Key Term and Phrase), click here or hit [Alt + K]
The KNP is highlighted and marked in green.
To add the term as a Profanity, click here or hit [Alt + P]
The Profanity is highlighted and marked in red.
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Songs - Singing Tag
During the creation of a Dialogue List script, the English operator will add in a tag at the beginning of an event to indicate the presence of a song. We use the button shown below.
Which introduces the “singing” tag
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Songs - Normal Tag
Text is then entered and if it happens that the person reverts to non-singing/normal voice patterns within the same event box, we add in the “normal” tag, which is shown on the left.
This is an example of the singing and the normal tags used together.
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Foreign Dialogue
Foreign Dialogue (FD) is understood to be anything other than the “original version” (OV) of the main feature’s language. Typically, this is English, and everything else is FD.
We do not yet have a dedicated tag for FD, but we do tag its presence so that we can extract the sections of the script. We frame off the FD in a similar manner to how we do this for SINGING, we just need to type it out right now rather than use an existing button or shortcut key. See an example below:
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