How to create and deliver Hard of Hearing (HOH) Subtitles in the English language for a broadcaster in Ireland (RTÉ, TG4) using rev.com
This article provides a step-by-step guide to help you create Hard of Hearing (HOH) English subtitles for a TV program in Ireland. Hard of Hearing subtitles are increasingly becoming an essential deliverable in media production in Ireland and the UK and are now included as standard on commissioning contracts.
What are HOH Subtitles?
“HOH” subtitles refer to Hard of Hearing subtitles. These are specifically designed for viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing. Unlike standard subtitles that only display spoken dialogue, HOH subtitles include additional information to convey sounds and audio cues that are important to understanding the context.
Key Features of HOH Subtitles:
- Sound Effects – Descriptions of sounds like ‘footsteps’, ‘door creaks’, or ‘phone ringing’.
- Speaker Identification: Labels or names to clarify who is speaking, especially if they are off-screen or multiple voices are speaking.
- Music Cues: Indications of music type or lyrics, such as ‘upbeat music playing’ or ‘soft piano music’.
- ‘Tone Indicators’: Cues that show tone or mood, like [whispering] or [sarcastically].
These extra elements help viewers with hearing impairments better understand the full experience of the show or film and provide context for sound-based elements that are essential for the telling of the story.
Can I create HOH subtitles myself or do I need to go to a subtitling professional?
Improvements in technology over recent years, with online tools like rev.com and also Adobe Premiere’s built in transcription tool has meant that creating standard subtitles and HOH subtitles are now a task that can then be easily completed in-house by independent producers.
There are two main aspects to carrying out this piece of work. Firstly you need to familiarise yourself with the standard grammar and lexicon of HOH Subtitles. The easiest way to do this is watch one or two programmes on the RTE Player that supply HOH subtitles. Select this option when you chose a show and familiarise yourself with the different characters and styles that are used. Speaker identification, music description etc. You will realise that it is not overly complicated and once you understand the basic rules you are ready to create your own HOH subtitles.
How to Create HOH Subtitles using REV.com
Step 1: Sign In or Create a Rev.com Account
- Go to Rev.com and sign in to your account. If you don’t have one, you can create a new account on the website.
- Select ‘Place New Order” – You can choose AI captions (computer generated) or Human Captions (reviewed by an actual person in Rev.com). We recommend using AI captions as it is cheaper and you will need to review all captions by yourself to ensure absolute accuracy.
- Upload the finished, edited programme, select English and pay.
- Enter Caption editor and watch video and captions checking for accuracy and editing text as required. At this stage you should also introduce new HOH elements such as music, sound effects etc. You can also insert names on speakers to provide clarity. Amend the captions throughout the video as required. We recommend watching the video one last time before completing this work or ask a colleague to complete a review.
- When you are finished editing select the download button and choose the EBU.STL option. Choose 25fps and leave start time at 00:00:00:00. Press download.
You now have a stl file that can be provided to broadcasters to accompany your deliverables. You can download other formats as required.
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