Tranquillity Base > Subtitle Factory > User Guide

User Guide


Sample Movie [Download]


Opening Files

Choose File > Open..., select a file(s). Or drag and drop a file(s) to the application icon.

Adding a Subtitle Track

Subtitle text data are stored in subtitle tracks.

Double-click on a subtitle, and then you can edit it.

Creating a Line Break

Press the “option” and “return” keys

Inserting a Subtitle

Move the playhead to the time to insert, Choose Subtitle > Insert Subtitle.

Subtitle Duration

Each subtitles appear until the next subtitle comes in. And the last one appear until the end time of the own track. If you do not want to stay a subtitle on the screen until the next or the end time, insert an empty text subtitle at the time to disappear that.

'Hellow Goodbye' is on the screen until 02:24.

'Hellow Goodbye' is on the screen until 01:54, and then no subtitles until 02:24.

Removing Subtitles

On the subtitles list, select a subtitle(s) you want to remove, and then push the delete key.

Changing a Start Time

In a main window, Double-click a Start Time on the subtitles list. and then you can edit it. Or drag the Current Time and drop it into a subtitle in the list. The start time will change to current time. Start time can be changed between previous and next subtitles start time.

Shifting Start Times Forward / Backward

Normally, editing the start time or duration of a subtitle will not affect the start times of subsequent subtitles.

If you want to shift the start times of them, edit with pressing the shift key.

For Example:
To delay the start time of subtitle #2 by three seconds from 00:00:05.000 to 00:00:08.000

Without the shift key

With the shift key

Setting a Track Duration

Move the playhead to the time you want to set the end of track, Choose Subtitle > Set Track Duration > Current Time.
'End of the track' lists at the end of the subtitles list.

Select the 'End of the track' and delete it, or choose Subtitle > Set Track Duration > End of Movie, the track duration will be same the movie's duration.

Subtitle Track Settings

Choose View > Show Inspector. Select the Track tab in the inspector panel and select a subtitle track on the track list.

Enabled

According to the QuickTime File Format Specification, one track in the same group must be ON and all others in the group must be OFF.
An enabled state has nothing to do with showing / hiding subtitles.

Language

Specify the language for subtitles. You can set it with locale information, e.g. English (United States), English (United Kingdom), and SDH (Subtitles for the deaf or hard-of-hearing).

Group

If a movie has multiple subtitle tracks, set them to the same group. A subtitle track which is not in the group does not appear in the subtitle selection list.

Subtitle Track Text Attributes

Each subtitle track has the text attributes of the following.

Placement To display at the top or bottom.
Color Text color
Text Style Bold, Italic and Underline
※Text styles are ignored depending on movie players.
※Italic style may not apply to 2-byte characters.
Setting Text Attributes to Individual Subtitle

Select a subtitle in a main window, and then select the Text tab in the inspector panel.

Style and Color
  1. Click the Edit Text button, then the inspector becomes edit mode and the button title becomes Done.
  2. You can edit the subtitle text and text style/color.
  3. Click the Done button after editing.
  4. The star mark "" appears at the left side of the text in the subtitles list.

You cannot directly edit styled/colored subtitles in the main window.

If you want to remove the individual style/color attributes, click the Default button. The subtitle track's attributes are applied to it.

Subtitle Factory cannot set a font and a background color.

Placement

To display the subtitle at the top or bottom. Clicking the Default applies the placement of the subtitle track's attributes.

Forced Subtitle

Indicates whether the subtitle is a forced subtitle.

In Main Window:
If a subtitle is forced, the Ⓕ appears at the right side of the start time.

In the Inspector Panel:
If one or more forced subtitles are included in a subtitle track, the (F) appears at the right side of the track type.
If all subtitles are forced, called 'Only-Forced' subtitle track, the Ⓕ appears at the right side of the track type.

※NOTE
It depends on movie players whether forced subtitles work or not.
The following would help you to use them in Apple's movie player (QuickTime Player, Music, TV, etc.).

Changing Subtitle Track for Editing

Choose View > Audio & Subtitles > a language of subtitle track you want to edit. Or choose by the Subtitle pop-up button (looks like a balloon).

Adding Subtitles by SRT file

You can add a new subtitle track by SRT file.

Open a movie file, choose File > SRT > Import..., select an SRT file in the open dialog sheet and click the OK button. Or drag and drop an SRT file to a main window.

Time Bar Preview

When you place the cursor on the time bar, the preview of the frame appeares.

To enable or disable it:
Choose View > Time Bar Preview

Placing the cursor with pressing the shift key, the preview temporarily disappears or appears.

Play Selection Only

To select a portion of a movie, choose Controls > Play Selection Only to appear the In / Out selection markers, and then move the markers. To fine-tune the selection, select a marker and move it with the left or right arrow key.

When you choose Controls > Deselect, the selection markers move to the playhead.

Play Control Keyboard Shortcuts

Space bar or returnPlay or Stop
command (⌘) + ↑Go to the beginning of a movie
command (⌘) + ↓Go to the end of a movie
option (⌥) + command (⌘) + ↑Go to the selection start
option (⌥) + command (⌘) + ↓Go to the selection end
Go back one frame
Go forward one frame
command (⌘) + ←Go back 5 seconds (Default)
command (⌘) + →Go forward 5 seconds (Default)
option (⌥) + command (⌘) + ←Go back 30 seconds (Default)
option (⌥) + command (⌘) + →Go forward 30 seconds (Default)
option (⌥) + ←Go back 1 second (Default)
option (⌥) + →Go forward 1 second (Default)
control (⌃) + option (⌥) + ←Go back 0.5 seconds (Default)
control (⌃) + option (⌥) + →Go forward 0.5 seconds (Default)
JSpeed down
KNormal speed
LSpeed up
MReverse play
Customizing Skip Times

Choose Controls > Customize Skip Times...
You can set them to 0.5, 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, or 30 seconds.

FAQ 1: Subtitles are not shown in movie players

Movie players which suports subtitle tracks has a menu item for choosing subtitle language to display on the screen and turning off subtitles. Please check to see whether any language is selected.

e.g. In QuickTime Player, View > Subtitles > [Language of subtitle]
Or choose the subtitle button on the playback controller on the window.

FAQ 2: First subtitle is not shown in QuickTime Player (10.3)

QuickTime Player does't display a subtitle started from 00:00:00.0000. But when you click or dragg the playhead in the timeline, it appears.

For solving the problem, insert a short duration empty subtitle text like as the following.