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Captions Not SDH: Requirements and Fixes

Learn why your captions failed for SDH, what non-verbal audio elements are required, and how to fix it before resubmitting.

Filmhub checks every caption file for SDH (Subtitles for Deaf and Hard of Hearing) content when it's uploaded. If your caption file doesn't include enough non-verbal audio descriptions, you'll see a warning below your captions file. This means your title has failed our SDH requirements. It is not simply that SDH wasn't detected.

What SDH requires

In addition to spoken dialogue, SDH captions must describe important non-verbal audio, such as:

Element Convention Example
Sound effects ALL CAPS in brackets [GUNSHOT]
Music ALL CAPS in brackets [DRAMATIC MUSIC]
Speaker ID ALL CAPS + colon JOHN: or (JOHN):
Tone or manner Lowercase in parentheses (whispering)
Off-screen speaker Label + (V.O.) or (O.S.) NARRATOR (V.O.):
Unintelligible speech Brackets [INDISTINCT CHATTER]
Foreign language Brackets [SPEAKING FRENCH]

If your caption file doesn't include enough of these non-dialogue descriptions throughout, our system will flag it with this warning.

sdh-not-found-captions-tab

How to fix it

Review your caption file and add atmospheric descriptions anywhere sound effects, music, tone, or off-screen dialogue occurs. Use brackets [ ] for sound effects and music, and parentheses ( ) for tone or manner.

A few things to keep in mind:

  • Atmospherics must use plain brackets or parentheses. Formatting like italics is stripped during QC, so don't rely on italics alone to set these apart.
  • This applies to your English SDH caption file. It doesn't apply to non-English subtitle files that only contain translated dialogue.
  • You can review the full caption formatting standards in our Captions Requirements article.

FAQs

Why am I seeing this warning if my captions already have dialogue?
Dialogue alone isn't enough for SDH. SDH also requires descriptions of sound effects, music, and other non-verbal audio cues so viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing get the full experience of the title.

Will this block my title from being submitted?
Right now this shows as a warning. We recommend addressing it before submission to avoid delivery issues with Channels that require SDH.

I used italics to mark my sound effects and music. Why did it still fail?
All caption formatting tags, including italics, are removed during QC. Atmospherics need to be enclosed in brackets or parentheses so they're still recognizable as SDH once formatting is stripped.

Can Filmhub fix this for me?
Yes. Our Professional Services team can create English closed captions, including SDH elements, on your behalf. See the Professional Services article for details.