SDH subtitling that carries the whole soundtrack
Subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing with speaker IDs, sound and music description, delivered in platform-compliant formats, same-language or translated.
SDH subtitling (subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing) extends subtitles with everything the soundtrack tells a hearing viewer: speaker identification, sound effects, music and tone. Orion Translations produces SDH in same-language and translated versions, in Netflix-compliant, broadcast and web formats, with English-Spanish as its specialist pair.
For millions of viewers, SDH is the soundtrack
Deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences experience your content entirely through its SDH track: a horror film without the creaking door, a comedy without the sarcastic tone, is a different and lesser work. SDH is not a compliance checkbox bolted to subtitles; it is the accessible edition of the storytelling itself.
Our SDH subtitlers are editors as much as transcribers: choosing which sounds carry story weight, describing music by function rather than filler, and placing speaker labels only where the eye needs them. The measure of the work is that the SDH audience gets the same film everyone else does.
What SDH adds to a subtitle track
| Layer | Example | Craft decision |
|---|---|---|
| Speaker identification | [MARIA] Not now. | Only when off-screen or ambiguous |
| Sound effects | [door creaks] | Story-relevant sounds, not every noise |
| Music description | [tense strings build] | Function over song titles, unless lyrics matter |
| Tone and manner | [sarcastic] Great. | Where meaning inverts without it |
| Lyrics | ♪ actual lyrics ♪ | When rights and relevance allow |
How much does SDH subtitling cost?
Per minute, modestly above standard subtitles for the editorial layer; translated SDH combines both crafts in one pass. Series and library volume brings rates down, and producing SDH alongside your standard subtitle order shares the timing work. Video to info@oriontranslations.com; fixed quote within one business day.
Compliance without guesswork
The European Accessibility Act, broadcast quotas and platform rules (Netflix requires SDH on originals) have made accessible tracks a standard deliverable. We produce to the destination's written spec, TTML for streaming, EBU-STL for broadcast, SCC where US closed captions are demanded, and document compliance per file. The wider accessibility toolkit lives at accessibility services, and US-style captions at transcription and captions.
Same-language, translated, or both
Most professional releases need the pair: SDH in the original language plus translated tracks for other markets, built from one master so labels and effects stay consistent. Translated SDH between English and Spanish runs through the same specialists as our English-Spanish subtitling, with the variant decision made per territory.
The whole story, for the whole audience.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- SDH (subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing) extends standard subtitles with the non-dialogue information a hearing viewer gets from the soundtrack: speaker identification, sound effects, music description and tone cues. SDH assumes the viewer cannot hear the audio, while regular subtitles assume they can and only need the language translated.
- They serve the same audience with different technical lineage: closed captions (CC) are the US broadcast standard delivered in formats like SCC, while SDH grew from DVD and streaming subtitle tracks. Content-wise they largely overlap; the platform and territory decide which format and spec your delivery needs, and we produce both.
- Per minute of content, slightly above standard subtitles for the added editorial layer: speaker IDs, sound description and music labelling take judgement and time. Same-language SDH is the base; translated SDH combines the accessibility layer with subtitle translation. Fixed per-minute quote within one business day.
- Increasingly: accessibility legislation such as the European Accessibility Act, national broadcast quotas and platform requirements (Netflix requires SDH for originals) make SDH tracks standard for professional distribution. Public-sector and education content often carries explicit obligations. We advise per destination and produce compliant files.
- Editorial judgement: which sounds matter to the story (a door creak before a scare, irony in a tone of voice), how to describe music usefully, when speaker labels are needed and when placement makes them redundant. Mechanical SDH annoys the audience it exists for; good SDH reads like the soundtrack.
- All the working ones: SRT and VTT for web, TTML/IMSC for streaming platforms including Netflix-compliant deliveries, EBU-STL for broadcast, and SCC when the destination wants US-style closed captions. Burned-in versions are available for social distribution.
- Yes, and it is the common package: same-language SDH for the original audience plus translated SDH for other markets, produced from one master file so effects labels and speaker IDs stay consistent across languages. English-Spanish in both directions is our specialist pair.