AccessKitAdd captions
Learn how to add captions to a work in the AccessKit dashboard.
Once you've set up a Work in AccessKit, you can add synchronized captions to that Work, which will enable visitors to directly view the captions in realtime on their mobile devices.
Requirements
| Requirement | Description |
|---|---|
.srt caption file | An SRT caption file is a standardized format for storing subtitles and captions associated with a video file. These are typically provided by artists. |
| AccessKit Work | You must have a Work set up in the AccessKit Admin Dashboard already. See the corresponding guide if you need assistance. |
| AccessKit Mediaplayer | [Optional] If you want to check caption sync when done, you must have a Mediaplayer registered in the AccessKit Admin Dashboard with the relevant video file playing on it already. See the corresponding guide if you need assistance. |
Format other than `.srt`?
If a format other than an .srt was provided to you with the video file, the
AccessKit team is happy to provide free conversion services; just send an
email to the AccessKit team with the subject SRT Conversion and the file(s) attched.
No captions provided?
If no captions were provided to you and you only have a video file, you have a few options:
- You can generate your own
.srtfiles in TextEdit, Notepad, or any other plain text editor by following these instructions. - Many online services, such as Rev and
3Play Media, offer quick
.srtcreation for relatively inexpensive prices. - Contact the AccessKit Team with subject
SRT Creationand the video file attached to the email and we will be happy to provide cheap SRT creation services.
No video file yet?
If you do not have the video file yet, or do not have a Mediaplayer set up yet, that's fine! You can upload the captions to the Work and return to check caption sync once your mediaplayer is all set up.
When no Mediaplayer is assigned to a Work (or the assigned Mediaplayer is offline), then
the captions for that Work will be rendered as a static transcript on the Work's Guest View
page rather than synchronized scrolling captions.
If all the requirements are met, then you are ready to start!
Uploading captions
Open the Work's configuration page
From the Admin Dashboard homepage, click the [edit] button next to the name of the Work you wish to provide captions for. This will open up the Work's configuration/editing page where you can update its title, provide captions, upload audio, and more.
Find the Captions section and click Add Additional Captions
This will add new fields to the form which you will fill out in the next step.
Click Choose File and select the desired .srt file
This will open a system dialog where you can browse to the location of the .srt file
you wish to upload from your computer's drive.
Fill out the relevant language information
Add a Language Display Code (e.g. EN-US or DE) and a Language Descriptor (Long) (e.g. English or Deutsche).
The short display code will be visible to viewers in the guest-facing side of the AccessKit web app when multiple caption files are associated with a Work.
Additional `.srt` files or languages?
If you have additional .srt files for other languages, just click Add Additional Captions
again to bring up a new collection of form fields and repeat this process.
See the guide on supporting multilingual experience for more help, including using our built in AI-powered automatic caption translation feature.
Click the Update Work button
Once you have entered the information, click the Update Work button to submit the form. Once you have updated the work, you will be redirected back to the Admin Dashboard.
Enabling caption sync [optional]
Assign the Mediaplayer to the Work
Not using a BrightSign?
If you are using a Mediaplayer other than a BrightSign, you will likely be using a different syncing mechanism which connects directly to the Work, and so this step is unnecessary.
On the Admin Dashboard homepage, click the Mediaplayer's name, which should be a link that looks like mediaplayer-#id or nickname-#id. This will open the BrightSign's configuration page, which is a form similar to the one used when creating or editing an Exhibition or Work.
Find the field called Linked Work and select the Work you wish to provide captions for
from the dropdown menu.
Then, click the Update Mediaplayer button at the end of the form to associate the Mediaplayer with the Work.
Restart the video file
Because the Mediaplayer is already playing your test media, captions will not become synced until the next time the video file restarts.
To force a restart of the video file, you can click on the [controls] link next to the Mediaplayer's name
on the Admin Dashboard homepage, and then click the Reload Application button.
Check caption sync
From the Admin Dashboard homepage, click on the title of the Work.
This will open the Work's guest view page, where you should see the captions displayed in the center of the screen and updating in synchrony with the video content on the Mediaplayer's monitor.
If the captions are not displaying, or are not updating in synchrony with the video content, please contact the AccessKit team for assistance.
Next steps
Now that you have learned how to provide captions, you might be interested in the following guides: