Automatic subtitle synchronization for edited TV productions
Two years ago I was approached by someone from a public TV broadcaster in Germany with the following problem: Given multiple video files with differently cut versions of the same production, is it possible to use the technology from AudioAlign/Aurio to automatically generate edit decision lists (EDL/XML) and use them to transfer subtitles from a reference version to the different cuts? The answer is “yes”, and that’s just one of many use-cases. This article describes the challenges and how Aurio solves them almost magically in a successful prototype developed for the TV station.