If you have a video in Spanish and need English subtitles or an English transcript, the job has two parts: get an accurate Spanish transcript with timing, then translate it into English without losing that timing. Doing both by hand means hours of listening and typing. This guide shows a faster workflow where software does the first draft of each step and you spend your time on review.
Step 1: transcribe the Spanish audio
Start with the original video or its audio track. Transcribe it in Spanish first, not straight into English. A Spanish transcript lets you check what was actually said before anything is translated, and it keeps names, numbers and technical terms in their original form.
Before you upload, check the audio:
- Clarity. Background music and crosstalk lower transcription accuracy. Use the cleanest version of the file you have.
- Length. Long recordings are fine, but check that the file contains only the part you need.
- Speakers. Note who speaks when if the video has several people. You may want to mark speaker changes during review.
Step 2: review the Spanish transcript
Read the transcript while listening to the audio. Focus on the errors that will carry into the translation:
- names of people, places, brands and products
- numbers, dates and prices
- regional words and slang that may have been misheard
- sentences that run together or split in the wrong place
Fixing these in Spanish is easier than spotting them later in English.
Step 3: export subtitles and translate them into English
Export the reviewed transcript as a subtitle file, such as SRT. Each line keeps its start and end time. Then translate that subtitle file into English. Because the translation works cue by cue, every English line keeps the timing of the Spanish line it came from, so the subtitles stay in sync with the video.
Step 4: review the English subtitles
Read the English next to the Spanish source. Spanish to English translation usually goes smoothly, but check these points:
- Length. Spanish is often longer than English, but idioms and politeness forms can expand. Shorten any line that is too long to read in its time slot.
- Tone. Keep the speaker's register. A casual vlog should not read like a formal report.
- False friends. Words like "actualmente" (currently) or "asistir" (to attend) are easy to mistranslate.
- Terminology. Use the same English term every time a key word appears.
Step 5: export and test
Export the English file in the format your platform needs, for example SRT for most players or VTT for the web. Watch part of the video with the subtitles on before publishing.
How Aivently handles this workflow
Aivently does both steps. Transcription takes audio or video up to 3 hours long and gives you a timed transcript to edit. Subtitle translation takes a subtitle file and translates it into one or more languages while keeping cue timing. Both jobs end in the same editor, where the source and the result appear side by side and warnings flag overlaps, gaps, long lines and fast reading speed. You see the exact credit cost of each job before it runs, and you can export SRT, VTT, ASS, TXT or JSON.
Start with the Spanish transcript
Upload your Spanish video, review the transcript, then translate the subtitles into English.