Democratizing Content: How AI Subtitles Break Language Barriers

Human Translation

The first option is to pay a translation agency to translate your content transcripts for you. Because you can double-check the accuracy of captions in your native language, you can afford to outsource this task to AI.

But when it is time to translate your content, you might not trust Google Translate or other online translation tools. If that's the case, you can get your caption translated manually. The advantage, of course, is the accuracy, but the drawback is that you have to pay more for the translation.

Google Translate / Translation Engine

The second option for foreign subtitles is to use a translation tool. Google Translate is by far one of the best translation tools online. Its latest update is AI-powered and can translate based on context.

Even the ContentFries caption translation engine is powered by Google Translate's API (along with DeepL). The advantage of using such tools for translation is their cost-effectiveness. And the disadvantage of potential inaccuracies can be offset with proofreading.

Regardless of which way you learn, having your initial transcription done by AI is the best course of action. After that, you can use human translation or AI-powered contextual translation. Either way, what matters is that you can easily afford foreign subtitles.

Anime (Japanese)

Anime refers to Japanese animated motion pictures and TV series. It has gained global popularity and shapes entire markets. There are hundreds of anime adaptations and millions of toys sold worldwide, all off of Anime's popularity.

Even games like Pokemon owe their popularity to Anime. Fan subs (fan-generated subtitles) played a crucial role in turning Japanese Anime into a global phenomenon. So, with no subtitles, there would be no global anime boom. No pokemon, No Dragon Ball Z, and no Naruto.

K-Dramas (South Korea)

Korean content has proven to be universally appealing despite its language barrier. While its demand has sparked a dubbing sub-industry within Korean entertainment, South Korean dramas were first made accessible with English subtitles.

To this day, many K-drama lovers enjoy them with Korean audio and English subtitles. And by making Korean culture and customs more accessible to international audiences, subtitles have, in a manner speaking, paved the way for K-pop.

So, if you like BTS, you have to thank translated subtitles for making Korean content accessible to a global audience. Without subtitles, Korean content would have a much smaller audience.

Telenovelas (Spanish)

Subtitles can also be credited with finding a modern American audience for Latin American content. Spanish soaps were first introduced to the US in the late 1970s. But it was in the 1980s when their popularity skyrocketed. Soon, they were in demand in Europe as well.

In the case of Telenovelas, dubbing was the first mode of translation. Initially, most telenovelas imported to North America were dubbed. But as these series’ popularity began to wane, most people assumed that the content category would never recover.

And that's where subtitles saved the day. Netflix was one of the first streaming service providers to go global. As it acquired licenses to stream local content in different countries, it accumulated a wide library of Spanish content. Because it was meant to be consumed by Spanish speakers, it wasn't dubbed in English.

But as is the case with almost anything Netflix, the content did have subtitles in multiple languages. After a while, the streamer's data scientists discovered something: people were consuming Spanish content in North America and Europe. This discovery paved the way for international foreign hits Squid Game and Money Heist.

Bollywood (India)

Indian content has achieved international acclaim with movies like Slumdog Millionaire. But its traditional romantic musicals found a foreign audience long before its Oscarworthy flicks were distributed to theatres.

Arab people are among the biggest consumers of Indian films. While there are entire TV channels dedicated to broadcasting Arabic-dubbed Bollywood films, theatres in Arab countries still rely on subtitles.

Bollywood movies distributed to cinemas in Dubai, Doha (Qatar), and other Arab regions bear Arabic captions. So, one can credit subtitles with bringing Bollywood to the Arab world.

In other words, translated subtitles have popularized at least four types of content. And that was before the age of AI subtitles when only major entertainment providers could afford foreign language captioning. But with AI subtitling, you do not need to be an Arab movie distributor, a Japanese anime studio, or a Spanish soap producer to get your content across the border.

Allowing Small Creators To Acquire Foreign Fans

By bringing foreign subtitling to small content creators, AI is making it much more feasible for them to build global fanbases. Small creators do not need to hire professional translators or transcribers to get international attention. They can just focus on creating high-quality content and let AI do the rest.

Promoting Cross-Pollination Of Cultures

A very significant benefit of AI subtitles is that they allow cross-distribution of content across cultural barriers. Well-captioned videos from one country can go viral in a country that is oceans apart. This helps people in one region learn more about the culture and customs of another region.

Reduce Bigotry And Othering

Bigotry often stems from the fear of the unknown. People are more likely to villainize races and countries they don't know much about. By promoting cross-cultural content consumption, AI subtitles can help fight racism and bigotry.

Promote International Solution-Seeking

The information age has revolutionized problem-solving. With the help of the internet, we can learn about issues faced by people we would never meet. UN and other NGOs use subtitled content to bring the voice of foreign refugees and people in need to those who don't understand their native language.

Create Cross-Cultural Empathy

AI subtitles facilitate communication between groups that don’t speak each other’s languages. And by facilitating inter-language dialogue, they ultimately drive home the point that we are all humans. This kind of empathy contributes to global peace and conflict resolution.

Does Your Content Feature A Dialogue?

Even within dance content, you might need captions if your videos are tutorials. As long as there is dialogue in your content, you'll benefit from AI content captioning. This applies to monologues as well. Examples of content with words that should be subtitled include skits, stand-up comedy, lectures, and video essays.

Is There Any Word Value In Your Content?

Generally, the rule of thumb is that if there are words in your content, you might as well include captions. But sometimes, the words might not be the most valuable part of the video. For instance, if you make free running or parkour videos, then every "let's go" or "yes!" doesn't need to be co-stated with captions.

Is Your Content Consumed Via Social Media?

The final question to ask yourself is whether your content is consumed online. Because social media is a very distracting context, you need your videos to have as high an engagement value as possible. And having subtitles in your content can help your audience stick around longer.

Is Your Content Culturally Entrenched?

If your videos are so specific to your region that no one outside of your city or town will find value in them, you should probably not bother translating your existing catalog. But you can focus on expanding your content horizons.

Does Your Content Need To Be Explained When Translated?

If translation alone doesn’t work and your videos need explanation as well, then you should stick to native language subtitles. Not all content is equally enjoyable on a global level.

Is Your Content Story-Driven?

Story-driven content is generally enjoyed by people from different cultures and in different countries. The more of a story your videos have, the better they will perform with translated subtitles.

Focus On Universal Character Types

For thousands of years, humans have created and shared art, stories, and poems. And time and time again, certain character types have reappeared. These are known as the archetypes. If you feature archetypes in your content, you improve the chances of people from other countries relating to them.

Archetypes like the wise old man or the reluctant hero resonate across cultural and geographic boundaries. They are psychologically significant tropes, and studying them can help you as a content creator.

You might want to embody a certain character type. Or you may want to write one into a narrative you're filming. You can always adapt the archetypes according to your content style. But studying them is quite important.

Discuss Globally Relatable Problems

Not all creators use stories, though most should. If your content format is free of scripted stories, then discussing globally relevant topics is the next best thing you can do to have cross-cultural appeal.

Abstract issues like existential anxiety, as well as tangible issues like wealth inequality, are just a few topics you can get started with. Reading global news and looking at problems that face us on a planetary level can give you plenty of discussion ideas.

Make Your Content Story-Driven

While embodying archetypes can definitely help your content, you can multiply your platform's growth rate with story-driven content. Of course, boring stories don't really yield results, so you have to get good at crafting and telling stories.

Getting better at storytelling is something that pays dividends regardless of how global or local your content is. Take a story writing workshop if you have to. But don't let the story aspect of your script be the weak one.

Add Musicality And Visual Appeal

Any discussion about global appeal would be incomplete without addressing the resonance of music. Song and dance can cross cultural barriers without the need for translation. And while every creator can't dance, most creators can use good music in their videos.

Adding musicality to your videos will make them more appealing to your viewers, but be mindful of the true value of your content. In a music video, the soundtrack plays a primary role. In a lecture, it is supplementary. Whatever is of primary value must be communicated clearly.