Artist process films. Keep the work in view.

Start with a narrated film you can share

An artist process film asks viewers to watch small changes while listening to an explanation. A painting surface develops, a print lifts from the plate, or a tool changes direction. Polyglot can create and translate a timed subtitle draft from the spoken recording on your Apple Silicon Mac. Your review connects that draft to the actual making, then you export a separate SRT or WebVTT file for a compatible player.

Use your own film or footage you are authorized to process and publish. Confirm permission for collaborators’ voices, identifiable visitors, music and included artworks, as well as the intended portfolio, channel or course destination and translated versions. Keep uncleared material out of the finished edit. Owning the camera recording is not a substitute for checking what appears or is heard in it.

Finish time-lapse sections, cuts, narration and audio changes in your video editor first. Subtitles belong to that exact edit. A completely silent process video has no speech to transcribe; plan its visual explanation separately rather than expecting an audio model to describe the actions.

Keep the source and translations with the final edit

Create a project from the final narrated film, or import an existing reviewed SRT or WebVTT that already matches it. Files and Projects keep the source and translations associated with the work. Keep an external note of the film revision and destination so an older draft does not reach the uploader.

Review source wording alongside playback before translating. Preserve the artist’s meaning, hesitations that matter and qualifications such as “for this piece.” Polyglot processes media and subtitle text locally; requested downloads, user-controlled updates, default-on content-free analytics with an opt-out, and licensing have separate network boundaries described in the privacy information. New AI subtitle jobs use the seven-day trial and require Pro afterward; editing and exports remain free.

Make three passes through the making

First listen for speech: names, materials, quantities and technique terms. Then listen for sound that carries meaning, such as a tool starting off camera. Finally watch the process with particular attention to information the artist never says aloud. These passes produce different review decisions; they should not all become spoken-word subtitles.

The following is a fictional review note for a short painting film, not a customer example or an app-generated report. The artist says “impasto,” demonstrates a scraping sound, then silently reveals a raised paint ridge. Tate’s impasto reference can help check the term, but only the recording establishes what was said. Confirm uncertain words with the artist.

Keep the review note outside the exported subtitle file. The sound cue below is only a candidate: retain it if that sound actually explains the process. The silent reveal calls for a separate visual-description decision, not invented speech.

Fictional review note
Film: palette-study-v03.mp4
00:12 Spoken: “impasto”
  Check the artist’s term.
00:28 Scraping is heard
  Consider [knife scraping].
00:41 Silent texture reveal
  Review visual description.
Output: palette-v03.en.srt

Protect the artist’s vocabulary in each language

Build a short human reference list from the artist’s materials and approved terminology. For a painting film, it might include impasto, palette knife and a specific pigment name. For printmaking, check the names of inks, papers and tools against what the artist actually uses. This list supports a reviewer; it is not a promise of custom-glossary import or automatic terminology enforcement.

A fluent reviewer should compare each translation with the recording and the approved source. Do not translate a material brand as a generic object or turn a tentative observation into an instruction. Preserve numbers, units and negations. If an artwork title stays in its original language, use that choice consistently.

Polyglot preserves source cue timing during translation. Longer wording can still make the viewer miss a brush movement or a brief reveal. Review reading time with the film playing, and use faithful shorter wording where possible. If a cue needs splitting or a local timing change, finish it in a suitable caption editor and check the resulting file again.

Leave silence intact, and plan visual description

W3C’s caption guidance includes meaningful non-speech audio and necessary speaker context. A speech draft therefore needs a human check for an off-camera collaborator, relevant tool sounds or music that shapes the scene. Polyglot does not automatically identify speakers or produce a complete sound-effects track. Add missing cues in a compatible caption editor when needed.

A hand turning a tool or a colour changing can carry information without making a sound. W3C treats description of important visual information as a separate accessibility task. Consider clearer narration, a described version or another appropriate alternative with the artist and an accessibility reviewer. Polyglot does not generate audio description.

Do not fill quiet sequences with guessed dialogue or captions that describe every visible motion. Equally, do not assume an empty subtitle track makes a silent film accessible. Decide what the intended audience needs, preserve the artistic pause, and keep unresolved description work visible in the handoff.

Watch the delivery with the artwork in view

Export the reviewed language track in the format your destination accepts. Polyglot offers SRT and WebVTT as separate files, not burned-in captions; plain output does not preserve advanced positioning or styling. YouTube, for example, accepts an uploaded timed subtitle file through its subtitle workflow. Upload to the matching film and language yourself; this is not an automatic Polyglot integration.

Check the opening words, a distinctive middle technique and the final line against the correct edit, then review the whole film in its destination player. Check accents, punctuation, language labels, blank gaps and cue count after any external finishing. Test a small player size and a sound-off pass. Can the viewer read the subtitles and still see the tool tip, hands and changing surface?

If player captions cover an important detail, adjust the destination presentation or the film layout in a suitable editor. Do not claim that an SRT file controls placement everywhere. Recheck timing after changing the film. Deliver only reviewed language files, record any remaining sound or description holds, and retain the source project and the exact approved video together.

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