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Activity Forums Apple Final Cut Pro Legacy Can you Closed Caption in Final Cut?

  • Can you Closed Caption in Final Cut?

    Posted by Rudy Shalamar on July 21, 2009 at 6:12 pm

    I need to do some Closed Captioning for a pre-recorded TV program. Is this possible to do inside Final Cut? Do I need a third party program?

    My final deliverable has to be on HDcam tape. So IF it is possible to do in Final Cut, can I them export to the industry standards for HDcam?

    Thank you!

    Ben Slocum replied 16 years, 8 months ago 5 Members · 6 Replies
  • 6 Replies
  • Shane Ross

    July 21, 2009 at 7:11 pm
  • Jason Livingston

    July 21, 2009 at 7:18 pm

    Hello Rudy,
    It is definitely possible to closed caption HDCAM in Final Cut Pro, however you do need some extra software.

    It requires two things:
    A Matrox MXO2 (this is the only video I/O device which supports HD video with closed captions. AJA and Blackmagic cards currently do not support HD closed captions.)

    A closed captions file in the “Matrox 4VANC” format. This can be generated using CPC’s MacCaption software. If you want to bring closed captioning in-house, then you can buy the software and do all the captioning yourself. Or if this is just a one-off project, you can pay a closed captioning service company to do the captioning for you and e-mail you the Matrox 4VANC file (it is very small, even for a long form project). You don’t have to ship tapes back and forth using this method.

    Once you have the Matrox 4VANC track generated by MacCaption, you simply drop this into your Final Cut Pro timeline and then you can output captioned HD video (and captioned SD video simultaneously if you wish) right from your FCP timeline. You don’t even have to render.

    For more information, please see: https://cpcweb.com/mxo2/

    You can download a free demo of MacCaption, as well as sample Matrox 4VANC files, and free video tutorials which demonstrate the process from start to finish.

    Hope this helps.

    Jason Livingston
    CPC

  • Craig Harris

    July 30, 2009 at 7:55 pm

    According to AJA, they now support closed captioning in Final Cut 7 as well as Mac Caption.
    https://www.aja.com/news/index_article.php?id=89

  • Ben Slocum

    August 20, 2009 at 5:49 pm

    Rudy,
    If you’ve got the latest version of FCP, then all you’ll need is an .scc file that you point the program to when you go to “print to tape”. If you don’t have the capability to make the .scc file, I can do it for $150 for a 30 minute program (or $5/minute $50 minimum for shorter stuff). Just send me the audio file. I know this post isn’t very detailed and doesn’t cover all the fine aspects of what can be done, but I hoped to catch you before you go out and invest in new hardware or software. Give me a call when you get a chance and I’d love to help out (even if it’s just advice 🙂 ) 805-478-8405. Ben Slocum

  • Rudy Shalamar

    August 24, 2009 at 3:08 pm

    Hi Ben,

    The show was shot in HD 1080i. I know that SD captions don’t work when encoded to HD decks. Do you have an HDcam compatable system?

    Thank you!

  • Ben Slocum

    August 24, 2009 at 9:50 pm

    Sorry, I don’t. When I’ve delivered HD video with 608 caption data it was in the form of an mpeg2 transport stream. Is that an option for you? If so, you only need your video file, a valid .scc file, and Compressor.

    Ben Slocum
    Production Manager
    KCOY-TV

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