Convert captions to another format in Final Cut Pro for Mac
In Final Cut Pro, you can convert captions from one caption standard to another—for example, from CEA-608 to iTT.
There are two ways to convert captions to another format in Final Cut Pro. You can use the Duplicate Captions to New Format command to create a duplicate set of captions in any format you choose, while keeping a copy of the captions in the original format. In the second method, you convert selected captions by assigning them to a new caption role in the format you want.
WARNING: When you convert between formats, some text or formatting may be lost. For this reason, the duplication method is recommended in most cases.
This conversion method retains a copy of the captions in the original format and is a good way to quickly add languages in a new format.
Tip: To select all the captions in a language subrole, select any caption, then press Command-A. To select everything in the timeline, press Command-A again.
Do one of the following:
Control-click the selected captions, choose Duplicate Captions to New Format, then choose the new format from the submenu.
Choose Edit > Captions > Duplicate Captions to New Format, then choose the new format from the submenu.
A duplicate language subrole is created in the caption format you chose, and appears in the timeline as the active language subrole.
This conversion method does not keep a copy of the captions in the original format. Use this method when you want to permanently convert captions to a new format (after you’ve made a backup of your project).
In Final Cut Pro, create a caption role and any subroles for the caption format that you want to convert to.
Tip: To select all the captions in a language subrole, select any caption, then press Command-A. To select everything in the timeline, press Command-A again.
Do one of the following:
Control-click the selected captions, choose Assign Caption Roles, then choose the caption role that you created in step 1.
Open the inspector, then click the pop-up menu at the top of the Caption inspector and choose the caption role that you created in step 1.
If you’re converting a single caption, double-click the caption, then click the pop-up menu at the top of the caption editor and choose the caption role that you created in step 1.
Note: When converting captions to another format, make sure to choose a main role, not a language subrole.
The language subrole is converted to the new format. In the example below, the German language subrole was converted from CEA-608 to iTT.
