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Accurate captions convey much more than the verbal script.

Mark Twain once wrote, “The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter—’tis the difference between the lightning-bug and the lightning.” When it comes to captions, we couldn’t agree more. Quality captions don’t just get the words right, they express every sound and nuance that’s happening on screen. This belief is more than a commitment to showing integrity in our work—it’s a matter of upholding basic, necessary accuracy.

Last month, we wrote about why quality is king. Well, there’s a reason why accuracy is the first of the FCC’s four quality standards. This standard says that captions should match not only the spoken words in the dialogue, but should express background noises and other sounds to the fullest extent possible.

For the non-hearing-impaired, this is easily taken for granted. How often do you pay attention to the crash sounds of an action movie or the soft piano of a romantic drama? These sounds add depth and dimension to our viewing experience, and they’re so subtle that we’ve come to expect them. Imagine watching a movie without any sounds, just spoken words. It would feel like something is missing, right? When your captions fail to include non-verbal sounds, your hearing-impaired viewers are missing out.

That’s why CaptionLabs takes special care to create rich, dynamic captions that accurately express non-verbal sounds, background noises, sound effects, music, and more. We’re committed to providing the highest level of accessibility for our viewers and creating concise, accurate descriptions of sounds is paramount when we’re properly conveying context to our audience.

Get in touch with us today to see how we can provide you and your viewers with the most accurate captions.