Vietnamese Timed Text Style Guide
1. Abbreviations
Acronyms should be written without periods between letters: BBC, CIA
2. Character Limit
42 characters per line
3. Number of Line
Maximum 2 lines per subtitle.
4. Continuity
● Do not use ellipses when a sentence is split between two continuous subtitles.
● Use ellipses to indicate pauses:
Nói ta nghe… tại sao Azog
lại săn đuổi ngươi?
● Use ellipses without a space at the end of the first subtitle when there is a pause
between a sentence running over two subtitles.
Subtitle 1 Con đường…
Subtitle 2 nó biến mất rồi!
● Use ellipses without a space to indicate that a subtitle is starting mid-sentence:
Subtitle 1 - Tôi đề nghị...
- Các ông không được đi đâu cả.
Subtitle 2 …chúng ta đi thôi.
5. Dual Speakers
Use a hyphen followed by a space to indicate two speakers in one subtitle, with a
maximum of one speaker per line.
- Xin chào thanh tra.
- Chào cô hiệu trưởng.
6. On-screen Text
● Forced narrative titles for on-screen text should only be included if plot-pertinent.
● When on-screen text and dialogue overlap, precedence should be given to the
most plot-pertinent message. Avoid over truncating or severely reducing reading speed in
order to include both dialogue and on-screen text.
● The duration of the FN subtitle should as much as possible mimic the duration of
the on-screen text, except for cases where reading speed and/or surrounding dialogue
takes precedence.
● Forced narratives that are redundant (e.g., identical to onscreen text or covered in
the dialogue) must be deleted.
● Forced narratives for on-screen text should be in ALL CAPS, except for long
passages of on screen text (e.g. prologue or epilogue), which should use sentence case to
improve readability.
● If at all possible, try to avoid interrupting a line of dialogue with a forced narrative.
● When a forced narrative interrupts dialogue, use an ellipsis at the end of the
sentence that precedes it and at the beginning of the one that follows it.
7. Foreign Dialogue
● Foreign dialogue should only be translated if the viewer was meant to understand
it (i.e., if it was subtitled in the original version).
● When using foreign words, always verify spelling, accents and punctuation, if
applicable.
8. Italics
● Foreign words should be italicized, unless they have become part of regular usage
(e.g., in English, the following no longer need to be italicized: bon appétit,
rendezvous, doppelgänger, zeitgeist, persona non grata) and unless they are proper
names (e.g., a company name).
● For TV5: No italics
9. Numbers
● From 1 to 10, numbers should be written out: một, hai, ba, etc.
● Above 10, numbers should be written numerically: 11, 12, 13, etc.
● When a number begins a sentence, it should always be spelled out.
● For TV5: except for 1, numbers should be written numerically.
● Note that the above rules may be broken due to space limitations or reading
speed concerns, as well as for consistency when listing multiple quantities, for example.
● Measurements should be converted to the metric system, unless the original unit
of measurement is plot relevant.
● Spell out numbers when used in a metaphorical context:
Cô ấy có cả trăm lý do.
● For decimals, please use commas:
English: 2.5 million people
Vietnamese: 2,5 triệu người
● For thousands, please use periods:
English: 1,000 dongs
Vietnamese: 1.000 đồng
Note: This rule does not apply to version numbers.
English: I told you, upgrade it to iOS 5.1.1!
Vietnamese: Tôi bảo anh rồi, nâng cấp lên iOS 5.1.1 đi!
● For sports, competitions, games or quizzes, always use numerals to display points,
scores or timings.
10. Quotes
● Quotes should be used at the start and end of a line of applicable dialogue and not at
the start of every subtitle.
● Use double straight quotation marks (" ") without spaces for regular quotations.
● Punctuation should be included within the quotation marks if the quote is an
independent clause and outside if it’s not.
11. Reading Speed
● Adult programs: 17 characters per second
● Children’s programs: 13 characters per second
12. Punctuation
Use as needed
13. Credit_signature
Phụ đề: Hiventy by TransPerfect
