Automatic Transcription and Subtitle Creation in Zoom

Zoom previously only supported English subtitles, but now, Japanese subtitles can also be displayed!

This can also be used for transcription!

I have summarized the setup methods and operating procedures.

Settings before launching Zoom

To enable the subtitle feature, you need to configure it in the management screen before starting a Zoom meeting.

Log in to the Zoom management screen

Access this page to log in to the Zoom management screen.

Open the detailed Zoom settings screen

Click on "Settings".

Scroll down to "In Meeting (Advanced)" to find the automatic subtitle settings.

Enable "Automated captions"

When you try to toggle "Automated captions" to on, a pop-up screen like this will appear.

Click "Enable" to turn on automated captions.

Enable "Full transcript"

When you try to toggle the "Full transcript" item to on, a pop-up like this will also appear.

Click "Enable".

Enable "Save captions"

Let's also enable the "Save captions" item.

Now, the "Automated captions," "Full transcript," and "Save captions" items are enabled.

Displaying subtitles in a Zoom meeting

When you launch a Zoom meeting, a subtitle menu icon will appear between "Record" and "Breakout Rooms".

Click on this "Hide Subtitle" icon.

Set the spoken language to Japanese

Set the "Spoken language".

Select "Japanese" and save.

Subtitle settings

When you select "Subtitle settings," a pop-up screen like this will appear.

Check the box for "Always show subtitles."

View full transcript

When you select "View full transcript," a "Transcript" window will appear on the right side of the screen.

Transcribe and display audio

When you say "Subtitle test," the transcribed text will appear on the screen.

Save transcript data

If you record in Zoom, the subtitle text data will be saved along with the audio and video.

If saved locally, the file named "closed_caption.txt" is the text file containing the saved automatic subtitles.

If recorded to the cloud, three types of data will be saved.

The file with the "VTT" extension is the subtitle data. Open this with a text editor such as Windows Notepad.

Display video subtitles on screen

Open the MP4 video file with Windows Media Player.

Click the "CC" icon circled in yellow.

Subtitle Settings

By default, subtitles are set to "Off".

Select the subtitle text file.

Subtitles appear on the screen

When you play the video, the subtitles will appear on the screen.

The text "Hmm." displayed at the bottom left of the screen is the subtitle.

I was surprised at how accurately it transcribed the audio!

How do I save a video with subtitles displayed?

While you can view videos with subtitles on your own computer using Windows Media Player, you can't save them.

I have searched for various ways to save a video with subtitles displayed, but I haven't found one yet.

(If anyone knows how, please let me know!)

How to record your screen using standard Windows features

There is also a method called screen recording ↓

If you can record while the subtitles are displayed, video editing becomes much easier!

I hope this is helpful.