Subtitling for Netflix
Thread poster: Petr Štádler
Petr Štádler
Petr Štádler
Local time: 20:14
English to Czech
+ ...
Nov 22, 2018

Hi, I am sure a lot of you have noticed the recent new wave of vendors' recruiting subtitlers for Netflix content. I'd like to join in but have conflicting information as to how the cooperation works.

I believe that it's a universal experience that to be able to subtitle for Netflix, whether individuallly or through an agency, one must sign the NDA - at least I was provided an identical NDA by two vendors, so I assume it's Netflix's general request for all end contractors to sign it
... See more
Hi, I am sure a lot of you have noticed the recent new wave of vendors' recruiting subtitlers for Netflix content. I'd like to join in but have conflicting information as to how the cooperation works.

I believe that it's a universal experience that to be able to subtitle for Netflix, whether individuallly or through an agency, one must sign the NDA - at least I was provided an identical NDA by two vendors, so I assume it's Netflix's general request for all end contractors to sign it. Now, I've been told by one of the vendors that it is possible to work for Netflix through one vendor only (because the NDA can only be signed with/through one vendor). At the same time, I was given the explanation that the number of jobs is not dependent on the vendor through which I work - supposedly, once on the Netflix platform, all linguists translators for a particular language have the same access to tasks, regardless of which vendor they are working with. If this is indeed the case, then the only difference I can see between the vendors would for me be the rate per runtime minute that I am offered by different vendors.

On the other hand, another vendor informed me that the above is not true and their freelancers work directly with Netflix as well as with other agencies, so I am at a loss as to what's true.

Could you please share your experience in this respect? If you work for Netflix, did you have to sign the NDA, are you obliged to work for a single vendor only or can you work for multiple vendors and perhaps also directly? (In case the situation varies regionally, I'm primarily interested in the situation of the newly-recruited Central European languages as my language is Czech.) Thank you in advance!
Collapse


 
Monica Paolillo
Monica Paolillo
Italy
Local time: 20:14
English to Italian
+ ...
Reach out to your vendor with your doubts Nov 22, 2018

Because of the very existence of NDAs nobody will be able to reply to any of the questions you asked...

Eleni panagiotopoulou
Sasha Terehov
Janvier Ndayisaba
 
Petr Štádler
Petr Štádler
Local time: 20:14
English to Czech
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
NDA Nov 23, 2018

Monica Paolillo wrote:

Because of the very existence of NDAs nobody will be able to reply to any of the questions you asked...


Surely the existence of an NDA doesn't prevent answering all of those questions?


Andrea Escamilla
 
Colleen Roach, PhD
Colleen Roach, PhD  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 12:14
French to English
+ ...
Netflix use of vendors Nov 24, 2018

Petr: This topic doesn't concern me directly as my mother tongue is English. But, I did a quick Google search using the phrase
"working as a subtitler for netflix" and quite a bit came up -- although I'm not sure how much is relevant to your questions. But I did quickly browse through one article, which does talk about the the "19 preferred vendors" (+ there is mention of an "in-house localization team"); it's a fairly recent article (March 2018). I'm quoting a couple of excerpts below (a
... See more
Petr: This topic doesn't concern me directly as my mother tongue is English. But, I did a quick Google search using the phrase
"working as a subtitler for netflix" and quite a bit came up -- although I'm not sure how much is relevant to your questions. But I did quickly browse through one article, which does talk about the the "19 preferred vendors" (+ there is mention of an "in-house localization team"); it's a fairly recent article (March 2018). I'm quoting a couple of excerpts below (apparently you have to take some kind of a test), but you might want to read it in its entirety, as there are some links. Good luck.



https://slator.com/demand-drivers/netflix-now-found-best-translators-around-globe/
Netflix Has Now Found the ‘Best Translators Around the Globe’
Communications at Netflix, told Slator in an email.

In October, Slator reported that Netflix has about 19 preferred vendors for text localization and for localizing original content.
As explained by Fetner and Sheehan in their blog post, translators who take the Hermes test are given an Hermes number as an identifier. Starting last summer, “all subtitles delivered to Netflix will be required to have a valid H-Number tied to it.”
In effect, this means that translators who pass the stringent Hermes test become part of a pool of highly qualified translators that can get a chance to work for Netflix’s preferred vendors or its in-house localization team.
Collapse


Janvier Ndayisaba
Rita Mirto
 
Enise Ozdurgen Zabitci
Enise Ozdurgen Zabitci  Identity Verified
Türkiye
Local time: 22:14
English to Turkish
+ ...
You can work for more than one vendor Mar 5, 2019

I am a Netflix subtitle translator and I have been working for 2 different vendors for more than a year. The only difference in this case is the rate you get per minute, as you stated

Petr Štádler
Sasha Terehov
AIKATERINI KATERINA RONTOGIANNI
Jiayin Jenny Zheng
Robin Chan
 
Sarper Aman
Sarper Aman  Identity Verified
Türkiye
Local time: 22:14
Member (2019)
English to Turkish
+ ...
Backlot Mar 11, 2019

Hi Petr,

I've been working on Netflix projects for 3 years with 3-4 different vendors, using vendors' subtitling software, I have login credentials belong to those vendors. But I'm also working with another Netflix vendor, using Netflix Backlot account, the Originator, Netflix own subtitling suite. In this case, I can only work with that vendor in Originator. I'm not allowed to have another Backlot account with another vendor. So, If you're working on Netflix platform already, you c
... See more
Hi Petr,

I've been working on Netflix projects for 3 years with 3-4 different vendors, using vendors' subtitling software, I have login credentials belong to those vendors. But I'm also working with another Netflix vendor, using Netflix Backlot account, the Originator, Netflix own subtitling suite. In this case, I can only work with that vendor in Originator. I'm not allowed to have another Backlot account with another vendor. So, If you're working on Netflix platform already, you cannot work with another vendor on Netflix platform. But you can do Netflix jobs with many other vendors using their subtitling software or your own software. This is the nature of freelancing. And we have to sign NDA. Hope that helps.

[Edited at 2019-03-12 07:43 GMT]
Collapse


Petr Štádler
Sasha Terehov
Jean Chao
AIKATERINI KATERINA RONTOGIANNI
 
Petr Štádler
Petr Štádler
Local time: 20:14
English to Czech
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
It did help Mar 12, 2019

Sarper Aman wrote:

Hi Petr,

I've been working on Netflix projects for 3 years with 3-4 different vendors, using vendors' subtitling software, I have login credentials belong to those vendors. But I'm also working with another Netflix vendor, using Netflix Backlot account, the Originator, Netflix own subtitling suite. In this case, I can only work with that vendor in Originator. I'm not allowed to have another Backlot account with another vendor. So, If you're working on Netflix platform already, you cannot work with another vendor on Netflix platform. But you can do Netflix jobs with many other vendors using their subtitling software or your own software. This is the nature of freelancing. And we have to sign NDA. Hope that helps.

[Edited at 2019-03-12 07:43 GMT]


Hi Sarper,

It did help. I was kinda suspecting that what you confirmed was actually the case. I'm glad to see that the NDA didn't prevent everybody from answering my question as I don't see anything sensitive and confidential about what I asked. So thanks a lot!

[Edited at 2019-03-12 08:40 GMT]


 
Sarper Aman
Sarper Aman  Identity Verified
Türkiye
Local time: 22:14
Member (2019)
English to Turkish
+ ...
Absolutely Mar 12, 2019

My understanding of NDA is, don't disclose/share the content you work on with anybody. That's it.

Petr Štádler
AIKATERINI KATERINA RONTOGIANNI
 
Petr Štádler
Petr Štádler
Local time: 20:14
English to Czech
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thank you Mar 12, 2019

Enise Ozdurgen Zabitci wrote:

I am a Netflix subtitle translator and I have been working for 2 different vendors for more than a year. The only difference in this case is the rate you get per minute, as you stated


Thanks, that's what I needed to know!


 
Sergey Ostrovsky
Sergey Ostrovsky
Ukraine
English to Russian
+ ...
Netflix Vendors Jun 6, 2019

Hi everyone,

Could you please share which vendors for subtitles translation you are working with?

Thanks


 
Nahuel Benvenuto
Nahuel Benvenuto
Spanish
+ ...
BUMP Sep 19, 2019

BUMP, is no longer possible to enter an application to get a translation job, i too want to know how to get a job of those

 
Gunilla Jenkins
Gunilla Jenkins
Local time: 15:14
Swedish to English
+ ...
Vendors Jan 22, 2020

Hello,
Can you share the names of the vendors you have been working with?


 
Thao Nguyen
Thao Nguyen  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 19:14
Vietnamese to English
+ ...
Netflix vendors Jan 23, 2020

Gunilla Jenkins wrote:

Hello,
Can you share the names of the vendors you have been working with?


You can find the list of Netflix vendors here with info of where they are based and what languages they provide. Most of these companies will have some sort of on-boarding links on their websites. You will be asked to do a free test. Beware though that the payment isn't that great and it's non-negotiable.

https://npfp.netflixstudios.com/global-roster?npvOrder=title%20asc


Laura Guivel
 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:


You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

Subtitling for Netflix







Anycount & Translation Office 3000
Translation Office 3000

Translation Office 3000 is an advanced accounting tool for freelance translators and small agencies. TO3000 easily and seamlessly integrates with the business life of professional freelance translators.

More info »
Trados Studio 2022 Freelance
The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.

Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.

More info »