Content Guide for Fansubbers

Although the site may seem daunting at first glance, the actual process of adding and connecting content is fairly straightforward.

Adding your Subtitle Provider page

Since it can be common for subbing groups to change members regularly, and so that a users subs can be displayed on your own Subtitle Provider page, it is therefore recommended to create a subtitle provider account for you or your subbing group, so that all your projects can be linked and easily accessible, for your benefit and for others looking for your subs too.

Here you will find a list of Subtitle Providers so you can understand how the subtitles are displayed.

To add your Subtitle Provider page

1. Hover over the Contribute nav towards the top of the site (make sure you are logged in)
2. Click on Add Subtitle Provider
3. Start filling in the following fields:
   1. Romanized Name (Required) – Your romanized name will be your Subtitle Provider name (eg. SARS Fansubs)
   2. Short Name (Optional) – Short name is a shortened version or acronym (eg. SARS)
   3. Status – You can change this if you’re taking a break or become active again
   4. Subtitle Provider Type
   5. Website (Required) – You can link to your social media, blog, LJ profile, or even your old D-Addicts profile
   6. Upload Profile Image (Optional)
   7. About – Any additional details you want to tell people like when you started subbing
4. Finally, click on the Add Subtitle Provider button to save and publish

Upon completion (when everything is linked), each Subtitle Provider will have their own page with a list of projects they have added to the site, along with the relevant information (see image below).

Adding Subtitle Projects (Subtitles)

After adding your Subtitle Provider page (if you don’t already have one set up), you can then begin to add your Subtitles otherwise known as Subtitle Projects on Drama-Otaku.

To add Subtitle Projects

1. Add Subtitle Project from the navigation bar at the top
2. Fill in the following fields:
   1. Subtitle Project Name (ie. Hana Yori Dango [720p version XYZ Encoding Group]) (Required)
   2. Drama, Movie or Special? (Required) – Select what type of subtitles it’s for
   3. A searchable dropdown field will appear after selecting Drama, Movie or Special
   4. Search for the relevant Drama, Movie or Special (by typing the title) and select it to associate it to your Subtitle Project
   5. Various data and the featured image from the Drama/Movie/SP will appear on your Subtitle Project if you followed the step above. You won’t have to add any additional details about the Drama/Movie/SP since the basic details will be pulled into your Subtitle Project page automatically.
   6. Subtitle Language (Required)
   7. Add Subtitle Provider
   8. Type the name of your Subtitle Provider page in the searchable dropdown field and select it–this will link this Subtitle Project to your Subtitle Provider page
   9. Project Start Date – This can be when you announced the project or when you upload the first set of subtitles
   10. Project Completion Date – The date whenever you complete all subtitles for the Drama/Movie/SP
   11. Be sure to fill in these dates so users can filter it on your Subtitle Provider page
   12. Project Status – You can use this to announce projects. Select only one checkbox
   13. If you select In Progress, be sure to enter the Episode Status (only add the latest episode number in the Episode Status field; Total Episodes will pull from the Drama/Special associated to the Subtitle Project). Likewise, if you are DROPPING a project, be sure to list the number of eps that were subbed to that point.
   14. Subtitle Source – How were the translations created/obtained?
       • Human Translation – Translations done by a human
       • Machine Translation – Translations processed through automated online translation services
       • DVD/Blu-ray – Official translations ripped from a DVD/Blu-ray source
       • TV – Official translations ripped from a TV source
       • Stream Service – Official translations ripped from an online stream service
       • Other – Can be a combination of the above or unknown
   15. Subtitle Type (check as many as applicable)
       • External – Files (subtitles and/or videos) not uploaded to Drama-Otaku.com and link elsewhere
       • Hardsubbed – Subtitles embedded with the video and can’t be toggled on/off
       • NekoCapped – Subtitles externally embedded with an online video source via the browser plug-in, NekoCap
       • OCRed – Subtitles created using an OCR program–the program uses character recognition algorithms and extracts subtitles from a hardsubbed source converting it to a softsub
       • Internal – Extractable subtitles that are embedded with the video (RAW) source which can be toggled on/off
       • Retimed – Subtitles that were retimed to match another video (RAW) source
       • Softsubbed – Downloadable text subtitles in file formats .ass, .srt and need to paired with a video (RAW) source
       • Transcribed – Translations manually typed up using a hardsubbed source to convert a hardsub to a softsub
       • Untimed – Subtitles ripped (extracted) from a source but not particularly timed to any available video (RAW) source
   16. RAW Source (check as many as applicable)
       • AMZN – Files ripped from Amazon Prime subscription and/or rental
       • BluRay – Official release from BluRay
       • DoA – Re-encoding group
       • DramaClub – WEB-DL and Re-encoding group
       • DVD – Official release from DVD
       • HDTV – Files re-encoded from TV broadcast
       • Hikari Raiders – WEB-DL ripping group
       • Hulu JP – Files ripped from Hulu JP subscription and/or rental
       • JPTVClub – Private tracker with HDTV rips
       • MagicStar – WEB-DL and re-encoding group
       • NF – Files ripped from Netflix subscription
       • NSBC – No Soba Club; WEB-DL and re-encoding group
       • Other – Anything that doesn’t fit in the existing categories
       • WEB-DL – Files downloaded from a streaming service
       • WiKi – Re-encoding group
       • Viki – Files ripped from Viki subscription
   17. Project Information – Give credit to people (ie. editors, timers, typesetters, encoders, etc.) or provide schedules, translation notes, or anything else related to the project

Adding Subtitles to Drama-Otaku

1. Click the radio button Upload to Drama-Otaku in the Subtitle Project
2. Select Upload or select file
3. From here a media management box should open

   

4. You can either drag and drop the file you wish to upload into the box
5. Or you can click Select Files and browse and select the file from your computer
6. Once uploaded it will show up in the library along with any other subs or media you might upload
7. You can also add any comments you wish to show under the subtitles attachment on the main Subtitle Project page

   

8. It’s worth adding info about which RAWs the subtitles are timed to or where to find them

   

9. You can also add multiple files if needed, all you need to do is drag and drop or select more than one file to be added
10. Make sure that all of the subtitles you wish to add to the Subtitle Project are selected in order for them to show on the page
11. Click on Submit to publish the page

Adding External Links instead of uploading to Drama-Otaku

1. Click the radio button External Link in the Subtitle Project
2. Add your link in the field that pops up (only 1 link is allowed upon creation)
3. Click on Submit to publish the page
4. If you’d like to add multiple external links, edit the page you’ve just submitted or go to the Dashboard to find it
5. Edit the page and scroll down to the Subtitles section
6. Click on the + Add New button (add as many as you want) to add more External links
7. Click Submit when done

Important notes

• Adding a Project Start and Completion Date is useful for indexing purposes so it is advised to add them, even if it’s just the date you uploaded the content.
• Your credits and notes will contain the project information relating to anything you wish to share in relation to the project – including credit to others involved, schedules or translation notes. If you are going to be uploading softsubs but are also hosting hardsubs or softsubs on your own site or blog you can also add a link to it in this section too.
• You can either link to an external site (which can be your site, blog, LJ, patreon or so on) or you can upload your soft subs as they are.
  We don’t have many rules upon linking to an external site, but please try to refrain from just linking externally to file upload services (eg. Mediafire or Mega etc.) since it’s likely these links will just get taken down. Please think of Drama-Otaku.com as a backup of subtitles.
• For direct uploads to the site, the file types we accept are .zip, .srt, .ass, or .ssa. We do not accept .rar file uploads at this time.
• Be aware that spaces and special characters like brackets [] are sanitized (replaced with _) by default to prevent hacking. If you want to keep your filenames intact, zip your files and then upload.

Frequently Asked Questions (for fansubbers):

There’s already a subtitle project for xxx, am I allowed to add my own?
If there’s already a subtitle project for a series or movie, there’s no restriction on contributing your own set of subs. A Drama/Movie/SP page can have more than one set of subtitles linking to it, there is no limit to the amount of projects connected as they will all be tied to different providers.

Can I link to my external hardsubs?
Yes, in fact, we still encourage it if you have your own blog/site where you host encoded hardsubbed videos. We still wish to be able to direct drama watchers and fans to your content, even if you’re not someone who wants to upload softsubs etc. It also helps keep all content linked to one place despite there being so many different external sources for subbed content.

Am I allowed to upload official subs from streaming services or film festivals?
Technically, we do allow this. Providing that if it is licensed content that is still readily available, the official stream is linked somewhere (whether it be in the notes or on the Drama/Movie/SP page). Generally, streaming services will only have licensed content for certain regions, so we add these subs for those who might not otherwise be able to access the content as well as to preserve content that may be unlikely to be viewable in the future.

Do you host RAWs?
No, but we are considering hosting certain RAWs for specific tiers if you sign up to our Patreon.
You can also sign up to the service to disable the ads, or generally just to support the site so we can keep adding more content and providing a more streamlined experience for you.
Also check out our Drama Resources Guide on where to find RAWs.

What if the Drama/Movie/SP I want to connect my subs to isn’t listed/available?
You can still add a Subtitle Project even if the Drama/Movie/SP you’re trying to associate with is not available on the site yet. All you need to do is select one of the three radio buttons (Drama/Movie/Special) but leave the field blank for the title. As a fansubber, you can also add the content page for the Drama/Movie/SP yourself, or you can contact one of the admins on our Contact page to request someone to add it. Once you have the Subtitle Project created, you can go back and edit the project (assuming you have created it yourself) to connect it to the associated title at any point.

Why can I not edit a Subtitle Project?
You can only edit your OWN content, therefore it is possible a Subtitle Project was created by one of the admins and associated with your Subtitle Provider profile (for example, if it was added with your permission or before you registered on the site). If you wish to transfer ownership of the Subtitle Project to your username, then please contact an admin on the Contact page.

Why can I not add content?
If you have registered as a fansubber you should have the ability to add/edit content. If you’re unable to do so, or you only see a blank page upon loading the option from the nav bar, then please contact us. It’s possible we have not yet bumped your account up to a Contributor/Fansubber status.

Questions, Suggestions, or Queries? Contact us