Editing Fansub (section)

== Process ==
The practice of making fansubs is called fansubbing and is done by a fansubber.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Duits |first1=Linda |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZCAHDAAAQBAJ&dq=The+practice+of+making+fansubs+is+called+fansubbing+and+is+done+by+a+fansubber&pg=PA199 |title=The Ashgate Research Companion to Fan Cultures |last2=Zwaan |first2=Koos |last3=Reijnders |first3=Stijn |date=2016-04-22 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-04348-5 |pages=199 |language=en}}</ref> Fansubbers typically form groups to divide the work. The first distribution media of fansubbed material was [[VHS]] and [[Betamax]] tapes.<ref name=Leonard />

Early fansubs were produced using analog video editing equipment.{{cn|date=April 2024}} They would copy the anime (often from laserdiscs) onto VHS, translate the dialogue, and painstakingly time and format the subtitles for the video. Popular tools for this included JACOsub ([[Amiga]]) and Substation Alpha ([[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]). The next step was to produce one or more masters, a high-quality copy of the finished fansub from which many distribution copies could be made. The fansubber would playback the raw video through a computer equipped with a [[genlock]] in order to generate the subtitles and then overlay them on the raw signal. The hardware most often used was an Amiga computer, as most professional genlocks were prohibitively expensive. The final output of the arrangement was then recorded. The master was most often recorded onto [[S-VHS]] tape in an attempt to maximize quality, though some fansubbers used the less expensive VHS or Beta. Once it was completed, the master copy was sent to a distributor.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Leonard |first=Sean |url=http://web.mit.edu/seantek/www/papers/progress-doublespaced.pdf#page=42 |title=Progress Against the Law: Fan Distribution, Copyright, and the Explosive Growth of Japanese Animation |date=September 12, 2004 |publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology |pages=42 |language=en |access-date=October 10, 2019 |archive-date=November 4, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191104022647/http://web.mit.edu/seantek/www/papers/progress-doublespaced.pdf#page=42 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Digisubs===
The internet allows for highly collaborative fansubbing, and each member of a fansub team may only complete one task.<ref name="Citas Sanchez"/> Online fansubbing communities such as DameDesuYo are able to release a fully subtitled episode (including elaborate [[karaoke]]<ref name="Citas Sanchez"/> with translation, [[kana]], and [[kanji]] for songs, as well as additional remarks and translations of signs)<ref name="Hatcher appendix">{{cite web |url=http://www.law.ed.ac.uk/ahrc/script-ed/vol2-4/otaku_appendix.pdf |author=Hatcher, Jordan S. |title=Of Otaku and Fansubs. Appendix&nbsp;– Fansub Samples |publisher=Script-ed. Vol. 2, No. 4, 2005. |access-date=September 24, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140114190718/http://www2.law.ed.ac.uk/ahrc/script-ed/vol2-4/otaku_appendix.pdf |archive-date=January 14, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> within 24 hours of an episode's debut in Japan.<ref name="ANN Interview Fansubber" />

Platforms like Fansnub have emerged to showcase creative works by fansubbers and similar content creators. These platforms provide a space for fansubbers to connect with their audience, share their work, and earn recognition for their efforts.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://fansnub.com |title=Fansnub |publisher=Fansnub |access-date=November 24, 2024}}</ref>

The production of a fansub typically begins with obtaining the unsubtitled source video called a "raw" that typically comes from DVDs, VHS tapes, television broadcasts, [[peer-to-peer]] networks, and directly from Japanese-based contacts. Then, a translator watches the video and produces a time-stamped text file of the screenplay with any relevant notes.<ref name="Hatcher appendix" /> The same series or episode may be subtitled by multiple groups with independent translations of varying quality. Fansub groups sometimes translate other already translated fansubs that are more susceptible to errors.<ref name="Citas Sanchez">{{cite web |author=Cintas, Jorge Díaz |author2=Pablo Muñoz Sánchez |url=http://www.jostrans.org/issue06/art_diaz_munoz.pdf |title=Fansubs: Audiovisual Translation in an Amateur Environment |access-date=September 24, 2009 |archive-date=May 12, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512075110/http://www.jostrans.org/issue06/art_diaz_munoz.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Translated text is assigned with start and end times in a process known as timing to ensure subtitles appear when dialogue is spoken and disappear with the silence.<ref name="Hatcher appendix" /> An editor and a translation-checker read over the script to ensure that English is natural and coherent while still retaining the original meaning. A [[typeset]]ter then appearance for the dialogue, signs, translator notes, etc.<ref name="Hatcher appendix" /> Then groups perform quality control to catch any final errors.<ref name="Hatcher appendix" />

Encoders then take the script file and create a single subtitled video file, often aiming for a target file size or video quality. "Hard" subtitles, or ''hard subs'', are encoded into the footage, and thus become hard to remove from the video without losing video quality. "Soft" subtitles, or ''soft subs'', are subtitles applied at playback time from a subtitle datafile, either mixed directly into the video file (.mkv, .ogm, etc.), or in a separate file (.ssa, .srt, etc.). Soft subs can also be rendered at higher resolutions, which can make for easier reading if the viewer is [[Video scaler|upscaling]] the file, but also are more difficult to blend into the video (for instance rotated text/moving text). Hard subs have traditionally been more popular than softsubs, due to a lack of player support and worries over plagiarism, but most fansub groups now release a softsub version of their releases.{{Citation needed|date=August 2009}}

The resulting fansub is a digital video file and can be distributed via [[CD Video|CD]], [[DVD]], [[Direct download link|DDL]], [[Peer-to-peer|P2P]] software, and by file-sharing bots on [[IRC]] and also [[FTP]].<ref name="Citas Sanchez"/> The distribution is usually handled by a distribution team, or "distro" team, composed of one or more individuals with a server or very high upload speed.