Welcome to the Netflix Partner Help Center. Have a question or need help with an issue? Send us a ticket and we'll help you to a resolution.

Menu

Indonesian Timed Text Style Guide

This document covers the language specific requirements for Indonesian. Please make sure to also review the General Requirements section and related guidelines for comprehensive instructions surrounding timed text deliveries to Netflix.

I. Indonesian Subtitles

I.1. Abbreviations

  • Do not use abbreviations such as the below
    • dgn -> dengan (with)
    • dsb -> dan sebagainya (et cetera)
    • dst -> dan seterusnya (and so forth)
    • mrk -> mereka (they)
    • sbg -> sebagai (as)
    • spt -> seperti (like)
    • thd -> terhadap (toward)
    • tsb -> tersebut (aforementioned)
    • ttg -> tentang (about)

I.2. Acronyms

  • Acronyms should be written without periods between letters: BBC, CIA, USA, UK

I.3. Character Limitation

  • 42 characters per line

I.4. Character Names

  • Do not translate proper names (e.g. Peter, Suzanne), unless Netflix provides approved translations.
  • Nicknames should only be translated if they convey a specific meaning.
  • Use language-specific translations for historical/mythical characters.
  • Transliterate uncommon or unfamiliar letters/characters which appear in names or proper nouns when working from a Roman alphabet language into Indonesian if they may cause confusion or be hard to understand or pronounce. Note that diacritics should be kept in proper nouns and names. For example: If the Icelandic name Þór appears, please transliterate as Thór (following relevant KNP and guidance about handling character names). If a German street name such as Torstraße appears in the source, please transliterate as Torstrasse (following relevant KNP and guidance about handling character names).
  • For Japanese name order and honorifics (e.g -chan, -kun), use best judgment when translating/transliterating to make sure that the translation will suit the story and convey the creative intent.
  • For other Asian names (Chinese, Cantonese, Japanese, Korean and Taiwanese)
    • Respect the source language’s format: family names and clan names (แซ่) should come before personal names for Chinese, Cantonese, Japanese, Korean and Taiwanese.
    • Do not add a space between family/clan names and personal names if the source language doesn’t require it.
    • Follow the source if there is talent preference, or use the format which they are best known in.

I.5. Continuity

  • When including ellipses in subtitles, please use the single smart character (U+2026) as opposed to three dots/periods in a row.

  • Do not use ellipses or hyphens when a sentence is split between two continuous subtitles.

Subtitle 1:

Dia mengikutimu ke mana pun

Subtitle 2:

agar dia bisa mengambil uangmu

dan pergi dari sini.

  • Use an ellipsis to indicate a pause (2 seconds or more) or an abrupt interruption. In the case of a pause (2 seconds or more), if the sentence continues in the next subtitle, do not use an ellipsis at the beginning of the second subtitle.

Subtitle 1:

Sebenarnya, dia telah…

[pause]

Subtitle 2:

pergi dari rumahnya

  • Use an ellipsis without a space to indicate that a subtitle is starting mid-sentence.

Subtitle 1 [person]:

Ayo, kita lihat berita di TV.

Subtitle 2 [reporter on TV]:

…masih dalam penyelidikan,

namun polisi menetapkan dua tersangka.

  • If dialogue is interrupted by another speaker, use an ellipsis at the end of the sentence in the subtitle that precedes it and at the beginning of the sentence in the subtitle that follows it.

Subtitle 1 [narrator]:

Pada suatu hari…

Subtitle 2 [person]:

Tuhan memberkati bayi ini.

Subtitle 3 [narrator continues]:

…lahirlah seorang anak laki-laki

yang kelak menjadi juru selamat.

I.6. Documentary/Unscripted

  • Speaker’s title: only translate the title. Do not include the speaker’s name, company name or character name as these are redundant.
  • Only translate a speaker’s title once, the first time the speaker appears.
  • When ongoing dialogue is interrupted by a speaker’s title, use ellipsis at the end of the sentence in the subtitle that precedes it and no ellipsis at the beginning of the sentence in the subtitle that follows it.

Subtitle 1 [person]:

I worked on this movie…

Subtitle 2 [speaker's title]:

DIRECTOR

Subtitle 3 [person continues]:

for a total of six months.

  • Dialogue in TV/movie clips should only be subtitled if plot-pertinent and if the rights have been granted.
  • News tickers/banners from archive clips do not require subtitles unless plot-pertinent.
  • Avoid going back and forth between italicized and non-italicized subtitles when the speaker is on and off screen. If the speaker is on-camera for at least part of the scene, do not italicize. Leave italics for off-screen narrators.

I.7. Dual Speakers

  • Use a hyphen followed by a space to indicate two speakers in one subtitle, with a maximum of one character speaking per line.

  • Text in each line in a dual speaker subtitle must be a contained sentence and should not carry into the preceding or subsequent subtitle. Creating shorter sentences and timing appropriately helps to accommodate this.

- Can you please help me?

- Of course, I always do.

I.8. Font Information

  • Font style: Arial as a generic placeholder for proportionalSansSerif.
  • Font size: relative to video resolution and ability to fit 42 characters across screen.
  • Font color: white 

I.9. 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.
  • Never combine a forced narrative with dialogue in the same subtitle.
  • 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 in the subtitle that precedes it and at the beginning of the sentence in the subtitle that follows it.

Subtitle 1 [person]:

Kenapa…

Subtitle 2 [forced narrative]:

NOMOR TIDAK DIKENAL

Subtitle 3 [person continues]:

…mereka terus meneleponku?

I.10. 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.
  • 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).

I.11. Italics

  • Italicize the following:
    • Album, book, film and program titles (use quotes for song titles)
    • Foreign words (unless they are part of regular usage)
    • Dialogue that is heard through electronic media (e.g. phone, device, television, computer, loudspeaker, AI, AI assistants, voice of a GPS, other digital devices, non-sentient robots, robotic voices, etc.) if the speaker is not physically present in the scene. For instance, if a character speaks into a microphone and their voice is heard through a loudspeaker but they are physically present, italics are not needed. Use good judgement when applying italics, ensuring there is consistency throughout the film or series.
    • In cases where one speaker's dialogue is segmented into two events and cannot be merged, if the speaker is off-screen for the first subtitle event but on-screen for the second, the first event should be italicized but the second event should not. For example:

Subtitle 1 (speaker is off-screen)

It will showcase all the latest equipment

as well as how-to articles,

Subtitle 2 (speaker is on-screen)

which the kids write themselves.

    • Only use italics when a speaker is not in the scene(s), not merely off screen or off camera
    • Song lyrics (if rights have been granted)
    • Voice-overs
    • Poetry
  • Do not use italics to indicate emphasis on specific words
  • Follow the italics rules above for supplementals and when creating forced narrative files.
  • For supplementals, avoid going back and forth between italicized and non-italicized subtitles when the speaker is on and off screen. If the speaker is on-camera for at least part of the scene, do not italicize. Leave italics for off-screen narrators.

I.12. Line Treatment

  • Maximum two lines.
  • Text should usually be kept to one line, unless it exceeds the character limitation.
  • Prefer a bottom-heavy pyramid shape for subtitles when multiple line break options present themselves, but avoid having just one or two words on the top line.

I.13. Numbers

  • Numbers from 1 to 10 should be written out.
  • Numbers above ten should be written numerically: 11, 12, 13, etc.
  • When a number begins a sentence, it should always be spelled out.
  • 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.

I.14. Quotes

  • Use quotation marks at the start of the quotation and after the last line of the quotation, marking the beginning and end of the quotation (rather than the beginning and end of every subtitle within the quotation), e.g.
    • Subtitle 1: “Is this a dagger I see before me?
    • Subtitle 2: The handle towards my hand.
    • Subtitle 3: Come, let me clutch thee.”
  • Use double straight quotation marks (" ") without spaces for regular quotations.
  • Use single straight quotation marks (' ') for quotes within quotes.
  • Punctuation should be included within the quotation marks if the quote is an independent clause and outside if it’s not.
  • Use quotation marks when a character is seen to be reading aloud.
  • If an on-screen character does “air quotes” when speaking, please apply quotation marks to the equivalent word in the target language in order to retain creative intent and to help ensure clarity about which word or part of the sentence the air quotes apply to.

I.15. Reading Speed Limits

  • Adult programs: Up to 17 characters per second
  • Children’s programs: Up to 13 characters per second 

I.16. Repetitions

  • Do not translate words or phrases repeated more than once by the same speaker.
  • If the repeated word or phrase is said twice in a row, time subtitle to the audio, but translate only once. 

I.17. Songs

  • Only subtitle plot-pertinent songs if the rights have been granted.
  • Opening and ending theme songs should only be subtitled if clearly plot-pertinent (e.g. for children’s content when the lyrics tell a story) or if instructed by Netflix. Normally, adult programs should not have the opening songs subtitled, except for SDH.
  • Italicize lyrics.
  • Use an uppercase letter at the beginning of each line.
  • Use an ellipsis when a song continues in the background but is no longer subtitled to give precedence to dialogue.
  • Punctuation: only question marks and exclamation marks should be used at the end of a line – no commas or periods. Commas can be used within the lyric line, if necessary.

I.18. Titles

  • Main titles: Subtitle the on-screen main title for branded content when the approved title for Indonesian is available in KNP/Terminology and it does not match the title which appears in the card. Do not translate the main title from scratch: always use the approved title provided.
  • Do not subtitle when the on-screen main title and the approved title for Indonesian are identical and fully match. (e.g. the on-screen title is already in Indonesian, both read with the exact same words and spellings, etc.)
  • Subtitle when the approved title for Indonesian contains a part that is transliterated/translated/transcreated/edited and does not fully match the on-screen main title.
  • When the provided translation of the main title does not work with a line break in a way that fits within the limit, the maximum character count per line or maximum line limit can be exceeded. Do not split the provided translation into multiple subtitle events.
  • Do not italicize the main title event.
  • Episode titles: do not subtitle episode titles if they do not appear on screen/are not voiced-over. If on-screen (either as part of the principal photography or burned into video) or voiced-over, please reference the KNP tool for approved translations.
  • Titles of published works, existing movies and TV shows: use official or well-known translations. If none are available, leave titles in the original language.

I.19. Special Instructions

  • All plot-pertinent dialogue should be subtitled, and takes precedence over background dialogue.
  • Dialogue must never be censored. Expletives should be rendered as faithfully as possible.
  • Always match the tone of the original content, while remaining relevant to the target audience (e.g. replicate tone, register, class, formality, etc. in the target language in an equivalent way).
  • Use of slang and regional dialect should be avoided.
  • Deliberate misspellings and mispronunciations should not be reproduced in the translation unless plot-pertinent.
  • When brand names or trademarks appear, you may either; use the same name if it is known in the territory you are translating for; adapt to the name that the brand or product is known by that the territory you are translating for; or use a generic name for that product or item. Avoid swapping out names of brands, companies or famous people for other names.

II. Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH) Guidelines

II.1. Accuracy of content

  • Include as much of the original content as possible.
  • Do not simplify or water down the original dialogue.
  • Truncating the original dialogue should be limited to instances where reading speed and synchronicity to the audio are an issue.
  • For TV/movie clips, all audible lines should be transcribed, if possible. If the audio interferes with dialogue, please give precedence to the most plot-pertinent content.
  • When editing for reading speed, favour text reduction, deletion, and condensing but do not paraphrase
    Where content has been dubbed into Indonesian, please refer to the dubbing script or dubbed audio as the basis for the SDH file and ensure that the two match as much as reading speed and timings allow.
  • Regarding the linguistic style of the source from the dubbing script or dubbed audio, even if informal language is used, please follow the source to ensure consistency between the audio and the text.

II.2. Character Limitation

  • 42 characters per line, including identifier.

II.3. Reading Speed Limit

  • Reading speed limits can be increased to:
    • Adult programs: Up to 20 characters per second
    • Children’s programs: Up to 17 characters per second

II.4. Line Treatment

  • Text should usually be kept to one line unless it exceeds the character limitation.
  • Maximum 2 lines.
  • Prefer a bottom-heavy pyramid shape for subtitles when multiple line break options present themselves, but avoid having just one or two words on the top line.
  • The line break should not separate:
    • a noun from an article
    • a noun from an adjective
    • a first name from a last name
    • a verb from a subject pronoun
    • a prepositional verb from its preposition
    • a verb from an auxiliary, reflexive pronoun or negation

II.5. Continuity

  • When including ellipses in subtitles, please use the single smart character (U+2026) (…) as opposed to three dots/periods in a row.
  • Do not use ellipses or hyphens when a sentence is split between two continuous subtitles.

Subtitle 1:

Dia mengikutimu ke mana pun

Subtitle 2:

agar dia bisa mengambil uangmu

dan pergi dari sini.

  • Use ellipses to indicate a pause (2 seconds or more) or if dialogue trails off. In the case of a pause of under two seconds, if the sentence continues in the next subtitle, do not use an ellipsis at the beginning of the second subtitle.

Subtitle 1:

Sebenarnya, dia telah…

[pause]

Subtitle 2:

pergi dari rumahnya.

  • Use ellipses to indicate abrupt interruptions.

Subtitle:

[Windu] Apa-apan…

[Defrina] Diam!

  • Use an ellipsis without a space at the start of a subtitle to indicate that a subtitle is starting mid-sentence.

Subtitle 1:

[pria 1] Ayo, kita lihat berita di TV.

Subtitle 2:

[reporter TV] …masih dalam penyelidikan,

namun polisi menetapkan dua tersangka.

II.6. Dual Speaker/Multiple Events

  • Hyphens with a space are also used to indicate a speaker and a sound effect, if they come from different sources:

Subtitle:

-[Defrina tertawa]

-[Windu] Kenapa kau tertawa?

  • If the sound effect emanates from the speaker themselves, no hyphens are needed:

Subtitle:

[pria tertawa] Dia lucu sekali!

  • Use hyphens to distinguish two distinct sound effects emanating from different sources:

Subtitle:

[pintu berdecit]

[Roy bersin]

  • Text in each line in a dual speaker subtitle must be a contained sentence and should not carry into the preceding or subsequent subtitle. Creating shorter sentences and timing appropriately helps to accommodate this.

II.7. Songs

  • All same-language audible songs that do not interfere with dialogue should be titled.
  • Use song title identifiers when applicable - song titles should be in quotes: ["Forever Your Girl" mengalun] for background music, ["Forever Your Girl" diputar] for music playing within the action of the content.
  • A song title can be added as an SDH label when there is room at the start of the song or when lyrics are not being included (e.g. if they remain untranslated as per the non-SDH experience or if dialogue and/or sound effects are taking precedence).
  • Song lyrics should be enclosed with a music note (♪) at the beginning and the end of each subtitle. Add a space between the music note and the preceding or subsequent text.

Subtitle:

[Windu dengan suara serak] ♪ Kemesraan ini

Janganlah cepat berlalu ♪

  • When both characters sing the same line, there is no need to repeat the text or create dual-speaker dialogue since visual context is enough. If necessary, use an identifier to clarify that both characters sing together.

Subtitle:

[Windu, Defrina] ♪ Kemesraan ini ♪

  • Use ellipses when a song continues in the background but is no longer subtitled to give precedence to dialogue.

Subtitle:

[Windu dengan suara serak]

♪ Kemesraan ini janganlah cepat… ♪

  • Follow this approach for poetry, but do not include music notes.

Subtitle:

[Windu] Aku ini binatang jalang

Dari kumpulan terbuang

 

II.8. Speaker IDs

  • Use brackets [ ] to enclose speaker IDs.
  • Identifiers should be all lowercase, except for proper nouns.
  • Use speaker IDs whenever a speaker cannot be visually identified as they start speaking. If the speaker is partially visible, the IDs can be included. Do not use speaker IDs for continuing dialogue where the speaker has been seen or has already been identified.
  • When characters are not yet identified, use [pria], [wanita] or [suara pria], [suara wanita] so as not to provide information that is not yet present in the narrative.
  • If the same identifier is used multiple times in one scene, numbers should be added to distinguish them, for example [pria 1] or [wanita 1]. Counting should restart with the scene change. Do not add a number 1 if only one person is featured.
  • Speaker IDs may change as the story evolves if the visuals make it clear that this progression relates to the same person, e.g. [pria misterius] > [polisi] > [Detektif Jon]
  • Be careful to avoid revealing plot-pertinent information or spoilers inadvertently by the speaker ID.
  • Gender-neutral identifiers like [pembawa berita], [dokter] or [pramuniaga] can be used where appropriate.
  • Speaker IDs and the corresponding dialogue should ideally be on the same line.

Subtitle:

[Windu] Selamat pagi!

II.9. Sound Effects

  • Use square brackets [ ] to enclose sound effects.
  • Describe sound effects when they cannot be visually identified. If the sound can only be partially identified, you may include the description.
  • Avoid repeatedly describing if it inhibits the experience for the audience. Opt for identifiers which imply the action is ongoing.
  • Describe the sounds and audio as opposed to visual elements or actions.

Subtitle:

❌ [kertas ditaruh]

✅ [gemeresik kertas]

Subtitle:

❌[gelas diletakkan]

✅[dentingan gelas]

  • If it is visually clear who is making the sound, the speaker ID should not be included in the sound description.

Subtitle:

❌[suara dengkuran Windu]

✅[dengkuran]

Subtitle:

❌[pasukan terus menembak]

✅[tembakan berlanjut]

  • Use a generic ID to indicate and describe ambient music, e.g. [musik rock diputar] or [musik jazz lembut diputar di radio]
  • Plot-pertinent sound effects and those affecting the mood of the scene should always be included unless inferred by the visuals.
  • Subtitle silence if plot-pertinent. For example, when plot-pertinent music ends abruptly to indicates a change in atmosphere or emotion in the scene, eg. [musik lembut berhenti]
  • Be detailed and descriptive, use adverbs where appropriate when describing sounds and music, describe voices, speed of speech, volume of sounds, e.g. [teriakan parau], [musik klasik melantun lembut di pengeras suara], or [bicara terbata-bata]
  • Sound effects that interrupt dialogue should be treated as follows:

Subtitle 1: Namun, akhir-akhir ini, aku telah…

Subtitle 2: [batuk, mendengus]

Subtitle 3: …melihat lebih banyak tentang hal ini.

II.10. Italics

  • Italicize text only in the following cases:
    • Narration
    • The voice of a visible character expressing unspoken thoughts or inner monologue
    • Only use italics when a speaker is not in the scene(s), not merely off screen, behind a door or out of shot
    • Song lyrics when sung, not quoted
    • Unfamiliar foreign words and phrases which do not appear in the dictionary
    • Dialogue that is heard through electronic media (e.g. phone, device, television, computer, loudspeaker, AI, AI assistants, voice of a GPS, other digital devices, non-sentient robots, robotic voices, etc.) if the speaker is not physically present in the scene. For instance, if a character speaks into a microphone and their voice is heard through a loudspeaker but they are physically present, italics are not needed. Use good judgement when applying italics, ensuring there is consistency throughout the film or series.
    • In sections such as a phone conversation where the shot changes regularly between speakers, always ensure that segmentation and timing rules are correctly applied so as to ensure italics are used consistently and correctly
    • Titles of books, periodicals, works of art, albums, movies, TV shows, radio shows, video games, etc. (for song titles use quotation marks)
  • Never italicize speaker IDs or sound effects, even when the spoken information is italicized, such as in a voice-over or scene with singing.

Subtitle: [narrator] Pada suatu ketika, ada…

  • Italicizing terms such as album, book, film, and program titles within an identifier is permitted.

II.11. Foreign Dialogue

  • Language identifiers should be added when there is a language switch, for example: [bahasa Spanyol]
  • If a translation of the foreign dialogue is provided, use [in language] or [bahasa], at the beginning of the dialogue.

Audio: El que no arriesga, no gana.

Subtitle: [bahasa Spanyol] Yang berani akan menang.

  • If foreign dialogue is not meant to be understood, use [speaking language] or [berbahasa], for example: [berbahasa Spanyol]
  • Always research the language being spoken, [dalam bahasa asing] should never be used.
  • When dialects are present in the dialogue, treat them like any other foreign language and translate into Indonesian.

Audio: Alon-alon asal kelakon.

Subtitle: [bahasa Jawa] Pelan-pelan asal sampai.

  • When code switching is present in the dialogue, keep the dialogue as is and do not translate. Exceptions can be made if the words are too complex and not easily understood by most Indonesians. Use italics for the foreign words. For example, subtitle: Kamu dapat job apa hari ini? Ceritakan please.
  • When a “fake" language or "gibberish" is present in the content and is not meant to be understood, indicate it as per this example: [bicara dalam bahasa palsu], [bicara tidak jelas]

II.12. Special Instructions

  • In order to improve readability, avoid using brackets next to each other.

❌[pria 1] [tertawa] Aku ingin pergi ke sana (X)

✅[pria 1 tertawa] Aku ingin pergi ke sana (O)

  • Be mindful of readability (e.g. character limits) when adding speaker IDs or sound descriptions, allowing audiences more time to focus on dialogue.

❌[Windu dan Defrina] Tidak mungkin! (X)

✅[Windu, Defrina] Tidak mungkin! (O)

✅[Bersama] Tidak mungkin! (O)

 

Change Log:

2025-04-17

  • Article now divided into I. Subtitles and II. SDH - sections renumbered accordingly
  • Revised section I.1 Abbreviations - example of ultah/birthday removed
  • Revised section I.4 Character Names - 5th and 6th bullets added with examples
  • Revised section I.5 Continuity - whole section expanded with new examples, please review closely
  • Revised section I.6 Documentary/Unscripted - 3rd bullet expanded with an example
  • Revised section I.9 On-screen Text - final bullet expanded with an example
  • Revised section I.11 Italics - 5th bullet added with examples, final two bullets added
  • Whole SDH section revised, please review closely, including removal of the phrase "if rights have been granted" when used in reference to inclusion of same-language song lyrics in SDH

2024-10-07

  • Revised section 11 Italics - 4th bullet edited to new standard wording about italics, electronic media/speakers and on-screen/in-scene characters

2023-10-20

  • Revised section 20 SDH Guidelines - final two bullet points added describing how to deal with code switching and dialects

2022-12-22

  • Revised sections 15 Reading Speed and 20 SDH - sections edited to mention "reading speed limits" and "up to"

2022-11-03

  • Revised section 18 Titles - "for branded content" added

2022-10-07

  • Revised section 18 Titles - rules added/edited to include main title translations

2021-10-22

  • Revised section 4 Character names - 4th bullet point added regarding transliteration of unfamiliar characters in proper nouns/names
  • Revised section 14 Quotation marks - 1st bullet point rephrased for clarity

2021-07-11

2021-02-24

2020-10-30

2020-07-24

  • Revised section 5 Continuity - 1st bullet point added clarifying type of ellipsis permitted
  • Revised section 20 SDH Guidelines - 3rd bullet point reworded

2020-05-08

2018-06-04

  • Revised section 9 On-screen Text - section header revised for clarity

2018-03-09

2016-05-15

  • Revised section 14 Songs - 6th bullet point revised
  • Revised section 15 Titles - 1st bullet point revised, 2nd bullet point added
  • Revised section 16 Special Instructions - 5th bullet point removed
     

PROVIDE FEEDBACK ON THIS STYLE GUIDE

 

Was this article helpful?
20 out of 20 found this helpful