What is Conformance?
Conformance is a feature in Originator Studio that helps you realign your DubScript events after you receive an updated dialogue list. When a production updates its dialogue list, the timing and content of events may shift. Conformance gives you a structured, two-stage process to bring your existing work in line with the new version, without having to start from scratch.
When Does Conformance Appear?
When a new dialogue list is available for your project, a banner will appear at the top of your workspace inviting you to realign your events. Select “Retime and Adjust” to enter the Conformance view.
Step by Step of the conformance process
Stage 1: Aligning Your Events
Overview
Your only goal in Stage 1 is to get your events aligned so they can be re-timed. Text edits, splits, and merges are handled in Stage 2. Focus entirely on positioning.
When you first open the Conformance view, Originator Studio has already compared your current work with the new dialogue list. Any events where the text matches exactly have been automatically aligned for you. The events you'll need to review are those where something has changed, a word added, a word removed, or other differences.
The Two-Column Layout
The Conformance view displays two columns side by side:
- Left column: the new dialogue list
- Right column: your existing DubScript
Your job is to match events in your DubScript to their corresponding events in the new dialogue list.
Auto-Resync
Auto-Resync is turned on by default, and we recommend keeping it that way. When enabled, moving one event to align it will automatically keep other events with known matches in sync.
If you turn Auto-Resync off, purple indicators will appear on events that can be manually realigned. Selecting the button “Resync from this event” will fix that individual event, but other events further down the document may still be misaligned, you would need to check and correct those manually.
Recommendation: Leave Auto-Resync on unless you have a specific reason to disable it.
Navigating and Moving Events
Use the following keyboard shortcuts to navigate and adjust events:
- Arrow keys (up/down): Move between events
- Arrow keys (left/right): Switch between columns
- W: Shift an event down (inserts a blank row above it)
- Q: Shift an event up (removes the blank row)
Note: When Auto-Resync is on, you will not be able to shift a matched event up or down. This is intentional, it prevents you from misaligning an event that is already correctly positioned. If an event won't move, it is likely already in the right place.
Understanding Event Tags
As you work through the document, some events are labeled with one of three tags. These tags reflect the relationship between the old and new dialogue lists, and will update as you move events around.
Changed
The event exists in both dialogue lists but something is different, a word was added, removed, or swapped. You will address the actual text in Stage 2. For now, just make sure the event is in the right position.
New
This event did not exist in the old dialogue list. You will need to add a placeholder for it in your DubScript (see Handling New Events below).
Removed
This event existed in the old dialogue list but no longer exists in the new one. It will be flagged for review when you reach Stage 2.
Handling New Events
New events represent content that needs to be added to your DubScript. You have two options:
Option 1: Clone one at a time
Select a New event and press D (Clone Source). This copies the event into your DubScript as a placeholder with the correct timing from the new dialogue list. If you clone something by mistake, press backspace to remove it.
Option 2: Clone all at once
If you prefer to handle all new events together, click the "Clone All Empty Events" button. This automatically inserts placeholders for every new event in one step.
Splits and Merges
You may come across events that have been split or merged in the new dialogue list compared to the old one. This is expected. Your focus at this stage is alignment only, splits and merges are resolved in Stage 2. Position the events as accurately as possible and move on.
Completing Stage 1
Once you have gone through the document and are satisfied with the alignment, select Done.
Important: Clicking Done is a one-way action. You cannot return to Stage 1 to make adjustments. The only available option after pressing Done is Revert to Original, which will undo all changes made during the session. Review your work carefully before proceeding.
Stage 2: Reviewing Flagged Events
Once you press Done, you enter Stage 2. Here you will work through each type of flagged event using the navigator panel, which organizes events into three categories: New Event, Content Updated, and Removed.
New Events
For each new event, fill in the appropriate dubbed content and move to the next one.
Content Updated Events
Review the changes in each event and update your dubbed text as needed to reflect the new dialogue.
Removed Events
For each removed event, review it and decide whether it should be deleted, merged into another event, or left as-is. The tags are based on the system's best assessment, use your judgment to confirm the right action.
Finishing Conformance
When you have reviewed all flagged events and are satisfied with your changes, click Finish Conformance.
Important: Like clicking Done in Stage 1, this is a one-way action. Once you finish conformance, you cannot return to this step. You will proceed to make any remaining adjustments to your DubScript as usual.