Videomontazher

DaVinci Resolve 20 tutorial

How to Create Automatic Subtitles in DaVinci Resolve 20

A complete guide to DaVinci Resolve 20 built-in automatic subtitles. Learn where Create Subtitles from Audio lives, why audio-based subtitle generation is a Studio feature, how to clean the transcript and prepare captions for standard or vertical video.

What Resolve's subtitle tools actually include

DaVinci Resolve can work with subtitle tracks and imported subtitle files, while DaVinci Resolve Studio adds Neural Engine based Subtitles and Transcriptions from Audio. Distinguish normal subtitle editing from automatic speech recognition first.

Important

In DaVinci Resolve 20, Subtitles and Transcriptions from Audio is a Studio feature. If the audio-generation command is missing, check your edition before troubleshooting the menu.

Finish the rough cut and prepare dialogue first

Generate final captions after the rough cut. Rearranging dialogue after transcription creates avoidable timing cleanup. Clear speech that is not buried under loud music also gives recognition a better input.

  1. Finish the rough cut.
  2. Check dialogue clarity and level.
  3. Choose horizontal or vertical framing.
  4. Then generate subtitles.

Create Subtitles from Audio

Run Create Subtitles from Audio from the Timeline menu and choose the spoken language. Resolve analyzes the audio and creates a subtitle track. Some option labels can change between updates, but the workflow remains consistent.

  1. Open the target timeline.
  2. Run Timeline → Create Subtitles from Audio.
  3. Choose the language.
  4. Set line or phrase length where available.
  5. Create the subtitle track and wait for analysis.

Fix the transcript before styling

Automatic transcription is a draft. Correct names, numbers, technical terms, punctuation and awkward phrase breaks before spending time on typography.

Practical tip

  • Split long sentences into readable semantic chunks rather than shrinking the font.
  • Review fast dialogue at normal playback speed.

Track versus Caption controls

Use track-level controls for consistent styling across the subtitle track. Use caption-level overrides for individual text or special cases when your Resolve version exposes them.

  • Font and size.
  • Color and contrast.
  • Vertical position.
  • Shadow/background for readability.
  • Per-caption text correction.

Horizontal video and Shorts use the same core workflow

Automatic subtitles are not only for Shorts. YouTube interviews, education, podcasts and landscape video use the same transcription workflow. Vertical video simply requires stricter safe-area and face/UI awareness.

Vertical project settings in DaVinci Resolve
For Reels and Shorts, verify the vertical timeline resolution and subtitle placement before delivery.

Practical tip

  • Check 9:16 captions on a real phone-sized preview.
  • Avoid forcing every caption into two lines if a shorter phrase reads better.

Delivery: burn captions in or keep a subtitle track

Delivery depends on the platform. Captions can be visually burned into the finished image or delivered as a subtitle track/file where supported. Review the full program before export, especially the first and last captions.

Common problems

  • Create Subtitles from Audio is missing — confirm you are using DaVinci Resolve Studio 20.
  • Poor recognition — reduce competing music and inspect source dialogue quality.
  • Captions are too long — split them by meaning.
  • Text covers faces — adjust track position and safe area.
  • Timing breaks after re-editing — generate final captions after the rough cut stabilizes.

Summary

Resolve's automatic subtitles are a fast transcription draft. Final quality comes from text cleanup, phrase structure, timing and readable styling.

Related tutorials