Accessibility Features 🆕

1. If an organization has enabled captions for a video, the CC logo will be displayed in the media player when viewing an Aviary resource. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/aa38241f-f38f-42fc-9e63-eeca0ad77c3d/user_cropped_screenshot.png?tl_px=248,273&br_px=1624,1042&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=525,441 2. Click the CC button to show the available caption options for the video. A language abbreviation will be shown beside each caption option. To display captions for the video, click a corresponding caption option. To prevent captions from displaying, click “captions off.” https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/e2d0773f-3959-48c6-9667-c349f8d740b7/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=248,239&br_px=1625,1008&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=517,443 3. To begin watching the video with captions, click the Play button. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/52774adc-cd85-4028-b223-9b0cc3eaa531/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=242,233&br_px=1618,1002&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=9,472 4. Captions will be displayed at the bottom of the media player as the video plays. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/12c6ae6e-cd5b-44c2-8899-99b65b8f3aae/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=245,237&br_px=1622,1006&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=528,425 5. Transcripts that have been formatted and enabled as captions may also be viewed in the Transcript tab beside the media player. Click the Transcripts dropdown menu and select a caption file to display. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/4eed5e10-5e25-4838-a52f-ff425566b957/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=506,226&br_px=1882,995&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=832,166 6. The formatted caption file and corresponding time codes will be displayed in the Transcript tab. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/55c722b1-a353-45c2-b4c0-661f618d16d4/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=509,229&br_px=1886,998&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=832,254

Creating captions from a transcript 1. Aviary provides organizations the ability to automatically create caption files from existing transcripts. To automatically create captions from a transcript, click the vertical ellipsis (⋮) in the Transcript menu. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/7ae86c9f-2eac-4f98-8b01-9608a939c15b/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=746,243&br_px=1893,884&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=1031,130 2. Select Create Captions File from the dropdown menu. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/12029b59-d520-4d48-a0d6-c32a5981d26f/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=745,242&br_px=1891,883&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=920,275 3. A confirmation message will be displayed at the top of the page when a new caption file has been created from the transcript. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/c87ee84e-eb88-461b-921c-d5c7c5705309/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=1472,140&br_px=1902,380&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=430&wat_scale=38&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=122,325 4. The new caption file will be available in the Transcripts dropdown menu. Caption files are automatically named using the name of the source transcript followed by “- Captions.” https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/53e5b123-5d19-4a56-88bf-c3dcb721bc79/user_cropped_screenshot.png?tl_px=1040,146&br_px=1900,627&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=860&wat_scale=76&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=604,151 5. Captions created by Aviary are formatted to be displayed with a maximum of two lines per transcript segment, 80 characters per segment, and 40 characters per line. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/16bb9792-2a6b-449f-9bdc-8edbb8455dd8/File.png?tl_px=868,445&br_px=1633,872&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=764&wat_scale=68&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=778,-144Uploading caption files If a caption file has already been created for a video, organization users can upload the VTT or SRT file as a new transcript on the resource detail page. For more information about uploading VTT or SRT files to be displayed as captions, see the Uploading a transcript section of the Transcripts user guide. Manually creating captions Aviary users can manually create captions for videos by transcribing speech and adding timecode for segments in the Aviary Transcript Editor. For more information about manually creating captions in the transcript editor, see the Creating a manual transcript section of the Transcripts user guide. Note: The Is Caption? checkbox must be checked when uploading a caption file or manually creating captions in the Transcript Editor. See the Editing transcript metadata section in the Transcripts user guide for steps to edit the Is Caption? checkbox.

1. If an organization has provided audio description for a video, the D)) icon will be displayed in the media player when viewing an Aviary resource. Click the D)) icon to enable audio description. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/52771688-3e8f-4a25-bb08-ede285fd0644/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=263,231&br_px=1639,1000&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=699,474 2. The media player will play the video according to the segments in the audio description file. When audio description is present for a specific time, the media player will pause the video and narrate the associated audio description. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/555daeb5-e043-40ab-ac9d-a3612303af41/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=253,229&br_px=1629,998&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=455,422 3. Transcripts that are formatted as audio description may also be viewed in the Transcript tab beside the media player. Click the Transcripts dropdown menu and select the audio description file to display in the Transcript tab. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/8672756a-9e81-4800-b767-5df937a07574/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=753,250&br_px=1900,891&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=773,159 4. The transcript file containing audio description will be displayed in the Transcript tab as the video and audio description are played in the media player. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-17/d364d9c3-c996-4a2c-b3af-b4ca5ab3eee4/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=382,227&br_px=1758,996&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=1002,386

1. From the Resource Detail page, click the Transcript tab. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-18/7ea1a0f2-dda4-4124-b94d-a89a03f785eb/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=264,233&br_px=1640,1002&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=905,40 2. Click the vertical ellipsis button (⋮) in the Transcript menu. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-18/5a3f33ae-82b1-43da-90d5-00e57b95f519/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=760,230&br_px=1906,871&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=1030,145 3. Select the Request audio description option in the dropdown menu. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-18/62de2a81-e569-4700-9e91-5870fc54cc3c/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=761,304&br_px=1908,945&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=938,314 4. Click CloudGlue. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-18/f4c6a6df-7643-4b79-8bfd-6428cc678bef/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=761,293&br_px=1908,934&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=1120.0&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=836,376 5. The Request Audio Description modal window will open. Review the duration of the media file and the price of the audio description job. Click the Create Audio Description Job button to submit the automated metadata request. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-18/07fefa21-8be9-4e67-b6f7-38bcb84b34d3/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=640,105&br_px=1266,454&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=625&wat_scale=55&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=389,263 6. A confirmation message will be displayed on the Resource Detail page after submitting the audio description request. https://ajeuwbhvhr.cloudimg.io/https://colony-recorder.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2025-12-18/8b70fbf6-bc52-4758-b2a4-35fb4d850e0b/ascreenshot.jpeg?tl_px=1368,103&br_px=1897,399&force_format=jpeg&q=100&width=529&wat_scale=47&wat=1&wat_opacity=0.7&wat_gravity=northwest&wat_url=https://colony-recorder.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/images/watermarks/FB923C_standard.png&wat_pad=158,75 Note: Requesting automated audio description is a two-step process. Any organizational user can create an automated transcription request, but organizational owners must approve the pending requests. See the Approving automated metadata requests section in the Automated Metadata user guide for steps to approve pending requests. To review the automated audio description after the request has been approved, see the Enabling audio description section above.

Uploading audio description files If an audio description file has already been created for a video, organization users can upload the file as a new transcript on the resource detail page. For more information about uploading transcript files, see the Uploading a transcript section of the Transcripts user guide. Manually creating audio description Aviary users can manually create audio description for videos and add time codes to segments in the Aviary Transcript Editor. For more information about manually creating audio description in the transcript editor, see the Creating a manual transcript section of the Transcripts user guide. Note: The Is Audio Description? transcript metadata checkbox must be checked to enable transcripts as audio description in the media player. See the Editing transcript metadata section in the Transcripts user guide for steps to edit the Is Audio Description? checkbox.

Captions and audio description files are associated with videos on the Aviary platform as separate transcript files that are formatted according to each accessibility requirement. These captions and audio description files can be edited directly on the platform using the Aviary Transcript Editor. See the Editing a transcript section in the Transcripts user guide for more detailed information about editing the content, format, and time codes of transcript files that contain captions or audio description.