If your file lacks English subtitles, or the existing ones are out of sync, here’s how to resolve it.
The original subtitle file for MIDV912 had a gap at 1:58:56 — the line was merged into the next scene, losing its isolated power. Our conversion (midv912engsub convert015856 min) corrected that by:
That last change was controversial internally. But we trusted the silence. And at every fan screening, that 1.5 seconds of no text drew gasps. midv912engsub convert015856 min
ffmpeg -i midv912.mkv -vf "subtitles=midv912_engsub.srt" -c:v libx264 -crf 22 -c:a copy midv912_hardsub.mp4
mkvmerge -o midv912_with_engsub.mkv midv912.mkv midv912_engsub.srt
ffmpeg -i midv912.mkv -i midv912_engsub.srt -c copy -c:s srt midv912_with_engsub.mkv
Cutting without re-encoding is instant and preserves original quality. Use LosslessCut (free, open-source) or FFmpeg.
FFmpeg command to cut from 01:58:56 for 30 seconds: If your file lacks English subtitles, or the
ffmpeg -i midv912_converted.mp4 -ss 01:58:56 -t 30 -c copy midv912_clip.mp4
Caution: With -c copy, cutting may not be frame-accurate (often off by a few frames). For frame-perfect cuts, remove -c copy (but this will re-encode).
What if you want to do everything at once: convert from MKV to MP4, add English subtitles, and cut starting at 01:58:56? Here is a single FFmpeg command: That last change was controversial internally
ffmpeg -i midv912_original.mkv -ss 01:58:56 -t 60 -vf "subtitles=english.srt" -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac -b:a 192k midv912_engsub_clip.mp4
This command: