Simon Says has expanded its popular transcription service by adding 'Simon Says Assemble'. A web based, collaborative 'drag and drop' assemble tool for editing together interviews.
This was a logical step for the online transcription service Simon Says. That enabled FCP and other NLE users to easily upload a file for transcription. Once the automatic transcription had been completed, the user could then output the text as an XML for captions or notes on clips in FCP or even just a hard copy for producers.
And that's where the new service, Simon Says Assemble comes in. Instead of a producer marking up soundbites with a highlighter and then transferring the information over to the editor, this can now all take place within Assemble.
Just drag and drop the soundbite text from interviews into order, add, delete, re-order and then after a video preview, export an XML to the NLE of your choice. (Hopefully FCP but the service also works with DaVinci Resolve, and Adobe Premiere Pro.)
“Teams can now edit, discuss, and sign-off on rough cuts from the web as simply as editing text,” comments Shamir Allibhai, founder and CEO of Simon Says. “Transcription was the stepping stone to Simon Says Assemble, which empowers everyone involved in a project to find and order the meaningful parts of the video to create an impactful narrative. Assemble brings down technical and cost barriers and frees the story from the silos of an NLE.”
Shamir adds: “I deeply believe in video tech that increases simplicity and efficiency and that when you enable that, you bring in more creators, with their own unique voices, who will push forward the boundaries of storytelling and even the craft itself.
Simon Says Assemble Key Features
- Supports nearly all file formats and codecs
- Import from the web or natively from within Final Cut Pro X, DaVinci Resolve, and Adobe Premiere Pro
- Transcribe and translate in 100 languages
- Search and highlight soundbites directly in the transcript to add them to the timeline. Order and reorder soundbites freely as you preview playback.
- Collaborate with team members anywhere
- Export to every major NLE and DAW to finalize the edit; the timeline/sequence seamlessly recreates
- Export to subtitles, captions, and FCP titles
- Metadata including file location, framerate, and start timecode are preserved through to export
As for cost, here's the best bit. If you are an existing subscriber, Assemble is free. If you are not a subscriber then you just pay by the minutes of transcription.