Captions feature is so buggy, starting to get very annoying

[chriscasomedia]

I use the caption feature a lot for my work. I have to restart my premiere almost every 5 minutes because something is frozen or the video isn't playing because of the captions. I have a very high-end pc and none of this would happen until the new captions were introduced. For example, if I try to drag out the size of the text box it ALWAYS freezes, instantly have to restart the program. Sometimes also the text just freezes, I will be changing the text then go to the next frame, and its stuck and I have to restart. This is getting extremely annoying and tedious and it is adding so much time on my workflow 😕

[Stan Jones]

This is not normal behavior for most users. There are other reports of slow performance or freezes.

I filed one bug that staff could not reproduce unless they used my project file. I reset preferences and reset the captions workspace - all was well.

I would also do the clear the cache routine; that is the recommended procedure for new versions, unrelated to captions.

When you say you drag out the text box, you are referring to the text box in the Program Monitor? Can you resize it with the control in the Essential Graphics Panel, Align and Transform section?

Stan

[Kevin-Monahan]

Sorry Chris.

May we please have details of your system and media? Are you on macOS Big Sur?

Let us know.

Thanks,
Kevin

[chriscasomedia]

I am using windows 10 home.

My pc is:

Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS (WI-FI)

ryzen 3900x

nzxt kraken x62 cooler

gigabyte rtx 3070

32gb 3200 memory

1tb nvme ssd

and I edit off of portable samsung 1tb ssd

Media is 4k footage shot on sony z90

[thaiminh190996]

Pls give us some solutions, that's really effect to my work flow

[Silkr0ad]

Same issue here. I ended up doing it on after effect. 

[Kevin-Monahan]

Try updating Premiere Pro.

Thanks,
Kevin

[C5R5]

I was super excited about this new captions workflow plus transcription, but it seems we've traded one buggy workflow to another. Issues such as:

- Edited captions reverting back on their own a few seconds later (even after you've saved the project and did NOT hit undo)

- Captions pane loves to scroll when you select a caption, meaning you now have to chase a scrolling caption so you can double click it and hopefully edit it. Or wait 2 seconds for it to stop moving and settle down. Fine if you're editing one caption, but in a 30 second project, it takes up way too much time. Please just get rid of that scrolling. It's the most annoying part about it this new workflow.

- And finally, please open it up to the scripting side. At least that way I can make my own tools to help me caption faster if these fixes don't happen (which I feel won't happen, looking back at how bugs from the old workflow never got sorted)

[Kevin-Monahan]

Hi,

Sorry about that. It sounds like a bug with 15.2 or Beta, so maybe you have not updated to 15.4 yet. Can you verify your version, please?

If you need to update, make sure to delete media cache after updating. It's easy if you choose File > Close All Projects, then choose Preferences > Media Cache and delete from there. Quit Premiere Pro. Restart it with Alt/Option pressed and delete preferences.

Should all be well afterward.

Thanks,
Kevin

[Stan Jones]

C5R5,

I have not seen captions reverting, and don't recall other users reporting this. There were several problems like that in the pre-PR2021 captions. I would do a reset of preferences and workspaces. If this persists, file a bug report:

https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911233-premiere-pro

Re the Text Panel scrolling, this was fixed a bit back by adding the option to turn off the auto-scrolling. In the Text Panel -> Captions tab, click the 3 dots and pick "Disable auto-scrolling." I'm pretty sure that this setting is sticky in your preferences, so it stays set the way you want it after updates.

See this post for the workflow described by a user who was very frustrated by the auto-scrolling (before it became an option). His workflow avoids the Text Panel focus.

https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro/captions-window-needs-to-be-scrolled-down-for-every-sing...

Re scripting, see this post by Bruce Bullis:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/premiere-pro/how-to-access-caption-track-from-script/m-p/12190801#M35...

Stan

[Kevin Prange]

I am having these exact same problems. I'm using Premiere Pro 15.4 on a Mac running Big Sur.

- After working on the captions for a while, the Text pane starts to have a difficult time keeping up. There is a lag when double clicking on text to edit and auto-scroll gets jumpy, even though I have stopped playback on the timeline.

- And after working on the captions for a while, a caption clip will start reverting back on its own. I've tried saving after each caption change, but they still switch back. I've had to change one caption clip 5 or 6 times. I finally gave up and restarted Premiere. That usually fixes it for a while. I've also gone through the step of deleting the cache files. The problem still comes back.

I'm working on an hour and a half program with over 1400 caption clips. 
I'll try with the autoscroll off.

[Stan Jones]

Thanks for the good descriptions.

> I'll try with the autoscroll off.

Let us know. I think that is a good thing to try.

I wonder how much of this may have to do with the performance issue/lagging. One thing some users are trying is zooming in on the timeline to avoid too many captions segments being displayed on the timeline at once.

No, it shouldn't be having these issues, but a) workarounds are good if they can get jobs done and b) it helps if we can identify what the bug is. Not everyone appears to be having these issues.

Stan

[Kevin Prange]

Thanks for the reply.
I'm starting to think it might have something to do with my machine being old and just not having enough horse power - a 2013 MacPro.

I moved the project to a newer PC laptop and I'm not experiencing the undoing of the captions problem. It can still take a couple of clicks to get into the edit mode of a caption in the text panel. But that's less of a concern than losing and having to redo work.

I have a brand spanking new M1 iMac at home. I'll give it a try there also.

[Kevin Prange]

Just as an update.  I've had much more success on the newer PC laptop. But after a while, I still run into the problem of the captions changing back for no reason. I can go for a much longer period, but I still run into the problem. 

[defaultummb23ezqbl6]

Hi Stan,

just to say that I'm having the same issues with captions reverting  back on its own. I'm using a mac mini, premiere updated.

Hopefully this is a bug it can be solved soon.

thank you

[illumn8d]

Part of the reason old issues didn't get sorted was a new data model was on the way. Now with the new data model in place, I think we can expect lots of things to get fixed now. 

[illumn8d]

Also, would be good to tell them if it occurs in Software only mode as well. 

[mindspanconsultants]

I like the auto-scroll but it needs to be WAY faster... like snapping into place rather than scrolling, frankly. Chasing scrolling captions in the list is tedious, but so is looking for your place by turning scrolling off.

[Kevin-Monahan]

Hi mindspanconsultants,

Sorry. Let the devs know your feature request here: https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911233-premiere-pro

Thanks,
Kevin

[Stan Jones]

mindspan, what version are you running? This thread goes back quite ways. Performance/lagging issues have been difficult to assess (they don't affect everyone). I could demonstrate them in an earlier version, but have not been able to in the current 22.5.

In 22.5, I created a 48 minute sequence with 1700 captions. I edited them in the program monitor and the text panel for 5-10 minutes. I did not experience any lagging. That disproves nothing, but I want to be sure I keep testing this if there are users experiencing these problems in 22.5.

Regarding the scrolling, in my test sequence, I was surprised with how quickly it moved. In long shifts, it did not appear to scroll so much as jump.

I do have a relatively fast machine.

Stan

[Coluch]

I've have the same frustrating issues with the new captions workflow.

LAG - After some time, the text pane begins to lag, selecting a caption becomes unresponsive or very delayed, can't scroll smoothly, new captions do not appear in text pane until after a long delay (although they appear on the timeline immediately).  Even with playback stopped, all of this occurs.

REVERSION - As soon as any above lag is present, it is shortly followed by reversion, where caption clips revert to earlier text.  For Example, I split a caption which creates a duplicate, I then edit to remove the tail of the first caption, and the top of the second, BUT before I'm done this, the first clip will regain the portion of the text that was removed. It becomes a game of "whack-a-mole", as any edit to a caption text randomly changes another caption somewhere else, usually close to the end of the sequence, but not always.

Suffice to say, this becomes completely unusable.  Save / Quit / Re-start alleviates the issue for some time, but the reboot dance is sometimes required multiple times to successfully get through captioning a 2-minute sequence.

Other Notable Observations - Around the onset of Text Pane lag, the computer fans spin up and get quite loud, indicating heavy load on the computer.  Premiere itself continutes to function smoothly, with Sequence and Program panes being perfectly responsive, with perfectly displayed captions on the video playback. It is only the text panel that gets incredibly lagg, so I would guess the issue is isolated to the processes related to that panel.

My machine - A top spec'd 2019 Macbook Pro (Core i9, Radeon Pro 560X, 32 GB RAM), running OS X 10.15.7 (Catalina) and Premiere 2021 15.4.1

I'm writing this as I have just rebooted for the upteenth time, just to get through a captioning request that my producer has been patiently waiting on for much longer than should have been necessary.  Any time I have to work on captions, I dread the troubles that will be caused by the new Text Pane / Text Pain.

[Teresa25164587hk2q]

The comment "This is not normal behavior for most users." is patently ridiculous. The lag, the instability and freezing when trying to move from one caption to another are being reported by MANY users, and it's time Adobe listens up rather than trying to claim "oh, that doesn't happen" or "oh, your computer doesn't have enough resources".  (FYI, my Win laptop is Dell XPS 17", current version of Win11-patched, 32GB RAM, and 1TB local storage, which is where I'm working from.)

Do not claim this "feature" is ready for prime time, when I've spent an entire working day+, trying to get captions edited on a 1.5 hr video. I'm not having to reboot, but restarting Premiere 2023 is no help -- made worse by having to find the time tick where I'd left off -- maddening. This method is NO BETTER and possibly worse than uploading vid to YouTube, and fixing captions there.

[R Neil Haugen]

There are several million daily users of Premiere Pro. Many of whom use the captions process. The vast majority of which are not having horrible problems like you are.

Are you and some other users having a terrible series of problems? Yes. No question there.

So figuring out why most users aren't, but those who are having problems are ... is the basis for troubleshooting, no matter the app.

First questions ... have you cleared all your cache files? Reset the workspace? Is this in a project migrated from 2022 to 2023? Are you getting this in all projects, including new ones started in 2023? What is the media involved, and what made that media? Are there any other effects on your sequence, if so, what?

Another series of questions would be what is your 'default' audio input set to? Are any gaming 'helper' apps installed on that laptop? Or sound card drivers or 'helper' apps? Sound issues are unfortunately an issue for a rather wide range of bad behaviors.

Those are just some of the things to work through to start trying to figure out what the hay is happening so horribly on your machine.

Neil

[naveeda65495260]

I hope that's not the case for the most of the people and the issue is probably resolved by now.

I just noticed that using SF Pro Font has some issues. Although I installed the newer version of the font but for the captions, I have to switch to Arial and then when I'm finished, I can switch back to whatever Font I want.