The project aimed to develop a structured and evidence-based framework for subtitling sign languages as source languages. Its objectives included analysing the linguistic, technical and temporal challenges involved, comparing practices across different national and linguistic contexts, and producing professional guidelines specifically tailored to signed discourse. Another core objective was to empower Deaf professionals and sign language users through targeted training, fostering autonomy, professional recognition and participation in accessibility workflows. The project also sought to promote a participatory and user-centred approach to media accessibility, strengthening collaboration between academia, industry and the Deaf community.
The SUBSIGN project was developed in response to a structural gap in audiovisual translation research and professional practice concerning the subtitling of sign languages. While subtitling is a consolidated practice for spoken languages, the transfer from signed languages to written text has remained largely marginal, despite the rapid growth of signed audiovisual content in education, culture, social media and institutional communication. Existing subtitling guidelines, designed for oral languages, do not adequately address the visual-spatial, grammatical and temporal features of signed discourse. At the same time, Deaf professionals and sign language users lacked recognised methodologies, training opportunities and professional frameworks to subtitle their own content autonomously. These gaps became increasingly evident following the legal recognition of sign languages and the expansion of accessibility services, highlighting the need for dedicated research, guidelines and training grounded in real practice.