A new age is on the brink, and I’m not talking about the launch of another alien shaped apple product. I’m talking about subtitles. It’s a controversial moment when watching a movie or TV show with others: to subtitle or not? For most young people, this has become an easy choice. I can remember the first time my life changed from the addition of captions to my gorgeous LCD screen. If you have turned to subtitles, I am humbly sorry in a good way; here is why.

Subtitles taking over Gen Z?

The days of reading amongst the youth being a complaint by elders, best seen in the genre of “academics”, can finally be put to rest with the rise of subtitles. According to a 2023 report by Preply, us ‘Gen-z-ers’ apparently are the most likely to turn on subtitles, making up 70% of the report; compared to 53% of Millennials, and just 35% of baby boomers. But how did this happen? And how does this all add up?

If you own a phone that is convenient for the next phase of this discussion. Do you own TikTok? Or Netflix? A better question might be: do you possess technology that allows accessibility to video content on the internet? While subtitles haven’t naturally occurred in the minds of younger generations as a ‘trendy’ thing to do, the times seem to be changing. A once unlikeable and elderly format of translation has now seen online platforms catapult subtitles into stardom, but can this be beneficial?

The descriptors behind the gem ‘Stranger Things’ on Netflix are credited for their creativity to provide an immersive experience for hearing-impaired audiences. However, this win for accessibility also adds a whimsical and creative tone to the thriller Tv show with the much-memed captions “wet footsteps squelch”, “tentacles undulating moistly” and “unearthly susurration”.The increase in melodramatic captions has enticed the eyes of viewers outside the intended audience for subtitles. However, this raises an important moral question: by dividing my attention between two screens, am I sacrificing my
attention span?

Between the lines

Captions are the potatoes of the linguistic world; they’re versatile, go well with everything, and are often underestimated until you realise just how satisfying they are. According to YPulse’s survey, captions help watchers keep up with murmuring dialogue, distinguish thick accents and get a head start on a scene. Furthermore, captions allow people the accessibility to flick their eyes up and read ahead, then take in the next scene quickly so that they can look back down at their phone as well as reportedly improving literacy, vocabulary and the speed of reading. According to Wilson Chapman at IndieWire, the reason why Gen Z are likely choosing to turn to text to watch their shows is because people in this generation grew up watching videos on social media, where subtitles are the algorithmically encouraged default. An example of this is TikTok which has an auto caption feature content creators often use.

The increase in interest in foreign-language TV shows and movies has also brought a new dawn to the use of subtitles. In this genre, captions are a necessity to bridging entertainment in other languages to the mainstream for young watchers, “These gens are
interested in entertainment from around the world, thanks to the global platforms they’ve grown up with access to,” YPulse said. With an increased interest, companies are investing into making captions and subtitles more descriptive, but will this lead to subtitles for regularly being a part of streaming habits? Or worse, has this already happened and you
didn’t even realise?