To rewrap a subtitle cue in Final Cut Pro on Mac, open its caption text, replace the space at a natural phrase boundary with Return, and preview both lines. Keep the cue’s timing unchanged, then check the exported captions in the intended player.

This workflow is for a Mac user editing existing captions for a software demonstration. The task is to display one cue as two simultaneous lines while preserving its words and start and end times. Apple documents this text-editing method in its guide to editing closed caption text.

What does a two-line cue actually change?

A cue is one timed caption entry. Rewrapping changes where its text breaks within that entry. For example, the synthetic demonstration caption below can remain visible for the same interval before and after editing.

Before:

Select the blue circle and open the color panel.

After:

Select the blue circle
and open the color panel.

Both lines belong to the same cue and appear together. Creating two successive cues is a separate timing edit. Apple’s Split Captions command replaces a multiline caption with adjacent single-line captions, so it serves a different outcome. Adjust and arrange closed captions.

An explicit line break also differs from text that merely wraps in a display. For SRT captions, Apple says the playback device or player determines the supported number of lines. Treat the authored break as something to verify in playback, especially when the destination uses a different font size or display width. Edit closed caption text.

Which caption-format limits matter?

Check the required delivery format before editing. Final Cut Pro imports CEA-608, iTT and SRT caption files. Their extensions are .scc, .itt and .srt, respectively. Keep the existing format when it already meets the destination’s requirements. Import closed captions into Final Cut Pro.

Format Boundary relevant to two-line editing
SRT Apple describes line count as player-dependent. Final Cut Pro also rejects multiple adjacent line breaks within a cue.
iTT For English captions, one line break produces the permitted two lines. Apple documents a separate Japanese-language exception.
CEA-608 Apple’s editor allows up to four lines, with up to 32 characters per line. Formatting can consume additional space.

These are format and application boundaries, rather than a universal recipe for readability. Apple explains the editor’s limits in Edit closed caption text and the associated errors in About Final Cut Pro caption validation.

For this English software-demo task, use two lines as an editorial target where the text benefits from a break. A short cue can remain on one line. Forcing every caption into two lines can leave a single word stranded beneath an otherwise complete phrase.

How do you rewrap an existing cue in Final Cut Pro?

Open the captions in the correct project

If the captions are already in the timeline, proceed to the text edit. If you have a separate subtitle file, open the existing video project and choose File > Import > Closed Captions. Select the file, choose the caption role and language subrole under Import as Role, and review Insertion Time before clicking Import. Apple’s caption-import instructions.

Relative to Timeline adds the project’s start time to each imported cue’s start time. Absolute uses the cue’s stated start time regardless of the project start. Choose according to the file’s timing basis, then preview a known cue before continuing. A timing offset should be resolved before judging the line layout. Import closed captions.

Insert one deliberate line break

  1. Double-click the caption in the timeline or timeline index. Alternatively, select it and press Control-Shift-C.
  2. In the caption editor, locate the space where the second line should begin.
  3. Replace that space with one press of Return.
  4. Remove any unwanted existing breaks so the cue contains two text lines without an empty line between them.
  5. Preview the cue in the viewer before moving on.

Apple also supports editing through the inspector’s Caption Text field. The documented key for adding a new line is Return. Move between captions using the editor’s arrows or Command-Right Arrow and Command-Left Arrow. Edit closed caption text.

Keep the edit inside the text field when preserving timing is the goal. Apple documents dragging caption clips as a way to move them and dragging their edges as a way to change duration. Those timeline operations are unnecessary for a simple rewrap. Adjust and arrange closed captions.

Where should the line break go?

Use a phrase-first decision sequence: preserve the wording, identify a meaningful boundary, then compare how the two lines fit. The following suggestions are editorial choices illustrated with original demo text; they are not additional Final Cut Pro requirements.

Cue text Suggested two-line arrangement Reason
Select the blue circle and open the color panel. Select the blue circle / and open the color panel. Keeps each action together.
Drag the preview slider to compare both versions. Drag the preview slider / to compare both versions. Keeps the control’s name intact.
Open the settings panel and choose a larger preview. Open the settings panel / and choose a larger preview. Separates two complete instructions.

The slash in the table represents a line break; do not type it into the caption. Prefer keeping a control name such as “preview slider” together. Avoid breaks that leave an article or preposition detached from the words it introduces. If two candidate breaks both preserve the phrase structure, choose the one that fits the viewer more comfortably.

For example, breaking “Drag the preview slider” after “preview” separates the control name. Moving the break after “slider” keeps the instruction easier to scan. Equal character counts are a secondary consideration: a balanced shape is useful only when the wording still reads naturally.

If neither arrangement fits, first try another phrase boundary. If the cue still contains too much text, a timing or wording revision may be necessary. Handle that as a separate edit and review its synchronization. Two lines alone cannot make an overlong instruction comfortable to read.

What should you check when the result looks wrong?

Start with the caption text, then inspect the format warning, and finally test playback. This order helps distinguish a misplaced break from a format constraint or a rendering difference.

  • An empty line appears between the two text lines: remove the extra break. Apple specifically lists multiple adjacent line breaks as invalid in SRT captions.
  • The caption turns red: read the inspector’s validation message. Final Cut Pro continuously validates captions; a red cue can indicate a problem beyond line layout.
  • A CEA-608 line does not fit despite a short visible sentence: inspect its formatting. Apple says control characters added by formatting can make lines longer.
  • The exported SRT displays additional wrapping: compare the saved text with the destination player’s rendering and check that player’s caption settings.

The first three checks follow Apple’s caption-validation documentation. The playback check follows Apple’s documented player-dependent SRT line limits.

Avoid using Resolve Overlaps as a layout fix. Apple documents that command as trimming overlapping caption clips, which changes timing. Likewise, Split Captions creates successive cues. Neither is needed merely to insert a second line in one cue. Adjust and arrange closed captions.

How do you export and verify the two-line result?

Choose File > Export Closed Captions. Enter a filename and destination, then select the required language subrole under Roles. Final Cut Pro creates a separate caption file for each selected language subrole. Export closed captions.

Review Start Time: Relative to Timeline subtracts the project start time, while Absolute retains the cue’s actual timeline time. For SRT, Apple generally recommends deselecting Include Formatting, because styling may render incorrectly in the intended player. Apple’s export settings.

An exported SRT cue should retain its number and timing line, followed by the two text lines. Here is an illustrative two-cue excerpt with invented timing and neutral software-demo text:

1
00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:06,000
Select the blue circle
and open the color panel.

2
00:00:06,500 --> 00:00:10,000
Drag the preview slider
to compare both versions.

The empty line separates cue entries. There is no empty line between the two text lines inside either cue. This reflects the SRT block structure documented in the Library of Congress description of SubRip. The excerpt is sample subtitle data, not a program.

Compare the exported cue’s words and timestamps with the original, then play the video with the exported caption file in the intended destination. Check that both lines appear together, the phrase break remains useful, and no words are missing. If the delivery requires permanently visible captions, Apple documents burn-in options through supported share destinations; exporting a sidecar alone produces a separate caption file. Export closed captions.

A finished rewrap preserves the cue’s wording and timing, places one break at a sensible phrase boundary, and survives the destination playback check. Repeat that process for the remaining cues, leaving concise one-line captions intact when they already read well.

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