RTL punctuation issue in Hebrew subtitles (when transcoding)

[adir4289 2]

When playing Hebrew subtitles (RTL) during transcoded playback, punctuation marks appear on the wrong side (e.g. periods, commas, hyphens).

Example:

 

> הגנרל איבד את אחד מחייליו. אתה יודע-

 

appears with reversed punctuation only when transcoding — direct play looks fine.

 

Details:

 

Subtitle format: SRT (UTF-8)

 

Language: Hebrew (RTL)

 

OS: Android 16 Phone.

 

Happens on transcoded streams only

 

Direct play → OK

 

 

Seems like ffmpeg or Emby’s subtitle renderer mishandles RTL text direction during transcoding.

Edited October 19, 2025 by adir4289

[Luke 42077]

 

Hi there, let's look at an example. Please attach the information requested in how to report a media playback issue. Thanks!

 

[adir4289 2]

On 10/19/2025 at 11:26 PM, Luke said:

 

Hi there, let's look at an example. Please attach the information requested in how to report a media playback issue. Thanks!

 

Title:

RTL subtitles punctuation rendering wrong when transcoding (Hebrew SRT)

 

Description:

When playing Hebrew subtitles (RTL) during transcoded playback, punctuation marks appear on the wrong side (for example periods, commas, hyphens).

For example:

 

> הגנרל איבד את אחד מחייליו. אתה יודע-

 

 

 

This appears with reversed punctuation only when transcoding — direct play looks fine.

 

Details:

 

Subtitle format: SRT (UTF-8)

 

Language: Hebrew (RTL)

 

Client OS: Android 16 (Phone)

 

Issue occurs on transcoded streams only

 

Direct play → OK

 

It seems like either the transcoder (FFmpeg) or Emby’s subtitle renderer is mishandling RTL text direction during transcoding.

 

 

Steps to reproduce:

 

1. Start playback of a Hebrew-language media file with accompanying Hebrew SRT subtitles.

 

 

2. Force transcoding (client device/settings require it).

 

 

3. Observe that punctuation (periods, hyphens, commas) appear on the wrong side in the subtitle display.

 

 

4. Stop transcoding or switch to direct‐play mode; the issue disappears (punctuation appears correctly).

 

Impact:

This is a visual/text readability bug specifically affecting RTL languages during transcoding. For Hebrew subtitles, punctuation placement is critical for readability; when punctuation flips sides the meaning/layout is confusing. This reduces usability for users who rely on subtitles in RTL languages.

 

Requested outcome:

Please investigate the RTL subtitle rendering path during transcoding. Specifically:

 

Whether FFmpeg (or the subtitle overlay engine) is mixing LTR/RTL directionality incorrectly for transcoded output.

 

Whether Emby Server has a subtitle renderer flag or configuration for RTL text that is being ignored or mis‐applied when transcoding.

 

A fix or workaround (e.g., ensure RTL markers, embed proper directionality, or adjust rendering order) so that Hebrew (and other RTL) subtitles display punctuation correctly during transcoding.

 

Edited October 21, 2025 by adir4289

[adir4289 2]

Update:

After further testing, it appears that the issue occurs only with subtitles encoded in ANSI.

Subtitles encoded in UTF-8 seem to display correctly and do not have this problem.

[Luke 42077]

HI, why not just encode them in utf8 then?

[adir4289 2]

1 hour ago, Luke said:

HI, why not just encode them in utf8 then?

Sorry for the confusion - after checking again, it seems that even UTF-8 subtitles are not rendered correctly.

[Luke 42077]

Can you please zip up the subtitles and attach them here? Thanks.

[adir4289 2]

5 hours ago, Luke said:

Can you please zip up the subtitles and attach them here? Thanks.

thank you very much

subs.zip

[Luke 42077]

OK we'll take a look at it. Thanks.

[adir4289 2]

On 10/29/2025 at 8:30 PM, Luke said:

OK we'll take a look at it. Thanks.

any news about it?

cheers

[Luke 42077]

Hi, have you updated to Emby Server 4.9.1.90? has that helped?

[adir4289 2]

14 minutes ago, Luke said:

Hi, have you updated to Emby Server 4.9.1.90? has that helped?

just checked. working awesome, thank you so much for the quick fix!

waiting for black friday discount to buy premiere life time!

Edited November 20, 2025 by adir4289

[adir4289 2]

On 11/20/2025 at 10:46 PM, Luke said:

Hi, have you updated to Emby Server 4.9.1.90? has that helped?

Hi Luke, everything worked great for a while, but latley the problem reappeared again

[Luke 42077]

On 12/25/2025 at 1:05 PM, adir4289 said:

Hi Luke, everything worked great for a while, but latley the problem reappeared again

HI there, can you please provide a specific example?

How to Report a Problem

Thanks !

 

[adir4289 2]

On 12/26/2025 at 8:27 PM, Luke said:

HI there, can you please provide a specific example?

How to Report a Problem

Thanks !

 

hi, i attached the subtitles here

subs.zip

[Luke 42077]

@adir4289

Hi there, please attach the Emby server log from when the problem occurred:

How to Report a Problem

Thanks!