Audiovisual Language Techniques
Style guide VRT
NORMS AND CONVENTIONS
A brief style guide (source: VRT)
Space
- after reply dash
- after colon
- after comma
Punctuation marks: use
- full stop at the end of a sentence, question mark at
the end of a question
- colon, full stop, question mark, comma: no space
before, but space after
- comma between two conjugated verbs
- comma for clarity’s sake
- reply dash (with space after it): only for a second
speaker and on the second line of a subtitle; on a
new line
- hyphens between letters to spell a word
- ellipses: only in the case of an
unfinished/interrupted sentence or a long,
meaningful pause
- full stop in acronyms to avoid confusion with other
words (e.g. C.A.M.P. (City Agricultural Monitoring
Project) and camp (a place with temporary
accommodation of huts, tents,…))
- comma after the thousands from 10,000 onwards
- diacritics: rarely necessary. Exceptions: loan words
(e.g. résumé)
- poems : normal punctuation
- operas and narrative songs: normal punctuation
CALM 2022-2023
No space
- before question mark, colon, full stop, comma,
- no space before and after ellipses
Punctuation marks: do not use
- avoid exclamation marks
- never use double punctuation such as ?!
- avoid a build-up of commas
- question mark: not after ellipses or when the
questioner is interrupted
- no quotation marks in direct speech
- no ellipses if someone else takes over a sentence
(reply or next title)
- no ellipses if a new sentence begins after an
unfinished sentence
- no ellipses without a noticeable pause between
two titles
- no full stops in acronyms, except to avoid
confusion with other words
- no comma after the thousands when the number is
less than 10,000
- songs are not punctuated, but use commas for
readability and question marks after a question
1
Audiovisual Language Techniques CALM 2022-2023
Style guide VRT

Italicised Not italicised

- title (book, film, play, newspaper, songs, etc.) - songs, poems
- foreign and difficult words, the first time they - thoughts
appear - flashbacks
- self-referential words (e.g.: the word is is a short - names (companies, pop groups, ships, etc.)
verb) - offscreen narrator
- familiar foreign words, e.g.: couleur locale
- text in picture such as text messages, signs,
headlines (use normal capitalisation and
punctuation)

Italicise punctuation: Do not italicise punctuation:

- full stop and comma. - question mark that is not part of the message in
- question mark if it is part of the communication italics

Upper case Lower case

- text in images (text messages, signs, headlines):
with normal capitalisation and punctuation
- direct speech after a colon (direct speech is the
literal rendering of someone's words as they are
saying or have said them).
- operas and narrative songs: normal subtitles
- after a numeral at the beginning of a sentence (73
percent voted in favour)
- spelling words: lowercase and hyphenated (b-o-r-
s-j-t-s-j) (b-o-r-s-c-h-t)
- lowercase after an explanatory colon (what comes
after the colon provides more explanation of what
comes before it).
We are really excited: we are leaving for holidays
tomorrow.
- songs: lowercase at the beginning of a sentence.
Names are capitalised.

Accents, emphasis marks No accents, emphasis marks

- rarely necessary, for loan words. - no accent marks normally

Contractions: yes Contractions: no

Use them sparingly. If you use them, make sure that - not more than one in a title
they are appropriate given the context and register. - not in formal, solemn registers

Abbreviations: yes Abbreviations: no

- forms of address - general rule: avoid abbreviations, even if they are
English: Mr Mrs Miss Ms common: Asap (as soon as possible), rsvp (please
French: Mr Mme Mlle reply)
Dutch: Mr Mw Jw - ordinals: 1st, 2nd,.. à use the full form: first,
Other languages: the Dutch abbreviated second,…
forms. For (historical) couleur locale, they

2
Audiovisual Language Techniques CALM 2022-2023
Style guide VRT

may occasionally be alternated with the - forms of address

original full form: Frau Müller, signora use the full form to create distance
Bonifante
- acronyms : no full stops (VS, NATO)

Exception: with full stop to avoid confusion:

“C.A.M.P.” (City Agricultural Monitoring Project) and
“camp” (a place with temporary accommodation of
huts, tents,…)

Symbols: yes Symbols: no

- ° only for latitude and longitude
- % scientific context (no space between digit and
symbol)
- no ° for indications of temperature; use degrees
- no $, £ or €: use dollar, pound and euro in full
instead.
- no % in ordinary dialogues: percent should
preferably be written in full, especially in
combination with a digit

Preferably write in full

- meter, litre, kilometre, miles, hectare,…
Forms of address
- in English- or French-speaking programmes: do not translate the forms of address into Dutch
- abbreviations:
English: Mr Mrs Miss Ms
French: M. Mme Mlle
Dutch: Dhr. Mevr.
other languages: the Dutch abbreviated forms. For (historical) couleur locale, they may occasionally
be alternated with the original full form: Frau Müller, signora Bonifante,
- To create distance, we use the full form and not the abbreviation.
Hello, handsome.
- Mister handsome to you.

- Ma'am becomes madam, or is dropped.

- Dr or M.D. for doctor but preferably in full.
- jr. and sr. with full stop
- sir: omit in most cases; use only (lower case) followed by a name.
- Yes, sir to a military officer, you can possibly substitute the rank, if you know it. Omission is usually the
best solution.
- Your Honour for judges
- Reverand, Vicar, Father for clergy

Numbers

3
Audiovisual Language Techniques CALM 2022-2023
Style guide VRT

- monosyllabic numbers in words as much as possible; also the others if possible

- convert foreign units of measure and currency when relevant to the viewer (informational programmes).
- foreign unit can be left as it is in the case of fiction
- use pence for amounts (not penny)
- writing the length of people and amounts of money in words looks less technical
- write dates with a number: 2 May
- from 10,000 write a comma after the thousands (21,518 inhabitants, 7250 registrations)
- write ordinals >20 in digits (E.g. 21st)
- numbers belong together: 10:15, 1.80 meter or one eighty.
- Lowercase a.m. and p.m. and always use full stops.
- percentages: percent preferably written in full. Percent sign (%) only for scientific subjects and without a
space after the digit.

Songs, operas and poems

- songs: subtitle only if the content is important to the story (not italicised).
- songs: without punctuation. Except: commas for readability; question mark after a question.
- songs: without capital letters at the beginning of a sentence.
- songs: names are capitalised
- operas and narrative songs: normal punctuation
- poems: normal punctuation.
- a song or a poem does not have to rhyme. Especially with serious songs, it is better to keep it neutral,
intelligibility takes precedence.

Text in pictures
Text messages, signs, newspaper headlines, etc.: with normal punctuation and capitalisation as in normal
text. Distinction from dialogue text is not necessary.

Words in another language

- for the couleur locale or to create an atmosphere: you can use them now and then, but not too often,
because they will start to cause irritation.
- Proper names in foreign languages: adopt the article if it belongs to the proper name (La Casa Azul);
otherwise use the English article.
- titles of films, books, plays, etc.: you can translate them if there is a common English name for them (One
Hundred Years of Solitude, The Eight Mountains), but this is not obligatory. Do not translate if the original
title is more common.
- fictional titles (in fairy tales, fantasy films, etc.): translate; they almost always matter content-wise.

Direct speech
direct speech (= the literal rendering of someone's words as they are saying or have said them) begins with
a capital letter after a colon.
He said: Do not forget to bring lunch.

4
Audiovisual Language Techniques CALM 2022-2023
Style guide VRT

after an explanatory colon, use a lowercase (what comes after the colon provides more explanation of what
comes before it).
We are really excited: we are leaving for holidays tomorrow.