How to add multiple subtitles into mkv as forced

[maverickluke]

I have an mkv file that I want to add two .ssa files: One is the English subtitles for the non English foreign parts and another subtitle in Portuguese. The problem I am having is that with the new .MKV file that has both .ssa subtitles in it, only the first one shows and not both. Is there a way to have both subtitles in the new .mkv display when appropriate?

[sneaker]

It depends on your player. If it doesn't support showing 2 subtitle tracks at the same time you have to combine them. For example open both in separate Aegisub windows. In one of them ctrl+a, then ctrl+c and then in the other window ctrl+v (i.e. mark all, copy, paste). Or in Subtitle Edit Tools->Join subtitles. (With ASS/SSA can be a bit complicated if styles are different. Easiest to join/merge in simple srt form.)

[maverickluke]

I am a bit confused. Here is what I am ultimately doing. I am producing an .mp4 that I play on my AppleTV so my understanding on how to do this and the way it has worked for me in the past is to open an srt in subtile edit and save as an .SSA and then use mkvmerge to merge the mkv file with the audio and video with the ssa file. Then in Handbrake, I select the subtile and check "Burn in" The produced .mp4 results in the subtitles successfully displaying. If I can do the above mentioned with srt files then great, but the reason why I convert the srt to ssa in subtile edit is because this is the way I read online that Handbrake can burn in to the .mp4.

[Bernix]

Maybe that srt in handbrake is very limited? Font, size, color?
But not 100% sure.

Bernix

[maverickluke]

There has to be a way to have two subtitles play in the resulting mkv

[Bernix]

https://easypronunciation.com/en/merge-two-subtitle-files-online
You can try this. It is first what google said

Bernix

[videobruger]

Maybe you could combined the two subtitles into one in Subtitle Edit as pointed to by sneaker.
and save as srt

Then use MKVtoMP4 to make a MP4 fil where the srt is converted to Timed Text that can be use by Apple TV.

[leghorn]

You cannot have more than one forced subtitle track. When you load a subtitle into MKVToolnix you can choose whether you want to have it forced or not. If you add another subtitle track and also force it, MKVToolnix will disable "forced" for the other tracks.

[BorisTM]

Seems to me there is generally 2 files to a movie, text.srt and text forced.srt. I was told that subtitles is speech, and forced is other sounds such as plates crashing etc.
I have just loaded 2 .srt files for a film, 1 is a standard subtitle file, the other is marked forced. I got these from downloading a Netflix film.
I tried appending the two files and it does not work. I tried copying the text from forced into standard subtitle file only to find the forced file has 2 comments in and nothing else.
The two comments displayed exactly the same from the standard subtitles file as they did from the forced file. So forced are subtitles that show even if you have them turned off? But if that is the case, I have not found a way that allows 2 subtitles files in one video and I've been looking for a year.