---

name: opensubtitles description: Read-only OpenSubtitles skill to search and download subtitles via API, then extract scene context by timestamp to answer user questions regarding a show in context and avoid spoilers. Use when the user asks “what’s happening at this timestamp” or needs subtitle context; pairs well with trakt-readonly skill for playback progress. Requires an OpenSubtitles API key and User-Agent. metadata: {"openclaw":{"requires":{"env":["OPENSUBTITLES_API_KEY","OPENSUBTITLES_USER_AGENT"],"bins":["curl","jq","awk"]},"primaryEnv":"OPENSUBTITLES_API_KEY","emoji":"📝"}}

OpenSubtitles

Use this skill to fetch subtitle context around a timestamp. This is read‑only: no uploads or modifications.

Setup

Users should obtain an API key at: https://www.opensubtitles.com/consumers

Required env vars:

• OPENSUBTITLES_API_KEY
• OPENSUBTITLES_USER_AGENT (e.g., OpenClaw 1.0)

Optional (for downloads):

• OPENSUBTITLES_USERNAME
• OPENSUBTITLES_PASSWORD
• OPENSUBTITLES_TOKEN (if already logged in)
• OPENSUBTITLES_BASE_URL (hostname from login response, e.g., api.opensubtitles.com)

Commands

Scripts live in {baseDir}/scripts/.

Search subtitles

{baseDir}/scripts/opensubtitles-api.sh search --query "Show Name" --season 3 --episode 5 --languages en

Prefer IDs when available (imdb/tmdb). Use parent IDs for TV episodes. Follow redirects for search (script already uses -L).

Login (token)

{baseDir}/scripts/opensubtitles-api.sh login

Note: Login is rate limited (1/sec, 10/min, 30/hour). If you get 401, stop retrying. Use base_url from the response as OPENSUBTITLES_BASE_URL for subsequent requests.

Request a download link

Before downloading, check the local subtitle cache (see below). Only call the download API if the file is not already cached.

OPENSUBTITLES_TOKEN=... {baseDir}/scripts/opensubtitles-api.sh download-link --file-id 123

Extract context at timestamp

After downloading an .srt file (default window: 10 minutes before timestamp):

On Windows, use findstr or PowerShell Select-String to replicate the awk logic (use the shell script as a guide). The agent should pick the best option available on that system.

{baseDir}/scripts/subtitle-context.sh ./subtitle.srt 00:12:34,500

Custom window:

{baseDir}/scripts/subtitle-context.sh ./subtitle.srt 00:12:34,500 --window-mins 5

Trakt synergy

Pair with trakt-readonly to identify current episode; when Trakt adds playback progress support, update the Trakt skill to supply a precise timestamp for context‑aware, spoiler‑safe responses.

Cache

Store downloaded subtitles under {baseDir}/storage/subtitles/ (create if missing). Use a stable filename like:

{baseDir}/storage/subtitles/<file_id>__<language>.srt

Check this cache before calling /download to avoid wasting limited daily downloads.

Guardrails

• Never log or expose API keys, passwords, or tokens.
• Only call https://api.opensubtitles.com/api/v1 (or the base_url returned by login).
• Do not cache download links.
• Prefer IDs over fuzzy queries for accuracy.
• Avoid wasting downloads: store downloaded subtitle files locally and check the cache before calling the download API again.
• If a download is requested, always append the remaining download quota (from the remaining field) in the user response.
• Subtitle context should include the window from 10 minutes before the timestamp to the timestamp (default), unless the user specifies otherwise.
• The agent can adjust --window-mins to get more or less context as needed.
• Only read subtitle files from {baseDir}/storage/subtitles/ to avoid arbitrary file access.

References

• references/opensubtitles-api.md