by Mara Campbell “Glossary”, “consistency sheet”, “term base,” or “key names and phrases” (KNP). It has been called many names by different companies over the years, but its usefulness is uncontested. Put simply, it is a list of terms that are repeated throughout a show, film, or saga, and their approved translations into different […]
Three Elements that Affect Subtitling Productivity
by Catalina Espinoza Almost every audiovisual translator has been asked their daily productivity. In an effort to win clients, sometimes we rush to respond: “x” minutes a day. But it’s difficult to predict the complexity of a project knowing only how long the file is. The purpose of this article is to make it clear […]
Translating Accessibility and Sensitive Content
by Daniela Costa A few months ago, I was assigned the subtitle translation of a documentary. So far, nothing new to me. Before starting a project, I usually do some research about the director, characters, and theme. In this case, it was a documentary about a camp for teenagers, and how it changed their lives. […]
Pivot Languages in Subtitling
by Dietlinde DuPlessis If you translate subtitles for streaming services into languages other than English, you most likely have received pivot-language assignments. If you are a native English speaker, you might have been asked to produce templates for pivot translations. If you are not familiar with the term pivot language, here is a short definition: […]
Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone: Translating Subtitles from Foreign Audio and an English Template
by Daniela Costa The growth of streaming isn’t surprising. From music and audiovisual content to podcasts, technology has helped these new platforms showcase original works. In recent years, there has been a surge in Netflix’s non-English materials. 50% of subscribers watch foreign-language shows when only 30% of viewers did so a couple of years ago¹. […]
Demand for Non-English Subtitlers Rocketing
By Kelly O’Donovan Subtitles were always a part of post-production, but the demand wasn’t so intense until recently. For the most part, subtitled movies and documentaries travelled to film festivals or were distributed abroad. However, in the last five years, global content streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime have exploded the subtitling scene. […]
Creative Reports for Localization Services
By Ayam Refaat In the subtitling and dubbing field, translators need extra background information to help perfect their translations. Prior to translation, Creative English Editors carry out specific tasks aimed at improving the localization of their client’s content. They create various reports to help translators from different cultures remain consistent in their translation. The reports […]
Pivot Language Templates in Audiovisual Translation: Friends or Foes?
by Vanesa Álvarez Ortiz In these globalized and competitive times, some big players in the AVT industry rely heavily upon pivot language templates to make English the source language of all translation, eliminating less common combinations. The use of these timed master subtitles has as many advantages as disadvantages both for subtitle vendors and translators. […]
Deep Focus 3: Editorial
by Ana G. Gonzáles Meade Dear Audiovisual Division members: Summer and our third edition launched simultaneously! For this issue we gathered an array of material authored by key practicing professionals, articles that aim to keep our readers updated on the latest developments in the audiovisual translation field. We gave our newsletter a bit of a […]