Alpha Omega Translations

Audio and Video Translation

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction 2. Video 3. How Subtitling Localization Works

4. The Dubbing or 5. Video Translation “Revoicing” Made Easy

Process

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1. Introduction

We have gotten to a point in our world where translators cannot ignore the fact that there is so much more to translate besides text. Ever since the very first radio show was broadcast, we have had words needing to be translated that were not necessarily written down. The same goes for the first television shows and movies, though with many there was still a script to work with. However, audio and video content have something else added into the mix: timing.

Since radio shows only last a certain amount of time, a translator can’t simply take the script and translate it. It has to be done so in a way that it fits with the show and takes up the same amount of time. Television and movie translation works similarly, but is even more complicated since the translation has to match the visual part as well as the audio. Now, with the advent of YouTube, Vine, SnapChat, and all number of new ways to connect with people, many companies have realized the importance of knowing how to connect with potential clients and customers. Putting an ad in a magazine or on a billboard is not enough anymore. Short videos, podcasts, and even games are starting to become the most popular types of marketing

This doesn’t mean that text translation is soon to die out, though. Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and tons of other social media sites are still important tools to harness for getting more customers The most common way to do marketing on social media is to share posts that are mostly text However, all of these sites are also equipped for sharing videos, which could then be translated into tons of different languages.

With audio and video translation, the possibilities are almost endless, as the technology continues to change and develop. Companies that want to reach more audiences need to step up and take control of their marketing, and the best way to do that now is to have a good understanding of how to translate audio and video content.

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2. Video Localization

If your production was a success at home you may be planning to take it to an international audience. Localizing a video can be tricky, however; few companies are equipped to handle the translation, pacing and editing, let alone find talented voice actors in the target language. Having worked with top companies in both the media and entertainment industries, we have developed unique expertise in multimedia translations.

The need for high-quality multimedia translations is a must for the entertainment and media

industry. Furthermore, multinational corporations and government organizations are relying

more and more on multimedia platforms to train and educate their target audiences. Alpha

Omega Translations has developed a specialized process dedicated to handling all types of

multimedia translation services, including subtitling, dubbing /lip syncing and voice-overs.

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Subtitling

One of the core multimedia translation services is subtitling. Almost every form of video requires subtitling in multiple languages. International markets are of critical importance for the success of educational and entertainment video content, thus subtitling is an essential part of reaching these international markets. Subtitling involves much more than a simple translation; it involves a highly technical and precise process to ensure that the audience is able to understand every scene with spoken or written content.

Voice-Over

A close cousin to dubbing, voice-over multimedia translation services are commonly used in video productions to replace audio content not spoken by an actor in a particular scene. Documentaries commonly use voice-overs, as there is usually a voice in the background describing a scene. Voice-over services do not require the precision involved in dubbing or subtitling; however, they still need to follow a time sequence. This requires the proper equipment and expertise.

Dubbing

Another core multimedia translation service is the precise dubbing of spoken audio content in video productions. Dubbing is widely used in markets where subtitling doesn't fully accomplish the producers' objectives and is a more universal method of converting video productions for international markets. As it does not require reading, it is ideal for children and markets with lower levels of general education. Many companies prefer dubbing as it more closely reflects the experience of the original production.

Despite the increasing popularity of simple voice-overs and subtitling, the process of dubbing

and lip synchronization is still one of the preferred methods to watch video content in another

language. In order for video content to be properly dubbed, the dialogue must be translated by a

team of linguists in this area to ensure that the translated text, once spoken, will match the lips

of the original actor.

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Lip Sync

Lip Synchronization, used synonymously with dubbing, is a process where the insertion of audio attempts to match the lip movements of the original actors. This process is critical in many feature length films as it helps the audience better understand the content and create the illusion that the content was originally filmed in the dubbed language.

Lip Syncing and Dubbing go hand in hand as it is critical to match the re-recorded audio with the lips of the live actors or animation. Otherwise, the production is viewed as second rate. Often, it may be necessary to modify the original translation to shorten the time it takes to speak. This can be a problem when dubbing between English and French, Spanish, or Portuguese as normally more words are used to convey the same meaning in Romance languages compared to English, and vice versa.

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3. How Subtitling Works

Watching a movie in a foreign language is not something new for anyone I don’t think. If you live in the U.S., you have access to tons of foreign films if you know where to look or are willing to do a bit of digging. On the other hand, the U.S. film industry may just be one of the biggest in the world, and so you have people from all over the world watching the latest blockbuster, even if it’s in English. How does this work though? How do we manage to bridge the language gap and share in the cultural phenomenon that is the cinema?

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One method filmmakers use to get around the language barrier is to add subtitles to their work. To anyone who may not be familiar with them, subtitles are the sentences you see at the bottom of the screen when watching a movie in a foreign language that hasn’t been dubbed.

They can also be used for same language productions, to help those who are hard of hearing or who have trouble understanding certain accents. The most common use, however, is for the translation of a film into another language.

Subtitling actually dates as far back as the early 1900s, when silent films had frames between scenes to explain what was going on or provide dialogue. These were easy to translate into a different language, as you only needed to change those particular frames rather than modify the whole movie to accommodate the subtitles. Nowadays, there are entire software programs and other technology devoted to creating subtitles and working them perfectly into the film. Still, most filmmakers want to work with a certified translator who has experience with subtitling.

The actual process of creating translated subtitles today has been streamlined thanks to modern technology, but it can still be a rather tedious process. It’s actually very different from translating a written document, as you have to keep in mind several things. First, people can only read at a certain speed, so you can’t put a lot of text when it will only be seen for, say, three seconds.

This means translators have to get the meaning and main idea of the original six lines of dialogue, for example, into two lines that will fit on the screen without covering up the scene and can be read and understood in the time they are up on the screen. This is why if you are bilingual and are watching a movie in one language you know and subtitled in another, you will notice some differences in the dialogue that may annoy you.

To further complicate matters, many translators who work with subtitles do not have a copy of the original dialogue to work with. They are just sent the original film and have to either copy down the original text as they watch it to use for later reference, or replay scenes again and again until they figure out the best way to translate it into subtitles.

Though it may seem like a lot of work, creating subtitles for a film is the cheapest and most effective solution if you want your film to be appreciated by speakers of other languages.

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4. The Dubbing or “Revoicing”

Process

The film industry is probably one of the most influential industries based on a form of creative expression. With that expression, filmmakers are constantly conveying to their audiences a unique view of their own culture or an interpretation of another. However, it’s impossible to cross a lot of cultural boundaries when the film is in a language that the audience doesn’t understand. Subtitles are one option, but sometimes an audience prefers to hear a film rather than read it. The process of replacing the audio with translated audio is known as dubbing or “revoicing”.

Before the actual dubbing can begin, the audio must be translated into the target language. This process is different from translating anything written, as there is a limited amount of time that the audio will actually be heard before the next bit starts. This is similar to creating translated subtitles, where literal translation is usually replaced with a translation that gets the basic meaning and intent of the original dialogue.

With dubbing, however, the sounds of words have to match the shapes the actors are making

with their mouths. This means changing out words that don’t have, say, an “o” sound for words

that do when the actor’s mouth is creating an “o” sound shape. Add on the fact that the voice

actors have to match the tone and rhythm of the original audio, and you’ve got yourself a lot of

work ahead of you.

One method of, that is more commonly used for TV shows but has been used to for documentaries, is called UN-Style Voice Over. It takes its name from the international organization that typically uses this method when broadcasting meetings and other important events. At first, you hear the original speaker at a normal volume, but after a few seconds the volume drops and the translated audio starts. This is a good way to let the audience know what the tone and effect the original speaker uses and makes the www.alphaomegatranslations.com 7

actual production of the translated audio much simpler, since getting the tone, emotion, etc. to match is not as important.

The quintessential dubbing method is called Lip-Sync Dubbing, and is what you see in old kung fu movies. The basic idea is to take out the original audio completely, translate it, and then record it again, trying to get the mouth movements to match up. This isn’t always done very well, however, and we have much better technology now that can be used to make this better.

The first technique is known as “looping” and consists of playing short pieces of the original

dialogue over and over with a special machine until a suitable audio recording is done. Another

less expensive way is Lock-to-Picture Recording, which is very similar except no fancy

technology is needed. The voice actor just watches pieces of the film over and over and records their audio until it matches perfectly with the original performance.

Thanks to dubbing, people all over the world can enjoy the same movies and programs and aren’t limited to those made in their mother tongue.

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5. Video Translation Made Easy

If you are trying to reach into international markets then you will need video translation to help transform your advertisements, webinars, presentations into content that can be understood worldwide. Localizing a video for an international audience can be tricky. Few companies are equipped to handle the translation, subtitling, and dubbing, let alone find an expert talented voice in the target language.

We know that the globalized economy has led to a rapid rise in the need to translate videos to other languages, or vice versa. Luckily our network of translators, voice talents and video production professionals provide a one-stop shop for your localization needs. Translating videos is easier than ever with our video translation service. Because every production is different, we offer multiple services to ensure your message makes an impact in international markets.

How it works The first step is to upload your videos for transcription and translation into our portal and complete an online translation form that provides context around your content and communicates to our translators what your business is about, the voice of your brand, and the style in which you would like to communicate to customers. It is often helpful to provide a glossary of terms. After your videos have been transcribed with time codes you can download transcripts, and approve them before proceeding to the translation. Translation Process and Quality

Translations are always done by professional linguists who accurately convey the cultural nuances of your video content. Linguists have area-specific expertise across a wide range of topics, including marketing, technology, healthcare, finance, government and education. Our translations read as if they were written in the target language, and are translated in context against the actual video.

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Depending on the target language, a translation may require more characters than the English source. Our translation process accounts for this effect - known as word expansion - in order to accurately preserve synchronization of the subtitles with time codes. Our highest priority is to ensure that your message reaches your audience accurately and effectively in any market and any culture.

To Sum Up:

Audio and video translation have become essential types of translation in the world we live in today. Companies that are not grasping this are not succeeding, and those that are have had lots of success leading to more clients, more profits, and more popularity in general. Not every translator can handle audio and video content, however. Make sure you have a team on call that can get the job done in a timely manner, while delivering premium results. Doing so will ensure that your marketing campaigns will have just the right touch that will bring you more business.

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About Alpha Omega Translations

Alpha Omega Translations founder, Dimitra Hengen, gained her experience in the technical translation industry since 1974.

Our experts have been very successful in executing high-end multilingual projects for two decades. We have over 20 years of experience as an agency in translation, and localization in all languages.

Our translation services are employed by some of the best companies who consider us their partner, not just a vendor. With our Translation and Localization services, we help our clients double their revenues by enabling them to sell their products globally. Our expertise cover all aspects of production of international products including legal translation, website translation and development, multimedia and video translation, marketing translation.

We strive not only to make each and every client fully satisfied, but also to ensure that their end-users are satisfied. We raise the standards in the industry and we have fulfilled our duty when our clients’ end-users are successful.

For more information about Alpha Omega Translations, please visit our website as www.alphaomegatranslations.com

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