[New publication] Inaugural Issue of Journal of Audiovisual Translation

Publications

Vol 1 No 1 (2018): Inaugural issue of Journal of Audiovisual Translation

About this journal:

Journal of Audiovisual Translation (JAT) is the first international journal dedicated to audiovisual translation studies. Published by European Association for Studies in Screen Translation  (ESIST), JAT aims to be the reference point for high-quality, innovative and in-depth research in all avenues of audiovisual translation studies. From historical perspectives to technology-based studies, from media accessibility in all its forms to linguistic, culture-oriented, psychology-based research, JAT aims to select contributions that will enrich the field and have an impact on both practice and research.

Editorial Team:

Editor-in-chief:

Anna Jankowska, PhD, is Assistant Lecturer in the Chair for Translation Studies and Intercultural Communication at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Poland) and visiting scholar at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona within the Mobility Plus program of the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (2016-2019). Her recent research projects include studies on mobile accessibility and software (Audiomovie – Cinema for All and OpenArt – Modern Art for All), the viability of translating audio description scripts from foreign languages, multiculturalism in audio description, audio description for foreign films and the history of audiovisual translation. She is also the founder and president of the Seventh Sense Foundation which provides audio description and subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.

Editorial Board:

Elena Di Giovanni is Associate Professor of English Translation at the University of Macerata, Italy. She has a degree in Specialized Translation and a PhD in English and Audiovisual Translation. She   has been invited to give lectures and workshops on audiovisual translation and media accessibility at several universities and institutions in Italy (Bergamo, Trieste, Milano, Roma, Palermo, Bari,   Bologna, Napoli) and around the world (Valencia, Sevilla, Barcelona, Leeds, Belfast, Berlin, Cairo, Nitra, New York, Shangai). From 2008 to 2016, she was Visiting Lecturer at Roehampton University,   London, MA course in audiovisual translation. From 2014 to 2016, she was Guest Lecturer at Montclair State University, New Jersey, USA. Since 2013, she lectures on cinema accessibility at the Venice   International Film Festival, within the European Parliament-funded LUX Prize for cinema. In 2012-2013, she was Director of the international MA in Accessibility to Media, Arts and Culture of the   University of Macerata. Since November, 2016, she is president of ESIST, European association of studies in screen translation (www.esist.org). She has published extensively on audiovisual translation and other areas of translation studies. Her publications are here.

Jan-Louis Kruger is Head of the Department of Linguistics at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia where he also teaches in AVT. His main research interests include studies on the reception and processing of audiovisual translation products including aspects such as cognitive load, comprehension, attention allocation, and psychological immersion. His current research projects investigate cognitive load in the context of educational subtitling with a view to optimising subtitles as language support in second language environments, as well as the processing of subtitles as dynamic text using eye tracking. Before joining the editorial board of JAT, he was a co-editor of Perspectives – Studies in Translation Theory and Practice.

Jan Pedersen was educated at the universities of Stockholm, Copenhagen and Uppsala. He received his Ph.D. from Stockholm University in 2007 and was made an Associate Professor in Translation  Studies there in 2015. His dissertation is entitled Scandinavian Subtitles, and it is a comparative study of TV subtitling norms in the Scandinavian countries. Jan’s research interests include translation studies, translation theory, audiovisual translation, pragmatics and comparative linguistics. He is the former president of the European Association for Studies in Screen Translation (ESIST), member  of the European Society for Translation Studies (EST), founding member of the Nordic Network for Translation Studies (TraNor) and co-editor of the journal Perspectives – Studies in Translatology. He  is  a frequent presenter at international conferences and his publications include the 2011 monograph Subtitling Norms for Television, as well as several articles on subtitling, translation and  linguistics. He also worked as a television subtitler for many years, subtitling shows like Late Show with David Letterman, the Simpsons and Nikolaj og Julie. In 2015, Jan is an Associate Professor at  Stockholm University, where he holds posts as Deputy Head of the Department of Swedish Language and Multilingualism and as Director of the Institute for Interpretation and Translation Studies, where he also researches and teaches audiovisual translation.

Nina Reviers received her Ph.D. at the University of Antwerp (Department of Translators and Interpreters, TricS research group) in the field of Media Accessibility. Her research project involves the development of the first multimodal corpus of Dutch audio descriptions, and applies computer based techniques from corpus linguistics, multimodal corpus development and Natural Language Processing. She has professional experience as an audiovisual translator, particularly in the theatre and has collaborated with several prominent flemish theatres, accessibility providers and user organisations. She has experience in academic and professional training (MA courses in interpreting, vocational audio description workshops, training of interns in audio description) and helped develop Flemish guidelines for the audio description of live-events as a member of the Transmedia Benelux Research Group. She has collaborated in the European projects ADLAB, ADLAB PRO and ACT.

Pablo Romero Fresco is an Ramón y Cajal grantholder at Universidade de Vigo (Spain) and Honorary Professor of Translation and Filmmaking at the University of Roehampton (London, UK). He is the editor of The Reception of Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Europe (2015, Peter Lang) and the author of the books Subtitling through Speech Recognition: Respeaking (2012, Routledge) and Accessible Filmmaking: Integrating translation and accessibility as part of the filmmaking process (forthcoming, Routledge). His Accessible Filmmaking Guide is currently being used by governments, film schools and filmmakers in several countries and he has collaborated with several governments, universities, companies and user associations around the world to introduce and improve access to live events for people with hearing loss around the world. He is the leader of the EU-funded projects “MAP: Media Accessibility Platform” and “ILSA: Interlingual Live Subtitling for Access” and of the international research centre GALMA (Galician Observatory for Media Accessibility). Pablo is also a filmmaker. His first documentary, Joining the Dots (2012), was used by Netflix as well as schools around Europe to raise awareness about audiodescription.

Scientific Board:

Fatma Ben Slamia, University of Sousse, Tunisia

Charlotte Bosseaux, University of Edinburgh, UK

Federic Chaume, Universitat Jaume I, Spain

Jorge Dìaz Cintas, University College London, UK

Deborah Fels, Ryerson University, Canada

Louise Fryer, University College London, UK

Steven Doherty, University of New South Wales, Australia

Yves Gambier, University of Turku, Finland / I. Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia

Yota Georgiakopoulou, Deluxe, Greece

Henrik Gottlieb, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Gian Maria Greco, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain

Jin Haina, Communication University of China, China

Emilia Perez, Constantine the Philosopher University Nitra, Slovakia

Brij Kothari

Lucinéa Marcelino Villela, Sao Paulo State University, Brasil

Anna Matamala, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain

Iwona Mazur, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland

Joselia Neves, Hamad bin Khalifa University, Qatar

Andrew Lambourne, Leeds Beckett University, UK

Ayonghe Lum Suzanne, University of Buea, Cameroon

Ayşe Şirin Okyayuz, Bilkent University,Turkey

Pilar Orero, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain

Carol O’Sullivan, University of Bristol, UK

Elisa Perego, University of Trieste, Italy

Luis Pérez-González, University of Manchester, UK

Aline Remael, University of Antwerp, Belgium

Marina Savko, Belarusian State University, Belarus

Agnieszka Szarkowska, University of Warsaw, Poland

 

Titles and abstracts in the inaugural issue:

What is this thing called Journal of Audiovisual Translation?

Anna Magdalena Jankowska, Elena Di Giovanni, Jan-Louis Kruger, Jan Pedersen, Nina Reviers, Pablo Romero-Fresco
Abstract: We are proud to present the first issue of the Journal of Audiovisual Translation. Launching this new journal would not have been possible without the hard work of the Editorial Board members, much appreciated contributions from the Authors and support from ESIST and Scientific Board members. Audiovisual translation has come of age as a discipline in its own right and we strongly believe that it deserves a journal that is dedicated to this very specific field. Journal of Audiovisual Translation wishes to serve as an international forum and reference point for high-quality, innovative and in-depth research in all avenues of audiovisual translation studies.
Five things you wanted to know about audiovisual translation research, but were afraid to ask
Agnieszka Szarkowska, Piotr Wasylczyk
Abstract: Young researchers often encounter questions, problems and hurdles at the early stages of their careers that relate to areas, particularly outside their core subject. These may span from selecting the research topic and methodology to publishing strategies and identifying the position of audiovisual translation research in a wider framework of the fast-changing academic world. Drawing on our experience in audiovisual translation and natural sciences research, we address some of these issues in a way we wish someone had done for us many years ago.
Audiovisual translation in China: A dialogue between Yves Gambier and Haina Jin Gambier Yves, Haina Jin
Abstract: This dialogue was conducted between Yves Gambier and Haina Jin in April and November 2017, and April 2018 in Beijing, China, in order to give a panoramic view of audiovisual translation in China today, the history of which dates back to the silent film era. Audiovisual translation has played an important role in cross-cultural communication, industrial development and social integration in China. Vibrant audiovisual translation activities can be seen in three main directions: translating foreign audiovisual products into Chinese, translating Chinese audiovisual products into foreign languages and audiovisual translation into ethnic minority languages in China. In this dialogue, the three main translation directions, the status of translators, the role of associations, standards, education and training, as well as further development of audiovisual translation in China will be discussed.
An overview of audiovisual translation: Four methodological turns in a mature discipline
Frederic Chaume
Abstract: Digital technology has played a crucial role not only in the process of production and distribution of audiovisual content, but also in the process of localization and consumption of audiovisual products. This has had an obvious impact on audiovisual translation as a field, both in professional circles as well as in scholarly research. To date, this field of research has grown exponentially, parallel to the production, consumption, interaction with and general interest in audiovisual products. At the same time, translation studies have been growing as a discipline and, consequently, has been influencing audiovisual translation (AVT) research. This article presents a due brief overview of the four turns audiovisual translation has taken to date (the descriptive, the cultural, the sociological and the cognitive turns), and identifies some of the major steps already undertaken, as well as possible research avenues that such turns are currently opening.
Cross-national research in audiovisual translation: Some methodological considerations
Elisa Perego
Abstract: Cross-national research is a research methodology that aims to make comparisons across countries. Nowadays, cross-national research is growing, especially in some social science disciplines such as sociology, political science, geography, and economics. However, it has not yet steadily entered the field of audiovisual translation (AVT). Despite its theoretical and methodological challenges (Hoffmeyer-Zlotnik & Harkness, 2005), cross-national research could be used successfully in AVT to investigate long-debated issues. These issues include, but are not restricted to, the reception of a given AVT method or strategy, and the different ways in which the translation process is accomplished in different countries. In this contribution, I will outline both theoretical and methodological debates in comparative cross-national research and apply them to AVT. After that, I will briefly present the results of a cross-national study (Perego et. al, 2016) designed to analyse the subtitle reception comparing the way the process takes place in different countries with different AVT traditions. The discussion of the study will contribute to assessing the potential strengths of cross-national research in AVT, thus offering indications on future methodological developments and enabling future and more rigorous international comparisons.
From old tricks to Netflix: How local are interlingual subtitling norms for streamed television?
Jan Pedersen
Abstract: Like other translation norms, interlingual subtitling norms for television evolve over time, influenced by technology, mediascape development and other trends. Originating in cinema subtitling norms, TV subtitling norms began to develop at national public service broadcasters. Later, norms became international with the rise of the DVD and the proliferation of commercial TV in Europe. These days, the most influential force driving subtitling norms is arguably the global video on demand (VOD) providers. This paper investigates the subtitling guidelines of VOD giant Netflix, in search of the question: How local are interlingual subtitling norms for streamed television? The results show that there is little variation in the initial guidelines, but that they are continually becoming more varied, as they are localized using input from users.
Reappraising verbal language in audiovisual translation: From description to application
Maria Pavesi
Abstract: Focussing on the verbal code alone in audiovisual translation research is often criticised as it supposedly disregards the semiotic and cultural complexity of the audiovisual text. This article by contrast argues for the relevance of an in-depth analysis of the linguistic component of the multimodal complex. First, the article presents a model of key dimensions necessary to account for the space occupied by the language of dubbing, while placing it within a wider sociolinguistic context. Three pairs of dimensions are proposed: naturalness and register specificity, target language orientation and source language interference, and routinisation and creativity. Second, the article argues that translation for dubbing can be applied as a heuristic device to explore the translation of casual conversation. By analysing the rendering of a typical structure of conversational English in dubbed Italian, an illustration is provided of systematic cross-linguistic correspondences that potentially extend to spontaneous speech. Further sociolinguistic, diachronic and cross-cultural investigations are suggested as a way to push research into the language of dubbing forward.
Game on! Burning issues in game localisation
Carme Mangiron
Abstract: Game localisation is a type of audiovisual translation that has gradually been gathering scholarly attention since the mid-2000s, mainly due to the increasing and ubiquitous presence of video games in the digital society and the gaming industry’s need to localise content in order to access global markets. This paper will focus on burning issues in this field, that is, issues that require specific attention, from an industry and/or an academic perspective. These include the position of game localisation within the wider translation studies framework, the relationship between game localisation and audiovisual translation, game accessibility, reception studies, translation quality, collaborative translation, technology, and translator training.
Standardising accessibility: Transferring knowledge to society
Anna Matamala, Pilar Orero
Abstract: This article describes standardisation work in the field of media accessibility with a focus on the international standardisation bodies ISO (International Organization for Standardization) and ITU (International Telecommunication Union). It provides an overview of what standards are and how standardisation agencies work, with a focus on the technical procedures, types of documents and Code of Conduct to be followed. The specific tasks of working groups dealing with access services is presented and their main outputs in the form of standards are summarised. The article also discusses the main challenges researchers face when getting involved in standardisation work and the benefits of transferring into society and the industry through standardisation.
Participatory accessibility: Creating audio description with blind and non-blind children
Elena Di Giovanni
Abstract: Focussing on the verbal code alone in audiovisual translation research is often criticised as it supposedly disregards the semiotic and cultural complexity of the audiovisual text. This article by contrast argues for the relevance of an in-depth analysis of the linguistic component of the multimodal complex. First, the article presents a model of key dimensions necessary to account for the space occupied by the language of dubbing, while placing it within a wider sociolinguistic context. Three pairs of dimensions are proposed: naturalness and register specificity, target language orientation and source language interference, and routinisation and creativity. Second, the article argues that translation for dubbing can be applied as a heuristic device to explore the translation of casual conversation. By analysing the rendering of a typical structure of conversational English in dubbed Italian, an illustration is provided of systematic cross-linguistic correspondences that potentially extend to spontaneous speech. Further sociolinguistic, diachronic and cross-cultural investigations are suggested as a way to push research into the language of dubbing forward.
The independent audio describer is dead: Long live audio description!
Louise Fryer
Abstract: Traditional audio description (AD) is giving way to integrated audio description in which media accessibility is no longer an add-on but built in from the start in collaboration with the artistic team. As directors and producers take a greater interest in making their work accessible to audience members with a sensory impairment, how are the power dynamics altered between the stakeholders? The idea of abusive forms of translation advanced by Lewis (1985) and Nornes (1999) is reconsidered, together with the sanctity of the source text (ST). Also assessed is the impact on the role and hence the training needs of the professional audio describer. Using data from research projects developed by Extant, the UK’s leading professional performing arts company of visually impaired people, and from the European research project ADLAB PRO, this paper concludes that a describer’s skills and competences are still required even with the evolution of integrated AD.
In support of a wide notion of media accessibility: Access to content and access to creation
Pablo Romero-Fresco
Abstract: The prevailing narrow consideration of media accessibility (MA) as concerning only persons with sensory disabilities poses a series of epistemological and terminological issues, and limits the potential of MA to instigate social change. This article supports a wider view of MA that encompasses both people with and without disabilities who need access to audiovisual content. To articulate this wide notion of MA, a distinction is made between access to content and access to creation (Dangerfield, 2017), and examples are drawn from two emerging disciplines: interlingual respeaking and accessible filmmaking (AFM). As far as access to content is concerned, interlingual respeaking can contribute to making MA more visible, forcing hearing audiences to share the same need for access as audiences with hearing loss. As for AFM, by proposing the integration of translation and accessibility as part of the filmmaking process, it provides a platform for deaf, blind and foreign audiences, as well as other groups, to join forces and increase their visibility within the film industry. However, a wide notion of MA must also include access to creation, that is, access to equipment, funding and job opportunities that can enable persons with sensory disabilities to create audiovisual products which, it is argued, can provide a more inclusive and empathetic audiovisual experience than the current model of MA.
The nature of accessibility studies
Gian Maria Greco
Abstract: Accessibility has come to play a pivotal role on the world’s stage, gradually pervading different aspects of our lives as well as a vast range of fields, giving rise to a plethora of fruitful new ideas, methods and models, and becoming an ever more key issue within a process that is reshaping the very fabric of society. The ubiquitous effects of accessibility have led to the emergence of a new research field, namely accessibility studies (AS). This paper presents both the path that has led towards the emergence of AS as well as the distinctive features of this new field. AS is defined as the field concerned with the investigation of accessibility processes and phenomena, and the design, implementation and evaluation of accessibility-based and accessibility-oriented methodologies. The analysis is carried out mainly, though not exclusively, in reference to media accessibility (MA), as it is one of the most mature areas in which the process of the formation of AS has been taking place. It concludes by arguing that AS is a timely field that addresses the most pressing issues our society is facing nowadays and appealing to MA to embrace its identity as an area of AS.
More information is available at: http://jatjournal.org/index.php/jat