Dubbing (filmmaking)
From Freepedia
- For dubbing in music recording, see Dubbing (music)
In filmmaking, dubbing is the process of recording or replacing voices for a motion picture. The term is most commonly used in reference to voices recorded which do not belong to the original actors and speak in a different language than the actor is speaking. "Dubbing" can also be used to describe the process of re-recording lines by the actor who originally spoke them. This process is technically known as automated dialogue replacement, or ADR.
Although dubbing is most common with film, television series are sometimes dubbed as well (mostly popular Hollywood series and serialized Japanese anime that have received foreign distribution). Foreign-language films and videos are often dubbed into the local language of their target markets to increase their popularity with the local audience by making them more accessible.
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Automated dialogue replacement / post-synch
Automated dialogue replacement (ADR) is a film sound technique involving the re-recording of dialogue after photography. It is called post-synchronisation (post-sync) in the UK.
In conventional film production, a production sound mixer records dialogue during photography, but several uncontrollable issues, including traffic and animal noise, during principal photography can cause the production sound to be unusable.
When the film is in post-production, a Supervising Sound Editor or ADR Supervisor reviews all of the dialogue in the film and rules which actor lines will have to be replaced using the ADR technique.
ADR is recorded during an ADR session. An actor, usually the original actor on set, is called to a sound studio equipped with video playback equipment and sound playback and recording equipment. The actor wears headphones and is shown the film of the line that must be replaced, and often he will be played the production sound recording. The film is then projected several times, and the actor attempts to re-perform the line while watching the image on the screen, while an ADR Recordist records the performances. Several takes are made, and based on the quality of the performance and sync, one is selected and edited by an ADR Editor for use in the film.
There are variations of the ADR process. ADR does not have to be recorded in a studio, but can be recorded on location, with mobile equipment; this process was pioneered by Matthew Wood of Skywalker Sound for The Phantom Menace. ADR can also be recorded without showing the actor the image they must match, but only by having him listen to the performance. This process was used for years at Universal Studios.
Although actors are trained to sing, few are of professional quality. Therefore, if a character must sing well in a movie, ADR is usually used to redub their singing. This technique was used by Billy Boyd and Viggo Mortensen in The Lord of the Rings.
Foreign films
Dubbing is often used to localize a foreign movie. The new voice track will usually be spoken by a voice artist. In some countries, such as France, Italy and Spain, these artists are almost as well known as the Hollywood actors and actresses whose voices they dub. In the US however, most actors who regularly perform this duty are generally little-known or unknown outside of popular circles such as anime fandom, for example. Many of these actors also employ pseudonyms or go uncredited due to Actor's Guild regulations or simple desire to dissociate themselves from the role. Adding or replacing non-vocal sounds, such as sound effects, is the task of a foley artist.
Subtitles may be used instead of dubbing, as different countries have different traditions regarding the choice between dubbing and subtitling. In most English-speaking countries, dubbing is comparatively rare. In Israel, some programmes need to be comprehensible to speakers of both Hebrew and Arabic. This cannot be accomplished with dubbing, so subtitling is much more commonplace - sometimes even with subtitles in both languages, with the soundtrack remaining in the orginal language, usually English. In the Netherlands and Scandinavian countries, films and television programmes are shown in the original language (usually English) with subtitles, and only some cartoons and children programmes are dubbed.
In Portugal this traditionally also been the case, but one terrestrial channel, TVI, dubs US series like Dawson's Creek into Portuguese. In Brazil, foreign television programmes have invariably dubbed in Portuguese, partly because of lower literacy rates, although films shown at cinemas are usually subtitled.
For the German-language market, virtually all films and foreign television shows are dubbed. There are few opportunities to watch Hollywood movies in their original versions, and even in the largest cities there are only a few theatres that screen original versions with subtitles, or no translation at all.
In Quebec in Canada, most films and TV programmes in English are dubbed into French. This has the advantage of making children's TV series comprehensible to younger audiences, but many bilingual Quebecois prefer subtitling since they would understand some or all of the original audio. American television series are only available in English on DVD, or on English language channels. Most anime DVDs contain options for original Japanese, Japanese with subtitles, and English dubbed, except for a handful of series which have been heavily edited and/or Americanized.
In some countries, such as Thailand and South Africa, the original soundtrack is simultaneously carried or "simulcast" on the radio.
On DVDs with higher translation budgets, the option for both types will often be provided to account for individuals' preferences; purists exist for both types of translation. For small markets (small language area or films for a select audience) subtitling is more suitable because it is cheaper. For films for small children, who can not yet read, or not yet very fast, dubbing is necessary.
Other uses
Dubbing is occasionally used on network television broadcasts of films which have dialogue that the network executives or censors have decided to replace; this is usually done to remove profanity. In most cases, the original actor does not perform this duty; instead, an actor with a similar voice is called in. The results are sometimes seamless, but in many cases the voice of the replacement actor sounds nothing like the original performer, which becomes particularly noticeable when extensive dialogue needs to be replaced. Among the films considered notorious for using substitute actors that sound very different from their theatrical counterparts are the Smokey and the Bandit and Die Hard film series as shown on broadcasters such as TBS.
Since most anime series contain some extent of profanity, the studios recording the English dubs often re-record certain lines if a series or movie is going to be broadcast on Cartoon Network, removing references to death and hell as well. Some companies will offer both an edited version and uncut version of the series on DVD, so there is also an edited script in case the series is broadcast. Other companies also edit the full-length version of a series, meaning that even on the uncut DVD, characters say things like "Blast!" "Darn!" in place of the original dialogue's profanity (Bandai Entertainment's English dub of G Gundam is infamous for this, among many other things).
Although there are many fans who prefer the English Dubs, there are still many people who would prefer the undubbed version to air on TV, only with subtitles.
Dubbing into a foreign language does not always entail the deletion of the original language; in some countries, a performer may read the translated dialogue as a voiceover. This often occurs in Poland, where "lektories" read the translated dialogue in Polish. On special occasions, such as film festivals, live translation is often done by volunteers. See also dubtitle.
Criticism and defence of dubbing
Dubbing has been criticised in several ways, patricularly in countries where it is not common practice.
Those who dislike dubbing sometimes claim that it devalues films or TV programmes, as original soundtracks are closer to what the director intended. In some cases dubbing can make the film or programme less authentic. (For example, Nazi officers in WWII movies can be distracting to some if not speaking German).
Also, lip synchronisation is normally lost when dubbing, even with quality dubbings between closely related languages. There are examples which have been reshot or reanimated to remedy this problem.
Defenders of dubbing maintain that subtitling interferes with the visual experience, as it obscures part of the picture. In many European countries, Hollywood movies are regularly dubbed and some people maintain that a creative translation (not necessarily faithful to the original English words) can bring more fun and depth to films, so that the supposedly more demanding European audience will not find them as tedious. In Hungary it is common for translators to create the Hungarian text to rhyme for comedies and cartoons with well-known local actors providing their voices to read it. The most famous example is perhaps the The Flintstones, with its entire Hungarian text in rhymes.
