Title
English dubbing as the new normal. A turning point in the user’s cinematic experience?
Conference name
Media for All 10 Conference
City
Country
Belgium
Modalities
Date
06/07/2023-07/07/2023
Abstract
The advent of digitization and streaming is nowadays encouraging the expansion of dubbing in those countries traditionally unaccustomed to watching foreign content with dubs. This so-called “dubbing revolution” (Ranzato and Zanotti 2019) has been particularly noticeable in Anglophone territories, where the consumption of dubbed versions has soared after platforms like Netflix have expanded their repertoire of non-English content dubbed into this language (Sánchez-Mompeán 2021). Although dubbing is apparently playing a crucial role in drawing a bigger audience in these countries (Spiteri Miggiani 2021, Lee 2022), the quality of dubbed versions has been called into question by a number of viewers, who have been complaining about poor synchronisation, unnatural dialogues and artificial performances. Negative comments certainly cast doubt on the level of quality of English dubbed versions but also pave the way for exploring in more detail the connection between an unfavourable response on the part of the audience and their lack of habituation to this audiovisual translation mode. Given that English dubbing is reviving amongst users coming from non-dubbing backgrounds (Díaz Cintas 2018) and with limited exposure to translation, it is fair to assume that they might find it difficult to keep their ears open to the many quirks and the prefabricated orality typifying dubbed dialogue. Likewise, a short tradition in the dubbing industry might have an impact on the level of quality of the final version (Spiteri Miggiani 2021).
This study offers insights into how substandard quality and the lack of a long professional tradition might compromise engagement as well as cinematic illusion and how the lack of exposure to dubbing might have a negative effect on the way the audiovisual content is received and enjoyed by English viewers. To this end, users’ take on the English dubbed versions of TV series such as La Casa de Papel, Lupin and How to sell drugs online (amongst others) has been gathered from several social networks, video-sharing platforms and fora (e.g., Twitter, Reddit, Youtube, Quora...). Data extracted allow a qualitative description of the most vilified aspects by the audience and the potential constraints that might be impairing the final versions dubbed into English. The conclusions suggest the need to improve English dubbing quality at different levels as well as the importance of habituation to make this practice work from a cognitive, linguistic and prosodic point of view.
This study offers insights into how substandard quality and the lack of a long professional tradition might compromise engagement as well as cinematic illusion and how the lack of exposure to dubbing might have a negative effect on the way the audiovisual content is received and enjoyed by English viewers. To this end, users’ take on the English dubbed versions of TV series such as La Casa de Papel, Lupin and How to sell drugs online (amongst others) has been gathered from several social networks, video-sharing platforms and fora (e.g., Twitter, Reddit, Youtube, Quora...). Data extracted allow a qualitative description of the most vilified aspects by the audience and the potential constraints that might be impairing the final versions dubbed into English. The conclusions suggest the need to improve English dubbing quality at different levels as well as the importance of habituation to make this practice work from a cognitive, linguistic and prosodic point of view.