AnimeSuki Forums

Youko · 2003-12-06, 17:51

It seems fans usually find something wrong with the way lisensed anime usually translates things.

Do the people who translate the anime actually watch the show and know what happens, or are they simpley just translating it as a job, knowing nothing of the show.

Ok.. where I am going wit this is... lisencers should hire fans sub translators. Heck.. they might do it for free to get in a real project. All that would be left was to put in horrible acting ^^
It seems they could get alot better results highering fans..

Just my thoughts.. what you think?

Rebochan · 2003-12-06, 18:48

The professional translators are doing just fine, in my opinion. It's rare that they make major mistakes. I've found a lot of name mistakes that show up in professional translations also appear in fansubs, or even worse. Fans don't magically know what every thing is. Of course, since the proffessional translations are doing this for profit, they have a right to me more concerned that the quality be top notch. In the case of a fansub, the pressure is on, but not as high because everyone knows a fansub is done to make a show availible when an English license is not availible. In addition, it's also accepted that fansubs are being made by people who are taking time out of their real lives to fit this in without being compensated outside of grateful fans. Proffessional translators actually get paid to do this, so they get as much time as they need and don't have to worry about "real life" getting in the way - this IS real life.

**monir** · 2003-12-06, 18:49

There are different opinions about this. Many think exactly the opposite. I like your idea though. May be they are already hiring experienced, recognized Fan Subbers. Interesting stuffs although in the wrong section of the forum. Fansub Groups or the General Anime section is where this topic belong and will have more responses.

Go-lytely · 2003-12-06, 19:26

I think we've seen this thread already but professional translators are doing just fine and there have very few problems since the early days of commercial translating. Most fans who are critical of professional translations know little Japanese and automatically assume that fansubs are correct and better just because they are doing it for free. Most professional translators are native Japanese and have a much better handle on both English and Japanese than most fansub translators. They also have access to the animation studios and get official scripts to make their translations more accurate.

The translator for the Juuni Kokki DVD's wrote that he read all the novels beforehand to get a better understanding of the show and consulted with the Japanese studios to make sure all the names and such were correct. Fortunately, this type of dedication and effort are the norm rather than the exception in professional translation. Now this could be due to fan pressure but the companies have realized that people wont buy their product if they put out a shoddy product.

Mcgreag · 2003-12-06, 20:12

Also the translators often target different groups. A fansubber targets the real fans (otaku if you want to use that word), people know at least think they know what many japanese words means and therefore want them keept in the translation. A professional translator targets the mainstream and must therefore make the translation understandable by people that know nothing of japan, even if it means removing or completly changing the meaning of some sentences.

zalas · 2003-12-07, 17:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by Youko

It seems fans usually find something wrong with the way lisensed anime usually translates things.

Do the people who translate the anime actually watch the show and know what happens, or are they simpley just translating it as a job, knowing nothing of the show.

Ok.. where I am going wit this is... lisencers should hire fans sub translators. Heck.. they might do it for free to get in a real project. All that would be left was to put in horrible acting ^^
It seems they could get alot better results highering fans..

Just my thoughts.. what you think?

The problem I see is not with the translators, who work pretty well. The problem often lies with editors, who sometimes miss errors, mispellings, consistency, etc. (a la Hoshi no Koe). What companies should be doing is getting a better QC department, or maybe better stylists for their credits.

TiggsPanther · 2003-12-13, 13:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mcgreag

Also the translators often target different groups. A fansubber targets the real fans (otaku if you want to use that word), people know at least think they know what many japanese words means and therefore want them keept in the translation. A professional translator targets the mainstream and must therefore make the translation understandable by people that know nothing of japan, even if it means removing or completly changing the meaning of some sentences.

I guess it's one of the inherant problems with any kind of translation. It can be hard to translate context, and you often have to aim your translation at your target audience.

I guess the main problem is that, in many (but not all) cases, the commercial releases and the fansubs aren't targetting the same audiences. There are definitely some great "fan-friendly" comercial releases out there, but the simple fact remains that if commercial translations purely targetted the anime fans, they might not sell so well in the mainstream.

It's not that the commercial translations are bad. It's just as I said, the target audience are different.
Besides, a fansubber is going to produce the translation they'd want to watch.
A commercial company is going to produce the translation that is going to be easiest for the casual viewer to understand.

Tiggs

Alcy · 2003-12-13, 21:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by TiggsPanther

I guess the main problem is that, in many (but not all) cases, the commercial releases and the fansubs aren't targetting the same audiences. There are definitely some great "fan-friendly" comercial releases out there, but the simple fact remains that if commercial translations purely targetted the anime fans, they might not sell so well in the mainstream.

I guess. I don't usually have a problem with official translations as long as they haven't been rewritten or censored (or Americanized, bleh). It kind of angers me when a title aimed at teens or adults is dumbed down for American children and turned into a mainstream gimmick. I've said this before, and I'll say it again: If we wanted to watch something American, we would've chosen something American..not anime. I can see not using simple Japanese words like someone mentioned earlier (unless it's something like a name or place..), it actually kinda irked me to see "KAWAII" in an English sentence in the Marmalade Boy manga. But, when the meaning of something is entirely changed and there's no language issue(this happens in both fansubs and official, every company and group takes their own stance), I think it's rude to the original work and a disservice to the viewers.

2003-12-06, 17:51	Link #1
Youko Evil Monkey Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Lost Age: 38	The translators It seems fans usually find something wrong with the way lisensed anime usually translates things. Do the people who translate the anime actually watch the show and know what happens, or are they simpley just translating it as a job, knowing nothing of the show. Ok.. where I am going wit this is... lisencers should hire fans sub translators. Heck.. they might do it for free to get in a real project. All that would be left was to put in horrible acting ^^ It seems they could get alot better results highering fans.. Just my thoughts.. what you think?

2003-12-06, 18:48	Link #2
Rebochan Clubbing Join Date: Nov 2003 Age: 40	The professional translators are doing just fine, in my opinion. It's rare that they make major mistakes. I've found a lot of name mistakes that show up in professional translations also appear in fansubs, or even worse. Fans don't magically know what every thing is. Of course, since the proffessional translations are doing this for profit, they have a right to me more concerned that the quality be top notch. In the case of a fansub, the pressure is on, but not as high because everyone knows a fansub is done to make a show availible when an English license is not availible. In addition, it's also accepted that fansubs are being made by people who are taking time out of their real lives to fit this in without being compensated outside of grateful fans. Proffessional translators actually get paid to do this, so they get as much time as they need and don't have to worry about "real life" getting in the way - this IS real life.

2003-12-06, 19:26	Link #4
Go-lytely Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Springfield Age: 46	I think we've seen this thread already but professional translators are doing just fine and there have very few problems since the early days of commercial translating. Most fans who are critical of professional translations know little Japanese and automatically assume that fansubs are correct and better just because they are doing it for free. Most professional translators are native Japanese and have a much better handle on both English and Japanese than most fansub translators. They also have access to the animation studios and get official scripts to make their translations more accurate. The translator for the Juuni Kokki DVD's wrote that he read all the novels beforehand to get a better understanding of the show and consulted with the Japanese studios to make sure all the names and such were correct. Fortunately, this type of dedication and effort are the norm rather than the exception in professional translation. Now this could be due to fan pressure but the companies have realized that people wont buy their product if they put out a shoddy product.

2003-12-06, 20:12	Link #5
Mcgreag Gunnm junkie Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Sweden Age: 44	Also the translators often target different groups. A fansubber targets the real fans (otaku if you want to use that word), people know at least think they know what many japanese words means and therefore want them keept in the translation. A professional translator targets the mainstream and must therefore make the translation understandable by people that know nothing of japan, even if it means removing or completly changing the meaning of some sentences.