2021 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Creativity in Film Subtitling: The Creative Translation Approach of Japanese Subtitlers
| Project/Area Number |
21K19955
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| Research Institution | Tsukuba Gakuin University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2021-08-30 – 2023-03-31
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| Keywords | Film subtitles / Subtitle translation / Translation norms |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
This research has looked into the history of the translation of subtitles of foreign movies in Japan since the 1930s. However, the first focus has been on the years 1946 to 1980, when mainly two subtitle translators, Shimizu Shunji and Takase Shizuo, shaped the norms of Japanese subtitles. Numerous translation examples and writings by these and other translators where analyzed to show how these subtitle translators perceived themselves not merely as translators but as creative entities who transferred the "essence of the film dialogue" into Japanese.
The second analyzed time frame spanned the years from 1980 to 2010 when one translator, Toda Natsuko, became the main translator for English-language movies in Japan. The focus was on how Toda's translation style, a continuation of the established translation norms of her mentor Shimizu, was challenged by other translators and the cinema audience. Toda's writings, translation examples from films such as Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket, and The Lord of the Rings, as well as newspaper articles have been analyzed to show how her style of "extreme reduction and simplification" was not appropriate for specific types of films. Furthermore, translation examples of other translators from that time period were analyzed to elucidate how translations of these translators differed from Toda's style. The results show that technological advances and new translators led to diversified translation styles and that Japanese subtitles developed into more faithful translations of the original text.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
The research based on books and audiovisual material has progressed according to schedule. However, the planned visits to various facilities (libraries, film archives) in Tokyo were not always possible because of restricted access due to the coronavirus. These visits will be more frequent in this year.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
Research from here on will focus on changes in the translation norms of subtitles since around 2010, including changes in the use of women's language in subtitles. Furthermore, the focus of research will shift from English-language movies to films from other countries, such as Germany and France, to find possible differences in the translation process into Japanese for these languages.
In addition, more visits to libraries and film archives are planned as well as the participation in a conference and the publishing of a paper.
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| Causes of Carryover |
Due to the long delivery time for English-language books, some of the ordered research material could not be included in the costs for the first fiscal year.
In addition, the coronavirus situation made planned visits to institutions in Tokyo, such as libraries and film archives, difficult due to restricted access, limited opening hours or complete closures. Therefore, no travel costs were incurred in the first fiscal year, and the planned visits will be conducted in the second fiscal year.
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