MELA47415: Subtitling: Theory and Practice

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• This module is designed to prepare students for work in the fast-growing AVT sector of the language industry. It offers a sound grounding in key concepts of AVT in general, with a focus on the theory and practice of interlingual subtitling (hereafter subtitling).
• The module develops students understanding of the semiotic features of subtitling, and of the linguistic and technical constraints and challenges of subtitling. It provides hands-on training with audiovisual material taken from various sources (e.g., films, documentaries, TV shows), aiming to enhance students technological competence and skills in using professional subtitling tools to do spotting and to produce accurate, relevant, and reader-friendly subtitles in a broad range of genres from English into Chinese.
• This module helps students build core skills in analysing the multimodal texts from linguistic, cultural, pragmatic, and technical perspectives, enabling them to take theoretical implications and contextual factors into consideration in making informed choices and justifying their decisions and strategies. It provides students with the opportunity to discuss and analyse a range of issues related specifically to the professional practice of subtitling.
• This module aims to train students into competent subtitle translators, raising their awareness of professional conventions of good subtitling practice, and of the conventions, rules, and guidelines involved in the production of subtitles. They will be guided to apply these conventions and rules into their practical work.
• In addition, this module also aims to cultivate students competence and skills in carrying out research in relation to subtitling to support their practice.

• After a general introduction to the key concepts of AVT and subtitling (week 1), students will be trained to use an appropriate subtitling program (e.g. OOONA) to spot and create English subtitles (week 2).
• From week 2, students will be assigned coursework on a weekly basis to familiarise themselves with the use of the subtitling tool. The tasks include spotting (e.g., defining the in and out times of subtitles, identifying individual frames, and handling shot changes/cuts), creating and editing English subtitles from scratch (e.g., condensing original dialogues, segmenting texts in sensible blocks), and creating and revising Chinese subtitles (e.g., translating English subtitles into Chinese according to the specifications for Chinese subtitles in the professional realm, applying appropriate strategies to produce accurate, relevant and reader-friendly subtitles, and dealing with songs and onscreen text). The audiovisual material used is taken from diverse authentic contexts and covers a broad range of genres (e.g., films, documentaries, TV shows, corporate videos).
• Each 2-hour lesson consists of a 1-hour lecture on theoretical aspects of subtitling and a 1-hour seminar on the discussion of students subtitling coursework. The theoretical aspects include but are not limited to the semiotics of subtitling, conventions and norms in subtitling, and models of subtitling decision-making processes. The discussion topics cover the technical, linguistic, and cultural constraints and challenges of subtitling (e.g., the spatial and temporal dimensions of subtitles, textual features of subtitles, the translation strategies for swearwords, taboo words, humour, cultural references, wordplay, accents, and pronunciation). Students will be instructed to analyse the audio, visual, textual and plot components of an AVT programme, making informed translation choices and justifying their solutions based on the genre, purpose, and target audience of the programme. They will be guided to apply the conventions and rules of subtitling, to contextualise the practical work in a suitable theoretical framework, and to critically analyse and evaluate their own and their peers work through oral and written reflective commentaries and group activities. How to prepare for a subtitling assignment professionally, to translate subtitles with accuracy under strict time requirements, and to employ editing and revising strategies effectively will also be a part of the discussion.
• The final session focuses on the broader context of the subtitling market and AVT industry. Topics include the size of the language industry and AVT industry, the requirements placed on professional subtitlers for major media platforms, subtitling process and project management, professional conventions for good subtitling practice, employment in subtitling, rates, professional associations, technological developments in AVT and subtitling, amongst others.

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• By the end of this module, students should be able to:
• understand the key concepts of AVT and its development as a discipline and an industry
• acquire a professional knowledge of the theories and practice of subtitling
• be aware of the conventions and norms involved in the production of subtitles, and gain an insight into what constitute good subtitling practice in a professional setting
• recognize the constraints and challenges of subtitling and develop various advanced translation strategies related to subtitling
• obtain a critical understanding of the way in which subtitling draws on and contributes to other disciplines such as linguistics, semiotics, cultural studies, and media studies.
• achieve a comprehensive understanding of the subtitling process and of relevant project management
• foster a better understanding of the requirements placed on professional subtitle translators in the AVT industry and the recruitment process
• have a good knowledge of the Internet resources for audiovisual translators
• acquire a working knowledge of software-based and Cloud-based subtitling tools, and other cutting-edge technologies used in AVT industry

Subject-specific Skills:

• By the end of this module, students should be able to:
• prepare professionally for a subtitling assignment
• use a Cloud-based subtitling platform (e.g. OOONA) to carry out subtitling assignments
• apply accurate spotting/time-cueing, identify individual frames, and handle shot changes/cuts
• analyse a range of audiovisual material (e.g., films, TV shows, documentaries etc.) for subtitling purposes
• condense and reformulate text in a way that respects the spatial and temporal constraints of subtitling
• contextualise the practical work in a suitable theoretical framework, select appropriate techniques and strategies to produce accurate, relevant, and reader-friendly subtitles, and justify the choice of solutions using relevant theoretical models
• use the technical and linguistic skills required for producing a subtitled version of an audiovisual program to tackle certain translation challenges, such as dialects, cultural references, and verbal humour
• adhere to conventions and norms of subtitling and the professional conventions of good subtitling practice
• complete the subtitling assignments under strict time requirements
• critically analyse, evaluate, and revise their own subtitling outcomes and their peers work
• make use of Internet resources to support the work of completing subtitling assignments and project management
• carry out research in relation to subtitling

Key Skills:

• By the end of this module, students are expected to:
• develop advanced ICT skills
• acquire project management skills and time management skills
• enhance their analytical and teamwork skills

• The module consists of 20 contact hours taught at the rate of two hours per week for a 10-week term. The language direction is from English into Chinese.
• The module is taught as a combination of lectures and seminars. In week 1, students will be introduced to the key concepts of AVT and subtitling (lecture). From week 2 onwards, each lesson consists of a 1-hour lecture and a 1-hour seminar. Each week students will be given subtitling coursework to prepare for the following week. This will usually consist of spotting and translating a selected recording of 5-10 minutes. Students are required to complete the task and return it to the tutor in 24 hours.
• Lectures are designed to provide students with a solid theoretical grounding in subtitling to inform their practice. Seminars are focused on discussion of students coursework, enhancing their problem-solving skills at technical, linguistic, cultural, and pragmatic levels. Students will be guided to analyse different audiovisual materials, discuss translation techniques and strategies, and evaluate their own and their peers work. Timely feedback will be given in oral form.
• The summative assessment has two components: a piece of subtitle translation and a reflective commentary (1500 words max), each carrying 50% of the final mark. Students will be required to spot and translate a clip of 5-10 minutes from English into Chinese within 24 hours, using the specified software. The pass mark is 50%.
• This module is capped at 24 places.

Weekly subtitling assignment Student-led group discussions In-class presentations Individual oral feedback on subtitling assignments and all in-class activities

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