| All Neil Nadleman wanted to do was to learn what the characters were
saying in the Japanese cartoons he watched. So he took two years of formal
instruction in Japanese and "...learned the rest on my own." Now, Nadleman
is one of the busiest freelance anime translators in North America, handling
many jobs for Zro Limit Productions, Bandai and The Right Stuf. The rise
in translated anime has generated so much for Nadelman that his full-time
job is anime translating. The idea of a translator specializing in anime
series is something you'll find mostly in North America, he said. He strives
for accuracy, and says that if a translation seems trite and trivial, it's
because the original was written that way, |
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| The translation business has changed with the emphasis on DVD's and
the predominance of dubbed anime. :Once upon a time, I cared only about
the subtitled version," Nadleman. "I figured the dub would be screwed up.
That changed, once I realized that the dubs were outselling the subs....the
dub is just as important as the subtitled version. I give the producer
of the dub as much information as possible." Subtitles have to be designed
with the reading speed of the average buyer and the video format in mind,
he noted. While the DVD format allows extras, multiple subtitles and audio
tracks, there are limits to DVD's video resolution that lead to larger
subtitle fonts than would be used in videotape releases. |
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| Nadelman's translation job also is changing with product release patterns.
Where he once had to until after a project was completed before he began
the translation, often he now starts his work while a film is being made.
That's because of the other major change Nadelman notes, the move toward
simultaneous releases of anime in Japan and the U.S., to take advantage
of the U.S. market and fans' desire for the newest titles. "We're now reaching
the point that the English dub is being produced at the same time the anime
is made," he said. "What you buy in the U.S. is going to be the same that
will be released in Japan." |
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