I have been working as a freelance movie/series translator since I was 19. My passion starts from my obsession with the movie since I was young. I and my brother we always rented VDOs every day especially in summer. At that time we watched them dubbed, but 10 years later we watched it subtitles and I started to automatically translate the dialogues in my head to be my native language.
One day my godmother’s son who worked in a production house asked me if I wanted to translate the documentaries about animals and nature from NatGeo. That was the first time I knew David Attenborough, one of the most famous naturalists and broadcasters.
After being experienced with how to count words to match the dubbing formats, I started to apply for other production house and TV cable providers.
List of the movies/series I translated
(images are from Amazon)
Supernatural – you all know this one anyway
V - hot aliens with cute hot boy and an overprotective mom
The Middle - the funniest family series I love the most so far. Sadly they are finishing season 8 and not gonna make the new season because I think all characters are too old.
Rizzoli and Isles - I am not a big fan of CSI but this series is okish. The detective is hot though
Tru Calling – a girl who can go back to change the past for one day
Californication – sexy, hot series with Duchoveny
Numbers – I sucks at maths so I find it really difficult to translate this
Havenhurst – The story about an apartment for people who have life problems and need rehabilitation but yes something creepy happened. You can find it on Netflix.
The A-Team
Centurion – If you love Troy or 300, you should not miss this one with Fassbender
Also documentaries about dogs, crime and investigations
Pros:
- a chance to see the movies and series before anyone else
- a chance to learn new words and idioms
- new knowledge especially when you translate the documentaries
Cons:
- time consumption
- stress from counting words to synchronize the time slot
- lack of sleep because you need to translate 90-minute movie in every dialogue within 2 days
Now you have Netflix, if you are interested in being a movies/series translator, I recommend you to apply for it and get the test. It will take some time for you to familiarize with the platform but as long you enjoy it, it is WORTH it. However, this part time job is not suitable for everyone, especially someone who is not so patient and always procrastinate things. You have to be aware that if you cannot deliver the work within the deadline, the work will not be dubbed and it will not be able to broadcast on the TV on time and that can f-u-c-k up the big picture and your reputation. Yes, responsibility is the most important key here. Feel free to ask me any questions, about movies or about this job.