Forum: Subtitling
Topic: Subtitling rate
Poster: José Henrique Lamensdorf
Post title: I always wonder why
[quote]Woodstock wrote:
Hi, questions about subtitling rates and programs come up at least once a week, so there are lots of threads on the topic that should give you all the information you need. [/quote]
It's all right if people are curious about subtitling. I explain what it is, mostly for clients, on [url= [url removed] ]this page[/url].
Yet the frequent askers here don't seem at all interested in whether it requires any specific skills or training. AFAIK no subtitling software does Trados-like advertising to the tune of "if you are bilingual, after you buy our software, you'll be translating like a pro and making a bundle in no time".
So where does that come from?
They want to know which software they should buy to start immediately making a three-digit figure per hour on subtitling, just by owning it.
Quite frankly, I began translating video for dubbing in 1987, and I didn't touch translation for subtitling work until 2004. No, neither one is more 'difficult' than the other; yet each requires a somewhat different skills set.
For the record, it takes both training and practice. A colleague recently referred a subtitling job to me. Her words were that yes, she had taken a (good) subtitling course, however she felt too old to acquire practice now. From the record, she is only some 5 years senior to me, however I see her point: it may be too late to [i]start[/i] getting practice with video work, especially on a complex job like the one she had.
So it puzzles me why people come here mostly to ask which software they should buy, and how much they should charge for using it, sort of equating what they call 'subtitling software' to a lawnmower.
[b]Caveat:[/b] Nothing personal with this asker. This is all about the recurring question on subtitling software/rates on this forum, without any regard to whether doing the job itself requires learning any specific skills.
Topic: Subtitling rate
Poster: José Henrique Lamensdorf
Post title: I always wonder why
[quote]Woodstock wrote:
Hi, questions about subtitling rates and programs come up at least once a week, so there are lots of threads on the topic that should give you all the information you need. [/quote]
It's all right if people are curious about subtitling. I explain what it is, mostly for clients, on [url= [url removed] ]this page[/url].
Yet the frequent askers here don't seem at all interested in whether it requires any specific skills or training. AFAIK no subtitling software does Trados-like advertising to the tune of "if you are bilingual, after you buy our software, you'll be translating like a pro and making a bundle in no time".
So where does that come from?
They want to know which software they should buy to start immediately making a three-digit figure per hour on subtitling, just by owning it.
Quite frankly, I began translating video for dubbing in 1987, and I didn't touch translation for subtitling work until 2004. No, neither one is more 'difficult' than the other; yet each requires a somewhat different skills set.
For the record, it takes both training and practice. A colleague recently referred a subtitling job to me. Her words were that yes, she had taken a (good) subtitling course, however she felt too old to acquire practice now. From the record, she is only some 5 years senior to me, however I see her point: it may be too late to [i]start[/i] getting practice with video work, especially on a complex job like the one she had.
So it puzzles me why people come here mostly to ask which software they should buy, and how much they should charge for using it, sort of equating what they call 'subtitling software' to a lawnmower.
[b]Caveat:[/b] Nothing personal with this asker. This is all about the recurring question on subtitling software/rates on this forum, without any regard to whether doing the job itself requires learning any specific skills.