The translation convention is a
storytelling
Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pre ...
device in which the spoken
language of a
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
or
television program is changed for easier consumption and broader distribution. Commonly, that language is English, but the translation convention can be used for any media property produced in a
major world language that its producers would like to
distribute to foreign countries.
Overview
In many stories, the setting dictates what language characters ''would'' speak. For example, if a story takes place in Columbia, the Columbians would speak to non-Colombian characters in Spanish, the
native language in Columbia. When talking to each other, the Columbians might speak English instead. Often, this would be because it is made by a
production company based in an English-speaking country, like the United States or the United Kingdom. Sometimes, some or all of the characters speak with an
accent Accent may refer to:
Speech and language
* Accent (sociolinguistics), way of pronunciation particular to a speaker or group of speakers
* Accent (phonetics), prominence given to a particular syllable in a word, or a word in a phrase
** Pitch ac ...
that reflects the actual language spoken in the fictional or historical story setting.
The translation convention has a few variants, and the translation choices the filmmakers employ has implications for the broader story for
point of view
Point of view or Points of View may refer to:
Concept and technique
* Point of view (philosophy), an attitude how one sees or thinks of something
* Point of view (literature) or narrative mode, the perspective of the narrative voice; the pronou ...
, and whether the audience has
first person First person or first-person may refer to:
* First person (ethnic), indigenous peoples, usually used in the plural
* First person, a grammatical person
* First person, a gender-neutral, marital-neutral term for titles such as first lady and first ...
,
omniscient or limited information about the characters' thoughts, feelings and intentions. (See
list of narrative techniques.) This concept has been used since the beginning of
narrative sound film. It uses, among other things, a degree of
suspension of disbelief
Suspension of disbelief, sometimes called willing suspension of disbelief, is the avoidance of critical thinking or logic in examining something unreal or impossible in reality, such as a work of speculative fiction, in order to believe it for ...
.
Exceptions
A large proportion of films and television shows set outside the English-speaking world use the translation convention, especially those produced in the US and the UK. There are a few notable American-produced exceptions which have high-native-language fidelity or realism— that is they use large portions or 100% non-English— and all were large commercial successes. Among them are: ''
The Passion of the Christ'' (which uses
Aramaic, reconstructed
ancient Hebrew Ancient Hebrew (ISO 639-3 code ) is a blanket term for pre-modern varieties of the Hebrew language:
* Paleo-Hebrew (such as the Siloam inscription), a variant of the Phoenician alphabet
* Biblical Hebrew (including the use of Tiberian vocalization ...
, and
Latin), ''
Apocalypto
''Apocalypto'' () is a 2006 action adventure film produced, co-written, and directed by Mel Gibson. The film features a cast of Native American and Indigenous Mexican actors consisting of Rudy Youngblood, Raoul Trujillo, Mayra Sérbulo, Dalia H ...
'' (which uses
Yucatec Maya), and ''
Inglorious Basterds
Inglorious are an England-based hard rock band formed in February 2014 in London by Nathan James. Their success has been particularly assisted by UK digital radio station Planet Rock and UK grassroots movement NWOCR. They released the album '' ...
'' (which uses
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
and
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
). Despite being produced for a global audience or English-speaking audience, the filmmakers have committed to use the correct language or languages for the story's setting.
See also
*
Dramatic convention
Dramatic conventions are the specific actions and techniques the actor, writer or director has employed to create a desired dramatic effect/style.
A ''dramatic convention'' is a set of rules which both the audience and actors are familiar with a ...
*
Practice of dubbing foreign films
*
Language localization
*
Narration
References
Narrative techniques
Cinematic techniques
Convention
Convention may refer to:
* Convention (norm), a custom or tradition, a standard of presentation or conduct
** Treaty, an agreement in international law
* Convention (meeting), meeting of a (usually large) group of individuals and/or companies in a ...
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