TJ Expert (66)
Natsuko Toda
Movie Subtitling with Natsuko Toda
Interview series with Japan’s most renowned translator of foreign films and interpreter for Hollywood stars, Natsuko Toda
Interview by Miyuki Kawai
TJ: What do you think is the future of subtitling?
TODA: There are not so many subtitlers anymore, and recently people have come to prefer dubbed movies. I believe subtitling will survive, but the number of subtitled movies will decline in the future.
TJ: That’s true. But isn’t it also true that the number of minor movies or TV programs to be subtitled has been increasing?
TODA: Yes, but the payment is very low even though it requires the same amount of effort.
戸田奈津子が語る映画字幕
日本で最も著名な字幕翻訳家でありハリウッドスターの通訳も務める 戸田奈津子のインタビュー・シリース
インタビュー:川合美雪
TJ: 字幕は今後どうなっていくと思われます か?
トダ: 最近は字幕より吹替えを好む人が多く なっています。もちろん字幕は残るとは思いま すが、数は減っていくでしょうね。
TJ: 確かにそうですが、マイナーな映画やテレ ビ番組の数は増えていますね。
トダ: でも同じ手間をかけても作業の単価はと ても安いでしょう?
Passionate Journey
I HAVE a vivid memory of how excited I was the first time I was going to fly. I can’t remember my exact age or even where we were going. But that feeling of joy, amazement and thrill remains so very vivid. My body seemed to have a life of its own back then. I could hardly stand still. For days I told people of my pending flight high up in the sky. I would even point up to make sure they got the point, so that they could see the shiny little plane way up there. I planned to make one of those cool white stripes behind the plane. I just didn’t know how. I didn’t ever get round to asking my dad, mom or the pilot about that. Nor about how they shrink the plane so that it gets so small in the sky.
Then the travel day came and it seemed so loud and busy. There was no time for my endless stream of questions and bursts of joy. At the airport, tons of people rushed back and forth with big bags and suitcases. They looked like ants running with their stuff back and forth. They seemed so focused, not at all approachable. And then there were the lines, the papers to check and those small books called passports. A lady put our luggage on a black belt so it would go on a journey of its own, or so I thought. Mom said we would get it back later.
Establishing Relationships
A 30-year veteran Marriage Family and Child therapist, mother of five, and grandmother of 10, Lorraine Al-Jamie helps parents to acquire skills that enhance their ability to raise high-functioning and happy children.
Establishing Relationships
THE building of relationships depends on building common interests. This process begins at birth, and you can observe it when mothers and fathers hold their newborns and echo the sounds that their newborns make. For their parents, everything young babies do is fascinating and this makes the task easier. Whether it is just seeing them yawn for the first time, or their first sneeze, each new thing provides a new shared experience. However, as they get older they sometimes become interested in things that are meaningless to us: for instance, mom will have little interest in the toy truck her little boy is pushing around. However, at that age the mother is still captivated by the child’s enjoyment and, therefore, remains present and sometimes involved. But I think we have all experienced a situation in which we, lost in our own thoughts, have struggled to pay attention to our child while he tugs our clothes saying, “Mommy” or “Daddy.” However, if we do make the effort to engage with our children, there is much satisfaction to be had in the interaction.
Synopsis of Haitian Art
Synopsis of Art by Artists of Haitian Descent in the Diaspora - Part IV
One of Haiti’s greatest exports to the world is its beautiful art. To illustrate the four major trends of the Haitian diaspora, as outlined in previous issues of the Tokyo Journal, Haitian art experts Marcel Duret and Fred Thomas take a closer look at the works of specific artists.
Yoga & Wellness Advocate
JUDIT TOROK
A regular visitor to Tokyo, New York City-based Yoga Instructor and Interculturalist Judit Torok shares her techniques for alleviating big city stress.
Bad Excuses
Obviously, these are bad and almost humorous excuses for not joining a beginner’s Spanish class. After all, not speaking a language is precisely the right reason to start learning a foreign language. Taking an introductory class is a safe and fun way to begin a journey toward understanding other cultures as well as learning about ourselves. A determined language learner also develops qualities such as persistence, willingness to make mistakes and overcoming self-consciousness.
Moments in Construction
Moments in Construction
by H. Suzuki
TJ: What makes a good picture stand out from an average photo?
Suzuki: A good picture moves viewers. Good pictures extract the intention of objects and invoke the feelings of viewers. In other words, a dialogue between objects and viewers is enabled.
TJ: Location and weather conditions seem to be crucial aspects to a successful picture. How do you handle these unpredictable factors?
Suzuki: I can’t control them, so it can’t be helped. But I think I am lucky in terms of unpredictable factors. For four years, I had a lot of luck. For example, I took a picture of 2,000 people gathered at a morning meeting in a construction area. Although such meetings were planned to be held regularly after that, they didn’t happen again. I need to rely on luck and instinct.
TJ: 優れた写真と普通の写真を隔てるものは何 でしょうか。
スズキ: 迫ってくるものがあるかないかの違い ですね。被写体の意図を引き出し、見る人の共 感を呼ぶ。つまり被写体と見る人の対話を可能 にするのが優れた写真でしょう。
TJ: ロケ―ションや天候は写真の成否に重要な 影響を与えると思われますが、こうした予測不 可能な要因にどのように対応なさっています か?
スズキ: これはどうしようもないことです。で も、この4年間の経験を考えると、僕はツイて いたと思います。たとえば、ある工事現場で 2000 人が集まった朝礼の写真を撮りました。 その後もこの朝礼は定期的に開かれるはずでし たが、結局 2000 人もの人が集まることは二度 とありませんでした。運と直感は大事だと思い ます。
Movie Subtitling: Natsuko Toda
Interview series with Japan’s most renowned translator of foreign films and interpreter for Hollywood stars, Natsuko Toda
TJ: Do different directors have different requirements for translating the subtitles of their movies? Can you think of any unique requests you’ve had, such as maybe having to sit down with a director and going over the subtitling face-to-face?
Toda: No, they have no time and they don’t care about Japan so much. Of course, Japan is a big market, but they don’t pay attention to subtitling. For “The Color Purple,” Spielberg asked me to reflect African-American English from the South in the subtitles. However, this is impossible. If I use grammatically wrong expressions, the audience thinks it’s a subtitling mistake. Also, it makes no sense and the audience cannot understand the story. I explained this to him and he understood, but it was a rare case. I have never gone over subtitling face- to-face with a director.
Parenting with Lorraine
A 30-year veteran Marriage Family and Child therapist, mother of five, and grandmother of 10, Lorraine Al-Jamie helps parents to acquire skills that enhance their ability to raise high-functioning and happy children.
The Terrible Twos and Adolescence
Although the terrible twos and adolescence seem far apart, they have much in common. Both are times when children feel a great need for autonomy. Since parents are well aware that children still need us to guide them, we cannot just throw our hands up and give them the freedom they want even though at times we may all be tempted to do so.
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