Translational Semiotic Communication TSC
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screen space. Another obstacle is the duration of subtitle which depends on the quantity and complexity of the text, the speed of dialogues, the average reading
speed of the viewer, and the sufficient intervals between subtitles. Meanwhile, Hatim and Mason 2000: 430-431 propose four main
constraints of subtitling that make difficulties for the translator. They are as follows.
1 The shift of mode from speech to writing.
This has the result that certain features of speech non-standard dialect, emphatic devices such as intonation, code-switching, style-shifting and turn-
taking will not automatically be represented in the written form of the target text.
2 Factors which govern the medium or channel in which meaning is to be
conveyed. There are physical constraint of available space and the space of the sound-
track dialogue. Generally, the space is up to 33 or, in some cases, 40 keyboard characters per line and no more than two lines on the screen. The
appearance may remain on the screen for a minimum of two and maximum of seven seconds.
3 The reduction of the source text as a consequence of the constraints above.
The translator must reassess coherence strategies in order to maximize the irretrievability of intended meaning for a more concise target language
version. 4
The requirement of matching the visual image.
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As the acoustic and visual images are inseparable in a movie, coherence is required between the subtitled text and the moving image itself. Therefore,
matching the subtitle to what is actually visible on the screen may, at times, create an additional constraint.
Making a translation of motion picture is simply to translate meaningfully and idiomatically the speaking-script with some general consideration to overall
corresponding length Nida, 1968: 178. Afterward, the result is carefully edited by checking it toward the movie as it is being shown. At last, the subtitling text is
written out on the screen which is synchronized with the picture. Based on his experience in subtitling from English into Japanese,
Matsumoto 2003: 101 proposes the process of subtitling into two stages i.e. to translate the materials and to make subtitle from it. The first stage is to translate
materials from the source language into the target language. In this stage, there are three steps proposed by Matsumoto. First, the sentences of the source language
are translated literally. Second, the result of the first step is rewritten by considering the cultural differences in order to make sense in the target language.
Lastly, the result of the second step is revised in order to make the sound of the translated sentences better and more effective.
The second stage is to make subtitle from the translated materials. There are nine steps proposed by Matsumoto in this stage. First, the duration in which
the subtitle will be applied is measured. Second, the number of pages that can be fitted in the duration is calculated. Third, the edited images and the numbers of
shots which are used are checked. Fourth, the translated sentences are divided into
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a number of pages in order to see the possibility that all can be fit. Fifth, the number of letters and lines are adjusted according to the basic rules by trimming
the sentences and choosing the most suitable words. Sixth, the translated sentences are typed up using a special system program in computer and added
them to the edited sequences. Seventh, the meaning in the original language is checked to know if it is not lost in order to revise the subtitle sentences. Eighth, by
considering the differences in languages and expressions in different culture, history, and customs between the source language and the target language, the
subtitle sentences are matched to the suitable and comprehensible target language text. The last, the subtitling text needs a final checking to make all sentences of
the subtitling text even better and fixed to be placed in screen.