Multimedia translation 101: Step-by-step guidance

A multimedia is a communication form that comprises multiple content formats such as texts, video, audio, images, etc. For instance, podcasts and movies are two multimedia examples. In the 21st century, multimedia dominated our world from mainstream media (news, broadcasts, etc). Multimedia is amongst the most effective tools to reach and gain interests from audiences. However, producing multimedia is costly and therefore, you have to make sure that it can reach the highest number of audience. The solution for that is trying to translate your content to as many languages as possible to reach audiences from other countries. This article will guide you on how to translate your multimedia to other languages.

Step-by-step guidance

Step 1: Multimedia transcription

Multimedia transcription is the first step involved in translating multimedia formats such as audio, video, movie, or mixed media. First of all, all source materials are compiled to prepare for the upcoming step. A script form is created from transcribing the spoken text along with on-screen captions or text. This step is the foundation step for the whole process and requires strong attention to detail. Any mistakes at this step will lead to a series of mistakes in the whole process. Although there are available technologies, at the moment, most of this step is done manually.

Step 2: Begin with multimedia localisation in mind

Similar to localising other contents, multimedia localisation refers to the translation of content concerning cultural and linguistic attributes. Localising multimedia content is even harder because it is not just only visual elements and textual elements, but also sound elements. The aim is to make both audio and video content distinctive to the target audience. The final product should be seamless as it has never been through a translation process so that it can be consumed by the target audience as an original product.

Step 3: Video translation

The complexity of the video translation process requires a specialist team of linguistic, audio, and video experts to localise the video footage into a video for target audiences. It involves two sub-steps:

1. Timestamp: after the localisation process is finished and the source materials are compiled, video editors start to timestamp. The timestamp step ensures the voice-overs, subtitles, and captions are synchronised
2. Video editing: the localised files are integrated into visual content. You can choose to have separate videos for each target market or can have one combined video with options for choosing a language as in Youtube function.

We can help you to reach your target market

As a localising and subtitling agency, elionetwork has more than 20 years of experience in multimedia translation and multimedia localisation. With our cultural and linguistic insights and understandings, we have a team of localisation and multimedia editing experts to provide advanced subtitling services and localising services for your multimedia content. Whether it is video or broadcast, we make sure your content is well communicated and understood by different target audiences. Contact us today so we can help you to attract new audiences and grow your business.