by Michael Bastin | 11 Jul, 2019 | E-learning, Education, International Development, Training
Just like literature, cinema is a great way to set off on a journey of discovery into other cultures, languages and ways of life. This interest in capturing other perspectives through the camera lens has produced many classic and modern films dealing with the subject of translation, either as a subject in itself or as a backdrop for some of the biggest stars in Hollywood.
Check out our top ten!
Arrival (Denis Villeneuve, 2016)
An outstanding work of science fiction by the director of Blade Runner 2049 Denis Villeneuve, starring the hugely talented Amy Adams as a translator given the task of communicating with some rather chatty aliens. The film delves into the process of translating an unfamiliar language and the potential effects of not sharing a language.
Can she save the world with her translations?
Charade (Stanley Donen, 1963)
In what will always be one of Stanley Donen’s best films, Audrey Hepburn plays the role of a conference interpreter who sets off on a riveting adventure alongside Cary Grant, in arguably one of the sexiest couples of the last 100 years (we are, of course, open to differences in opinion)!
We wonder how many interpreting and translation careers were launched by this film?
Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2005)
Of course, we can’t talk about translation in film without mentioning this cult classic. Directed by the fantastic Sofia Coppola, the film takes place in Japan, where two Americans on holiday – Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson – discover the delights of cultural misunderstandings and the difficulties of finding yourself far away from home, even when just for a few days.
We particularly enjoy the scene with a Japanese translator and a very confused Bill Murray!
The Terminal (Steven Spielberg, 2004)
What’s the first thing you might need when detained in an airport? A good translator, of course (just ask Tom Hanks)! This film by Steven Spielberg tells the true story of Mehran Karimi Nasseri, an Iranian political refugee who had to live in an airport from 1988 to 2006.
The Interpreter (Sydney Pollack, 2005)
In this political thriller, Nicole Kidman plays the role of a conference interpreter who accidentally overhears a conversation between two politicians which could put her life in danger.
This film is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat with its action-filled plot, and hearing the incredible Nicole Kidman speaking French at the start of the film is a charming moment. This film is guaranteed to please all Kidman and translation fans!
Spanglish (James Brooks, 2005)
This down to earth comedy is a real must-see. The title says it all: the film deals with the meeting of two cultures – American and Spanish – and all the cultural and linguistic misunderstandings that come with it. Everything would have been much simpler with a professional Spanish translator! Claro, hombre.
Okja (Bong Joon-ho, 2017)
Not necessarily a film about translation, but a very interesting exploration of friendship and modern industry by Netflix. In this case, it is the translation of the film itself which is interesting.
As we saw with the recent film, Roma, the film’s subtitles were the subject of much debate.
Dealing with the linguistic differences between English and Korean is no mean feat, and at times things can get lost in translation in the subtitles. For example, in an attempt to translate a Korean joke about language learning, a character simply says their name and the subtitles say “Try learning English. It opens new doors!”
An Impossible Love (Catherine Corsini, 2018)
Once described by a member of BeTranslated who will remain anonymous as “to be avoided like the plague” we’ve included this film to hear your reviews! This romance by Catherine Corsini, based on the novel by Christine Angot, tells the emotional tale of the wonderful Virgine Efira and an abusive and sadistic translator played by Niels Schneider. Don’t worry, our language professionals are nothing like this unsavoury character and will respond to your demands in a much more civilised manner.
Welcome to the Sticks (Bienvenue chez les ch’tis, Danny Boon, 2008)
Perhaps not the subtlest film of all time, but certainly one with a lot of character. This hit French comedy includes some hilarious scenes of cultural and regional differences and lots of slapstick humour. Not to mention the admirable subtitling effort into English!
Chuck Norris vs Communism (Ilinca Călugăreanu, 2015)
This comedy documentary is a fascinating insight into the world of audiovisual translation and looks at just what happens when issues of censorship and politics come into play.
The film tells the story of the illegal importation and dubbing of American action and religious films to Romania in the 1970s and 1980s, and the political consequences of this cultural exchange.
What do you think? Is there one we missed out? We would love to hear about your favourite translation and interpreting films!
Or, alternatively, if you’re looking for the Nicole Kidmans and Amy Adams of translation services, contact us for a free quote or to find out more about our services!
by Michael Bastin | 5 Jun, 2019 | Property Translation, Translation, Travel and Tourism
Property documentation translation is too important to be left to amateurs or to automatic machine translation engines such as Google Translate.
Even the smallest mistake could have disastrous consequences on your estate agency or holiday letting agent, causing a significant drop in your ROI. Find out just how to save your company from falling into this common trap…
The importance of working with professional translators
Your agency has everything it needs to succeed: an attractive website, beautiful photos of your properties, outstanding customer service, and your purchase or rental advertising is bringing in client after client.
Nevertheless, make sure you don’t lose your way when it comes to the translation of property documentation from English into any language your client may require.
Our professional translation agency specialises in the translation of property contracts and knows all the ins and outs of these documents, always making sure to maintain total accuracy.
These documents are the key point of contact between a future buyer or tenant and can make or break a deal.
We understand the importance of a well-translated contract, and we are always sure to provide our customers with a polished final translation.
Hire qualified, native translators
Our team of certified linguists have years of experience in the tourism and property sector and are therefore well-equipped to provide you with a contract in the language of your choice, respecting all the clauses of the original.
Do have a Russian buyer interested in a seaside villa or apartment? No problem!
BeTranslated’s translators based in Moscow and Saint-Petersburg will be assigned the task of translating the contract of sale into Russian.
The same applies to Chinese, Korean, Czech, or Arabic clients: we are happy to translate into any language commonly used in the property sector.
How to stand out in a booming sector
Our online translation agency also provides copywriting and SEO services for your property and tourism blogs in a large variety of languages – the perfect option to attract potential buyers from all around the world.
This customer outreach and marketing will help you stay a cut above the rest.
Our team of certified linguists can give you a helping hand to create quality content to turn even the biggest homebodies into potential international buyers or renters of property in the UK, USA, Spain, or elsewhere!
BeTranslated: your number one agency for property documentation translation
Our translation agency holds a sterling reputation in the property and tourist accommodation sectors and, in addition to legal documents such as contracts, we have an excellent track record providing content for blogs and rental sites all over the world.
This is thanks to the passion and work ethic of our team of language professionals who specialise in the field of property sale and rental in the UK and abroad.
We work with all file formats (even PDF) and on all online platforms such as WordPress or Drupal. Need a translation of a blog piece urgently from English into Spanish? No problem!
Our linguists are ready for anything, true pioneers of the online translation world.
Does your property rental or holiday villa estate agency need a boost to reach new international markets?
A well-executed localisation project might be just the ticket! Get in touch today for a quick, free, no-commitment quote!
by Michael Bastin | 17 Jan, 2018 | Human translation, Professional Translation, Translation App
When it comes to translation, if you want a job done properly, there’s only one way to do it: professional human translation.
In our globalised world, investing in high-quality translation is one of the best decisions you can make for your business and its international growth.
Contracting a professional translation service, as opposed to using a translation app to do it yourself, is key to building stronger relationships with current overseas clients and branching out to make new ones. And here’s why…
The benefits of contracting a professional translation service
When your company needs to have business documents translated, is searching for a marketing translator, or requires any other type of translation services performed to a professional standard, a translation app just isn’t going to cut it.
In fact, using a translation app has been known to cause many misunderstandings, even when trying to communicate with friends from overseas, let alone in a work environment.
While translation apps and machine translation tools can offer convenience, they tend to struggle with nuance and taking context into account.
The resulting translations can be too literal and risk leaving clients with a negative impression of your company. Experienced human translators, on the other hand, allow you to connect with international clients.
This makes them an extremely valuable resource.
What a professional translation service offers
To illustrate the value of the service provided by professional translation agencies, we will give you an insight into our company, BeTranslated.
BeTranslated is an established translation agency that has managed to maintain many long-term client relationships, whilst steadily gaining new clients.
Our team comprises experienced project managers, themselves qualified translators, and a vast network of experienced translators based around the globe.
The remote nature of our teams allows us to streamline costs and to pass those savings on to our clients.
It also means that if we are working on a large project with a tight deadline, we can use timezones to our advantage and have linguists working around the clock.
Our translators, who are all highly experienced, only translate into their native language.
As well as being experts in certain languages and regional dialects (we have different translators for European and Canadian French, for example) they are also specialised in other fields. Meaning that your IT content will be translated by a linguist specialised in tech.
This system leads to sensitively rendered, accurate translations.
BeTranslated’s specialised services
As BeTranslated is lucky enough to work with a substantial network of translation experts, we specialise in a wide range of subject areas.
These areas include but are not limited to the following:
We translate all types of commercial documents and contracts, marketing material, website content, and social media, plus much more.
The service that you will receive
We provide our clients what translation apps cannot:
- personalised service
- a native speaker, from a worldwide team of specialists
- experts with knowledge for your specific business sector
- precision and accuracy
- competitive rates
- high-quality material
Languages BeTranslated covers
Due to the international nature of our agency, we provide translations in most languages, however European and Asian languages are the most common, and we specialise in the following language combinations:
French <- -> English
Spanish <- -> English
German <- -> English
If you are considering working with BeTranslated on a translation project in any language combination, get in touch to see what we can do for you.
How we save you time and money
We deliver ready-to-use content that has been translated and proofread by a team of professionals.
We always meet deadlines, and you can be sure that there won’t be any app-translated errors such as ‘driving down arteries’ instead of ‘driving along main roads’, or ‘flirtatious farms’ instead of ‘attractive properties’. Your business’s reputation is safe with our professional service. We’ve got you covered.
For more information or a free, no-obligation quote, get in touch today. You won’t be disappointed.
by Michael Bastin | 8 May, 2017 | Translation agency, Translation companies, Translation services
Do you need a document translating but don’t know how you go about it? There are many solutions. Here is a brief guide to the different types of translation service providers, that could help you choose who to entrust your business content to.
Freelance translators
Many translators decide to set themselves up in business as freelancers. These professionals try to carve out a place in the translation market on their own. In this category, you might come across three scenarios:
A freelance translator who will take on your project directly
This professional works alone. You can contact them directly, sending your documents and providing instructions about the translation.
Note that freelance translators often also work for translation agencies.
A freelance translator who subcontracts to other colleagues
Some freelance translators, overwhelmed with work, choose to subcontract to trusted colleagues in exchange for a small commission.
They will act as an intermediary, usually proofreading their colleague’s work before sending you the final version.
A freelance project manager
Unlike a translator subcontracting to a colleague, a freelance project manager no longer translates. They act solely as intermediaries. Their address books are long lists of professional translators who specialise in a variety of fields and work in different language combinations.
Translation agencies
A translation agency is a company that can take charge of your project from A to Z. Translation companies differ in terms of size and mode of operation:
Small agencies
In this category, two or three people work together to create a small translation agency. They are often former colleagues or collaborators specialising in a particular field who choose to set up their own business.
Translators’ networks
This concept is the basis on which BeTranslated was created: several professional translators pool their knowledge and experience to create a network based on trust and quality.
This is a different way of managing a small agency. Generally, the members of this type of network still produce their own translations. They always proofread all the translations that pass through their hands.
Medium-sized agencies
This type of agency might have five to twenty employees, who will include project managers and specialists in desktop publishing, web formats, and localisation.
They work in the same office, know each other personally and meet every day. Everyone has a specific role and represents a key element of the translation process.
Medium-sized agencies are usually created by professional translators who know their way around the industry and entrust projects to fully qualified independent translators.
Large agencies
Here, at least a hundred employees work together at several offices spread around the world. The scenario here is quite different, and the larger agencies may not even be created or managed by professional translators or people with experience in the industry.
The “business” side tends to take priority over the human aspect and professional fulfilment.
Mega-agencies
Unlike small agencies, these huge corporations, such as SDL or Lionbridge, are real translation factories. Located in many countries, they manage hundreds of projects every day and divide tasks between their large numbers of employees.
They have huge networks of translators working in every conceivable language combination and specialising in particular fields. This enables them to manage many different projects, regardless of the subject.
Translation service providers – it’s up to you!
From freelance translators to mega-agencies, you’re spoilt for choice when it comes to translation service providers! The final decision to entrust your documents to one over another is up to you, depending on your needs and expectations.
Every provider has a different approach, so think about the type of service you want when making your choice.
Have you ever used the services of one of these types of providers? Were you happy with the service? Share your experience with us!
And if you’re looking for a reliable translation agency with experienced native translators, get in touch with BeTranslated today for a free, no-obligation quote.
by Michael Bastin | 8 May, 2017 | Education, Students
What training courses are there in Belgium for future translators? As you can imagine, this is not a profession that can be blagged – it requires solid foundations.
In Belgium, translation schools are flourishing all over the country, training hundreds of professional translators every year.
In recent years, translation training in Belgium has become an academic subject taught in universities over five years (a bachelor’s degree in three years and a master’s in two).
This is due to the Marcourt decree, which stipulates that all master’s courses in translation and interpreting should be university degrees.
We have drawn up a list of the main Belgian universities teaching translation.
Translation schools in Brussels
Institut Libre Marie Haps – Faculty of Translation and Interpreting
The Institut Libre Marie Haps trains its future translators and interpreters in the heart of the European quarter. This institution’s reputation for excellence makes it a great choice for students wanting to enter the profession.
The bachelor’s degree in translation and interpreting has recently been taken over by the Université Saint-Louis, though teaching still takes place at the Marie Haps building.
The master’s, meanwhile, is offered at the Louvain-la-Neuve site at the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL).
ISTI, part of the ULB (Université libre de Bruxelles) since 2015, offers a complete translation and interpreting curriculum in no fewer than 19 languages. As well as European languages, students can choose more exotic tongues such as Chinese, Arabic, Hebrew, and Persian.
Vertaalkunde – Erasmushogeschool Brussel (EhB)
This Flemish university, affiliated with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), also offers a course for Dutch-speaking students wanting to specialise in translation.
Translation schools in Flanders
Students can also opt for this prestigious university. The reputation of the University of Ghent is well-established, and it is considered the best university in Belgium by the Shanghai Ranking.
The Katholieke Universiteit Leuven is another pillar of the Belgian university system. This Dutch-speaking Belgian university is one of the biggest in the country.
Translation schools in Wallonia
The Université de Liège offers a course awarded jointly with the Haute École de Liège. During the bachelor’s course in the first three years, students take classes at both institutions (ULg and HEL), before focusing on either translation or interpreting during their master’s at ULg in the Place du XX Août.
The Mons EII enjoys an excellent reputation in the worlds of translation and interpreting. Students graduating from this school have a solid qualification with which to launch into their working lives.
An unusual feature of this university is that students are offered an introduction to a third foreign language, including Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Hungarian, Swedish, or Norwegian.
The Université catholique de Louvain should not be confused with the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. The two institutions are entirely separate. Unlike KUL (listed above), UCL is in Wallonia and offers teaching in French. UCL has organised two new master’s courses in translation and interpreting since 2015. The bachelor’s takes place in Brussels at the Marie Haps building (ULB).
Since the start of the 2017-2018 course, the master’s also began to cover Belgian French sign language.
As you can see, would-be translators and interpreters have no shortage of choice.
Belgium has evolved in parallel with the translation market, encouraging more and more young language enthusiasts to pursue this career. Every year, many professional translators graduate from these universities and set off in conquest of the translation market in Belgium and abroad.
What do you think of these universities? Do you know of any others that should be added to our list? We are interested in your opinion! You can also take a look at our full list of university translation courses worldwide.
If you’re looking for talented translators such as those who have attended these institutions, look no further than BeTranslated, an experienced translation agency with reliable linguists.
Get in touch today for more information or a free, no-obligation quote.
