Fan dubbing for free part 3 scripting

Now we come to the final and most fan dub specific part. Scripting.

A lot of people when they start out simply send out raw translated scripts and ask their cast to record the lines. But the trouble is with this is the lines are a literal translation of the original dialogue so they probably won't fit, they will also sometimes be phrased awkwardly. You'll also have to decide if you wish to use Japanese terminology or not in your script.

Formatting

This site features a professional style ADR script you'll note the exact time of the lines are noted down, so that lines can be easily timed and mixed. Very few fan dubbers use this method, instead the emphasis is on line organisation. I recommend that as part of the script you give the lines numbers, this means the voice actor can keep track of the lines and should you need any retakes you can quickly indicate to the voice actor what you need re-doing. For example here's a sample script.

Haruko_1: Hi everyone!

Rumi_2: How are you?

Haruko_3: I'm fine.

The voice actress for Haruko would record the line “ Hi everyone!” and save it as haruko_1.mp3 or whatever format you are using. I recommend the numbering is for everyone and not per character so it's easier to locate lines in the script.

Scripting

The most basic thing you have to do is write the lines so that they match the lip flaps ( mouth movements). I recommend loading the video file up in something like Virtual dub so you can keep winding back. I then play each line and say it out load to the video as if I am dubbing it myself. If a line goes too long, or is phrased unnaturally I rewrite it so that it fits.

As an anime script writer to you have to make decisions, you are adapting a clip from one language to another; it's a sad fact that something will probably be lost in translation but it's up to you to decide what is lost and what is retained. If a character is childish it may be they speak in a certain way in Japanese to reflect that, when writing your script bear that trait in mind and if possible choose childish words to help bring over that trait, whatever you do be consistent.

Another decision to make is whether to use Japanese phrases and honourifics. For professionals this is a loaded decision, they have to bear in mind target audience, marketability and all sorts when writing. As a fan you are probably doing this for fun, and sharing your dubs with other fans so the decision is up to you. If you're dubbing a short clip it might be easier to keep in honorific such as -san, -chan whatever to reflect character relationships quickly.

The same goes for attacks, if you're dubbing a clip it won't matter what an attack name means and scripting will go quicker if you leave things as they are. But if you're dubbing a longer segment, you have to be careful because it could be central to the plot that the viewer knows what an attack does . Whilst a Japanese viewer would instantly know what an attack referred to in a conversation did by the name, an English viewer with no Japanese knowledge might get lost.

There's no shortcut to this stage, keep going over your script saying it out load and making adjustments. The better the script is the less your actors have to worry about lip sync and the more they can focus on acting. Do be flexible however, we all say things differently and you should allow actors some room for improvisation.

The trickiest word when it comes to dubbing for me is “hai”, most fans recognise it as being Japanese for yes. But if you watch a typical anime you'll see it used as a generic positive response e.g

Hero: Let's go!

Girl: Yes!

Whilst it's not totally weird Girl is saying Yes! Here it's not that natural either. I typically use the same words in place of hai.

'kay/ O.K : often there's not time to say Okay since the mouth will only open once. So for more childish characters I'll use 'kay.

Right!: I use this in place of longer uses of hai! It's still a positive response but can be used in response to an order.

Direction

Since the actor has the Japanese for reference I tend not to give too much direction unless I am shifting the emphasis in the sentence. The most important directions are attack and yelling sounds, and pauses. It's important to write attack yells, laughter etc in the script so they all get recorded and the actor can keep their place in the script. You might also want to put the time they appear in the video so the voice actor can keep track.e.g

Villain_1: I will kill you Hero! ( Laughter)

Hero_2: Really ( Pause) I'd like to see that!

Villain_3: ( Screams an attack yell)

Hero_4: ( 1:32) ( Screams in pain as attack hits)

Hero_5: ( 1:36) ( yells as he jumps)

In this scene there's a few things to note the Villain said his line then laughed. This indicates you want that segment record together. If there's a big pause you could always mark it as a separate line. It was also clear when the villain screamed out to attack the hero. The difficult part came because the Hero is at first hit at 1:32 into the vid, a few seconds later he jumps up. I indicated these separate so the actor is clear in his mind that these are two very different sounds.

Mixing vocals is must like sound effects, so head back to part 2 for advice on mixing in sounds. I would give each character their own track so it's easier to keep track. Keep playing the completed mix over and over, adjusting volumes so that the voices can be hard clearly over the sounds and music.