Due to an increase in dubbing as the chosen mode of translation of films and TV
series, looking at the distinct challenges dubbing poses to translators becomes
increasingly important. This case study examines how isochrony, the need for
dialog to start and end in sync with the video, influences utterance length and
thereby constrains translation choices. Deviations from isochrony as well as
changes in utterance duration were measured in the English dub of an episode of
the Japanese animation series Teasing Master Takagi-san and annotated according
to the visual isochrony cues characters displayed. Results indicated that isochrony
was not a major limiting factor in most utterances. Furthermore, a tendency of
making deviations from isochrony at the start of utterances, rather than their end, if
visual isochrony cues are present at both, was also identified.
2020.