Proceedings - Translation Concepts

MuTra 2005 – Challenges of Multidimensional Translation: Conference Proceedings
Jorge Díaz Cintas
Yellow is the main color for the translation of dialog. It is the only color used when the
subtitle, be it a one-liner or a two-liner, renders the translation of one actor’s speech (Fig. 5).
When the subtitle incorporates two speakers (Figures 6 and 7), the first line is always in
yellow, whereas the character in the second line appears in some films in green (Fig. 6) and in
some other films in cyan or blue (Fig. 7). Green is also used in some movies to indicate that
the voices that we hear are off-screen and to translate the content of songs, instances that
normally call for italics. The unorthodox convention of accommodating three speakers in the
very same subtitle is also implemented in these films, and to identify them yellow, green and
red are assigned to the first, second and third actors respectively, as seen in Fig. 8.
The other color that is regularly used is white. Fig. 9 below shows us one of its multiple
usages, which is to translate the opening and closing credits of a film.
Fig. 9:
Baby Cart in the Land of Demons
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