Dubbing used to be largely associated with low-budget martial arts films you’d find in the bargain bin of your local video shop – cheesy, badly put together and usually pretty terribly translated for good measure. These films, along with poorly dubbed spaghetti Westerns and South American soaps, gave rise to the term “too dubby”, which quickly became a derogatory expression, and the practice fell out of favor in the 1990s.
But with the rise of global streaming services, dubbing (or localization as we now call it, to steer clear of those negative connotations) has been given a new lease of life. Netflix, Amazon and the rest want to captivate audiences all over the world and that’s a lot easier if you speak to them in their native language.
The 31 languages Netflix now dubs into is an increase of about 30 percent in only two years, while the streaming service says consumption of dubbed content on its platform is rising at a rate of 120 percent annually.
Although the exact figures are not available, Amazon also provides specific instructions for producers on how to label and deliver audio files in alternative languages, and strongly encourages it.
Netflix’s vice president for international originals, Kelly Luegenbiehl, said at the Berlin Film Festival in February that while most viewers say they prefer to watch shows in the original languages with subtitles, in reality, if they are given the choice they will choose to watch the dubbed versions. That is perhaps an indication that while we all like to talk about ourselves as cultured souls who watch films with subtitles, we really prefer the easy option.
That default language setting could account for some of this data – if we’re offered the show or movie in our native language automatically, why would we seek to change it? But again, the research suggests there’s more to it. Last year, Netflix streamed dubbed and subtitled versions of the French drama Marseilles to two controlled groups of viewers. The company said those who watched the dubbed version proved “far more likely” to finish the series.
It seems the all-powerful algorithms of the digital age know us better than we know ourselves, for all our protestations of loving subtitles. Globally, the German drama Dark was watched in its dubbed version by 81 percent of audiences in English-speaking countries.
Of course, in the digital world, the process has become much more high tech and far less sloppy looking, and sounding, than the whoops and yelps of those martial arts films of old, fun though they were, while previously dubbing was simply a question of getting a voice actor into a studio for an afternoon and then overlaying the new soundtrack, modern dubbing is a different beast. The plan these days is to do it so that viewers don’t even realize a show has been dubbed.
Dubbed content has become a big deal today. The contents that are dubbed have become a popular trend in the entertainment industry and more people across the world have become interested in dubbed contents. You can see plenty of foreign and other language movies, serials, comedy shows, reality shows, dance shows, etc. that are now experimenting with dubbed content programming. The main and probable reason is that people across the world are accepting dubbed content due to its popularity and importance. Obviously, dubbed content helps people to understand different cultures and get used to other beliefs, customs, religions, languages, and so on. Let’s have a look at the importance of dubbed content in the present day:
Importance Of Dubbed Content In The Present Day
Increase Viewership
As far as the entertainment industry is concerned, viewership is a necessary and inevitable thing. So, people in the entertainment industry used to look for ways to increase viewership. One of the most effective ways to increase viewership is dubbed content. Dubbed content is, in fact, helpful to increase viewership and gain viewers around the globe. If people become interested in a program and if it is in their language, they will definitely watch the program everyday which lets the particular program to increase its viewership to a great extent. The dubbed content must be interesting and should have the ability to get the attention of viewers from different parts of the world.
Enjoy In Your Language
Dubbed contents help you to watch foreign films, serials, reality shows, and other programs in your language. People go after dubbed content not because they don’t understand English or any other language but because they love it in their language. There is always a difference when we watch something in our language and it makes us feel comfortable. Dubbed content also offers audiences access to a number of the finest content from around the world in a language they are generally familiar with. A lot of people in different countries have a prosperous dubbing industry where they have a preference to watch content dubbed in their language.
More Variety
Content that is dubbed offers more variety and it lets entertainment industries to offer many new items to their viewers. Obviously, viewers require a variety of programs that can influence them and keep them always entertaining. If viewers are not getting a variety of contents, they will look for some other choices and it will reduce the viewership of a channel or program. Hence, dubbed content can provide people unique solutions when it comes to variety. Dubbed contents allows people to offer a variety of movies, serials, comedy shows, reality shows, dance shows, etc to their viewers and also to offer contents that suit viewers taste.
Offer Quality and New Contents
In a competitive entertainment environment, people struggle to provide quality content and surpass other content with new concepts. Dubbed contents can help you to offer quality content and surpass other content with new concepts to your viewers. Obviously, dubbed contents can present quality contents and it helps people to go through some of the best and top quality contents. The entertainment industry looks as if to support dubbed content for two major reasons. The one reason is that dubbed contents are cheap and people can get access to dubbed contents on the cheap. The second main reason is those dubbed contents give a chance to give viewers quality content from around the world in their local languages.
Be Familiar with Other Cultures
Dubbed content is a great weapon available to you to be familiar with other cultures. We love to learn and understand new cultures because it lets us learn a lot of new things. Content is always sprouting to keep pace with changing tastes of viewers. Therefore, we can observe diverse genres taking priority now and then. Dubbed content is not a new happening on television and these contents are relished by the viewers over many years. It has no cultural barriers and people are accepting dubbed contents with open hearts.
Be Familiar with Other Languages
We always love to learn and know about other languages. Dubbed contents can inspire us to learn the real language and learn every aspect of a language. In the present day, we are observing the emergence of a trend where popular regional shows and films are no longer limited by language barriers. Dubbed contents are now reaching a much extensive audience base regardless of the language difficulties. Since people give top priority to meet the needs of ever-changing needs and demands of viewers, dubbed content has become an important concept today.
Understand Fashion Trends
Obviously, a lot of people are obsessed with fashion and the always seek to find out what are the new fashion trends that take place around the globe. It is easy for those people to find out new fashion trends by means of going through dubbed contents. Dubbed contents allow people to see the new fashion trends of people in other counts and emulate them in real life. Dubbed films have been a part of the entertainment industry around the world since the very beginning. We have been changing the conversations in foreign films with our own to better recognize the real meaning of what is being presented in film or shows.
Helps To Avoid Fatigue with Similar Shows
It is spot on that viewers in the local markets have weariness with similar kinds of shows. They always wish for something new and a variety of items. Watching the same kind of things now and again makes to deviate from watching and it reduces viewership base. Watching a popular foreign show in your language makes a better connection as well as avoids boredom. Professionals in the entertainment industry seek to enhance content by presenting and bringing progressively more great stories and characters to their viewers to avoid their boredom through dubbed contents.
