According to Netflix, stories are universal, in terms of concept, language and accessibility. One of the OTT platform’s ways of making sure that original titles get as many eyes and ears is through dubbing.
Original titles like Dark in Germany and 3% in Brazil, where more than 50% of viewing comes from international audiences, are a couple of instances. Another example is Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle to which Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit and Kareena Kapoor lent their voices to different characters in the film. It has also been dubbed in Tamil and Telugu. Indian titles such as She , Bard of Blood, Ghost Stories are dubbed in Tamil and Telugu as well. Plus, popular titles such as Stranger Things , The Witcher or 6 Underground are watched in English as well as with Hindi dubs.
A more recent example is the Chris Hemsworth-starrer Extraction , which has been dubbed in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. According to data sent by Netflix, with the help from dubbing partners in Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad, dubbing directors for each Indian language were selected. The dubbing directors were selected for their experience especially with the action genre. The Netflix creative dubbing supervisor formed dub guidelines, while the dubbing director, script writer and the voice artiste (across Tamil, Telugu and Hindi) broke down the character requirements and voice culture that needed to be maintained through the dubbing process. In fact, the dubbing for the film was done across locations: Hindi dubbing in Mumbai, Tamil and Telugu dubbing in Chennai, though the talent for Telugu dubs were from Hyderabad.
‘Should sound believable’
Speaking with The Hindu , Netflix’s Director of International Dubbing, Debra Chinn, points out, “We dub our series and films in up to 32 languages, depending on a number of factors including content type and audience. Even though we dub all around the world, we are always working to expand the languages we dub in so that we can continue to bring local stories to global audiences.”
In the case of when a dialogue in English may be shorter than the same in Telugu, or vice versa. What does this mean for the dubbing team who have to meet playback requirements, by scene? “Dubbing is a complex art form. The process starts with casting the right voice talent that matches the voice of the character — the voice should sound believable as coming from the actor on screen.”
- The Partner Help Center for Netflix lists out strict guidelines for filmmakers who want to add dubbing to their production on the site: resources include a Dub Talent List User Guide, Dubbing Pre-Mix Recording and Delivery Guidelines, Voice Testing Specifications, and resources for back-end specifications for pre-mixes, for faster approval.
Chinn continues, “The process of translating the script into a local language is an integral part of dubbing because, as you point out, the translation impacts the lip movement and the audience’s overall experience. This is where the adaptation expertise of the translator and the director (experienced in theatrical dubbing) come in — together they adapt the dialogue to fit the timing of the screen actor’s lip movement. A Netflix creative dubbing supervisor also creates dub guidelines, collaborating with local partners to ensure the creative intent is not lost. For each language, the dubbing director, translator, and the voice talent then break down the character requirements, voice culture, and the performance arc that needs to be maintained through the dubbing process.”
But dubbing is not for everyone. With Spanish titles (such as La Casa de Papel or Money Heist ) garnering plenty of Indian audience traction, subtitles are the go-to for that undisturbed audio-visual sync. In a recent interview with The Hindu , author-producer Harlan Coben, who has a 14-adaptation deal with Netflix, says one gets more nuance from the authentic and original language used. Obviously, it is something personal to the viewer who is empowered by that availability of choice.