Department of Chinese, Translation and Linguistics
Research Seminar
Respeaking for Live Subtitling: A Technological and Human Challenge
Presented by
Professor Corinne Imhauser
Head, Interpretation Department
Institut Superieur de Traducteurs et Interpretes (ISTI), Belgium
Date: 9 April 2010, Friday
Time: 6:30 - 8:00 pm
Venue: B4302 (Level 4, Blue Zone), Academic Building, CityU
Abstract
In Europe and in the US, the provision of closed captions for the deaf and hearing-impaired audiences is becoming increasingly compulsory for certain TV channels. This is the reason why demand is quickly increasing worldwide, and subtitling companies as well as TV channels are actively seeking technical solutions to this challenge. Indeed, some programmes like the news or major events must be subtitled "live" since they cannot always be pre recorded.
This presentation aims at reviewing present techniques for producing real-time captions for the deaf and hard of hearing (respeaking, speech follower, tandem keyboards). A detailed explanation of respeaking, i.e. the use of voice recognition software to produce live captions will be given.
We shall analyse the workflows, the tools and the financial costs involved. We shall also exchange views on the state of the art in South East Asia and see whether software available in Western countries can meet the needs of Asian countries and vice versa.
Finally, we shall encourage participants to take part in a general discussion on whether respeakers should be given specific training either tailor made or based on the basic skills of conference interpreters.
Speaker
Professor Corinne Imhauser is currently Head of the Interpretation Department at ISTI HEB (Higher Institute of Translation and Interpreting), Brussels, Belgium, and an international consultant with the EU Commission, the European Parliament and the International Criminal Court. Graduated in translation and interpretation from the University of Mons (Belgium), she has been working both as a professional interpreter / audiovisual translator and in academia for the past twenty five years. She set up one of the first subtitling courses in Europe, developed digital subtitling software as well as a pedagogical approach for the teaching of subtitling. She has been invited to give lectures, organize training seminars and workshops for practitioners, students or professors in a large number of universities in Europe, Asia, the US and Africa. She has been on the Steering Committee of the international conference ‘Languages and the Media’ for ten years, and was Chair of the FIT (International Federation of Translation) Media Committee from 2003 to 2005. She was the Coordinator of the postgraduate Studies in Multimedia Translation at ISTI, Brussels until 2006. In the past four years, she has been involved in interdisciplinary projects with researchers, professionals and trainers to study ways in which the challenge of ‘live captioning’ can be met. She is also involved in voice coaching in EU and other international institutions. She has published articles on the pedagogy of subtitling and subtitling research.
