Audiovisual Translation (AVT) earned its credentials as a practice and a research area in the second half of the 20th century. Now, at the close of the 21st century’s first decade, the discipline is expanding at a mind-boggling rate. AVT is a form of communication that is subject to, but also actively engaged in aspects of social, political and technological change that call for both increased specialisation and greater diversification on the part of practitioners and researchers alike. In fact, AVT also offers a world of possibilities and challenges to its users.
Aim of the conference
This conference aims to map the current status of AVT research, production, distribution and consumer needs. The complexity and the ways in which research input, technology, user needs and the business aspects of AVT intertwine, merits serious thought. The 2nd international Media for All conference in 2007 revealed concerns about the apparent tug of war between “quantity” and “quality”. The present conference would like to investigate whether these concerns were justified.
A few questions
AVT practice crosses many disciplinary borders, but is also thrust in a variety of directions by different influential players. We have mentioned technology, business and political interests. AVT, from both the traditional ‘translational’ perspective as well as the more encompassing accessibility angle, is considered to be a tool for social integration. But is it? Will AVT and its users be able to reap the benefits of the digital age? Will the research community be able to turn the need for specialisation and diversification of research into an asset? Where do we place AVT at a time when the dividing line between entertainment and information becomes increasingly blurred and the borders between interlingual and intralingual translation, audiovisual translation, creative (technical) writing and localisation appear to be dissolving, challenging the distinction between source and target texts? Audiences with different needs, different access possibilities and different degrees of active input demand AVT forms made to measure. Can these demands be met? How do we deal with hybrid art forms and hybrid forms of communication that mix genres? How do we make the most of the educational potential of AVT in a global village that should be able to remain multilingual? We hope to investigate these issues through papers, panels, and round-table discussions.
We hope to investigate these issues through papers, panels, and round-table discussions.