ABSTRACT
Dubbing involves the replacement of the original soundtrack with a target-language soundtrack in films, television series, advertising, videogames and other products destined for the screen that contain speech embedded in a multimodal context. As modelled by F. Chaume, dubbing is part of an intricate, dual-channel multi-semiotic whole characterized by a considerable layering of signifying modes that are co-deployed and interact on screen. As early as 1990, the year that marked the rise of research on dubbing in Europe, Delabastita highlighted the central gatekeeping function of the audiovisual translation modality. Viewers are not only becoming increasingly involved in the production of dubbing translations, but their role as consumers is also receiving more attention from scholars. Cross-national comparisons of contextual and procedural aspects of dubbing, including the status and roles of professional and non-professional translators and the different orientations and practices that affect national translation systems, are also required.
