In their 2007 textbook Audiovisual Translation: Subtitling, Jorge Díaz Cintas and Aline Remael propose classifying subtitles according to their linguistic dimension (interlingual, intralingual or bilingual), the time available for preparation (pre-prepared or live), technical parameters (open or closed), the method of projection (laser, electronic, etc.) and the distribution format. I would like to propose another criterion for classifying subtitles—mode of speech—and draw a broad distinction between subtitles that translate scripted dialogue and those that translate impromptu speech.
The dialogue of most fiction films and television dramas has been scripted in advance and is performed by actors. It fulfils well-established narrative and cinematographic functions, such as revealing the characters’ personalities and moving the plot forward through verbal events. While it may strive to appear natural, film dialogue relies on conventions of authenticity and is quite unlike everyday speech. By contrast, the spontaneous speech recorded in documentaries and many television genres—everything from talk shows and current affairs programs to reality TV and cooking shows—was orally conceived. As spoken language, it has its own grammar patterns and features that have been extensively studied in discourse analysis.
This presentation will start with an examination of the properties of scripted dialogue and impromptu speech in order to differentiate between them. I shall then focus on the latter, building on research by Remael, Matamala, Pérez-González and others. I shall identify various forms of unscripted speech found in audiovisual material, such as formal and informal interviews, conversation and group interaction. Each of these forms presents its own challenges and has an impact on the task of the subtitler.
Having set out some of the characteristics of impromptu speech as contained in audiovisual programs, I shall conclude with a discussion of teaching strategies. How can a university or professional-level AVT course train subtitlers to properly deal with impromptu speech? What skills are required? A list would include good listening comprehension skills, the ability to prepare and work with a transcription or “verbatim,” and familiarity with film language to understand the interaction between the speaker and his or her environment. Drawing on research in interpreter training, I suggest strategies such as cloze exercises, in which students fill in missing words from a passage, and “piece-by-piece” techniques to establish flow within convoluted or reformulated sentences. Audience feedback during this section will be welcomed.

Christine YORK is a PhD student and part-time professor at the University of Ottawa. She has taught courses and given workshops in subtitling and general translation. She completed a Master’s Degree in Translation Studies at Concordia University in 2006 and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a major in Art History. After working in documentary film production for ten years, she became a freelance translator. Since 1994, she has translated or subtitled hundreds of television programs, films and scripts, including some thirty documentaries for the National Film Board of Canada. Her publications include “Translating the New World in Jean de Léry’s Histoire d’un voyage fait en la terre du Brésil,” in Charting the Future of Translation History (Georges Bastin and Paul Bandia, eds., Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press, 2006).