Where would the world’s audiovisual content be today without dubbing and voice-overs? If you’re unsure what these two linguistic skills are, we’ll be getting into that shortly, so keep reading.
Both Dubbing and Voice over play an essential role for companies, organizations, businesses, and creators. When it comes to making their content accessible to a global audience, the power of video combined with any of these two disciplines opens up a world of possibilities.
It is against this background that we’ll take a look at the key differences between dubbing and voice over. Before we dive in, however, let’s gather a working definition of the two and take it from there.
Both Dubbing and voice over are language services that involve the use of multimedia and translation at their core. Their sole purpose is to make audiovisual content easy to understand and accessible to a broader audience.
Dubbing and voice over are sometimes used interchangeably where the use of terms are concerned. Though they may fall within the same family, they have different characteristics and are used for different purposes. Because voice over is considered to be a form of dubbing, it doesn’t take away from the fact that both are language services that use a technique that interprets messages for a new audience.
What is Dubbing?
Dubbing is also known as Language Replacement. This type of language service usually requires the expertise of a professional voice actor who mimics just about everything the actor on screen is doing. This includes the expression and tone and seamless lip-syncing but in a different language.
Therefore, dubbing involves replacing the originally voiced audio with that of a voice actor. The new content is always translated and localized for the new audience based on their location and, of course, their language.
What is Voice Over?
Voice over is sometimes referred to as ‘UN Style’. This language service technique is informative in nature, meaning it is mainly used for explanatory and informative purposes. This means that audiovisual content such as documentaries, and interviews along with other scientific or technical videos, are fit for voice overs.
With voice over, the voice actor is recorded over the original sound. This means that the original sound is still in the background, usually at a lower pitch than the voice actors.
Key Differences Between Dubbing and Voice Over
Dubbing is Active; Voice Over is More Casual
Dubbing requires a fully immersed character by a voice actor replacing the original voice. This means that there is much expression and evocation of emotions taking place. Every beat within the film is kept, and they also work towards making their voice match as closely as possible with the on-screen actors lips.
Conversely, voice over has little to no need for emphasis on the nuances of tone and emotion. It has a simple objective: to have the viewer understand what is taking place in the clip they’re watching.
Dubbing Replaces Original Audio. Voice Over Doesn’t.
We could safely say that Dubbing is a whole performance and production mixed into one. This is so because dubbing involves replacing the voice on an audiovisual clip. This means that it is best for movies, feature films, and other video-recorded performances.
Voice over, on the hand, is used for shorter films that are more informative in nature. The voice over doesn’t replace the original audio and can be in the form of narration, storytelling or translation. Voice-over is fitting got documentaries, international interviews, and International news, among others.
Dubbing Triggers Human Emotions. Voice Over Does Not.
In essence, voice over is verbal captioning or verbal subtitling for the person consuming the audiovisual content. This means that there isn’t much of a need for the voice actor to ‘act the part’ of a character. They’re simply conveying information that is, in most cases, also translated.
Dubbing requires the voice actor to include tonality, emotions, dialect, varying expressions, accents and other nuances that are required for a performance. The objective is for the viewer to absorb the message in a wholesome and rich way.
Voice Over is Noticeable. Dubbing is Not.
Dubbing as a language service technique is deliberate in its nature to hide any form of evidence that the content has been translated. The aim is to pass off the foreign content as though it is coming from native speakers of the language. Dubbing, therefore, creates an illusion for the viewer.
Voiceover is blatant in nature. The viewer is entirely aware that a foreign voice of someone not featured physically in the film is speaking. It is not covered up at any point in time that this is what is taking place. The voice-over technique is more loyal to original content because the original audio isn’t removed for production.
Key Benefits of Dubbing and Voice Over
They Bridge Communication Barriers
Both voice over and dubbing are perfectly ideal choices if you want your content to reach an international audience. Both are solutions to communication for businesses and organizations, for example, because they reduce the language barriers that exist.
The Content is Translated and Localized
When it comes to dubbing and voice over, the content for both is carefully analyzed by professionals, translated into the target language, and also localized for the specific area in the content is to be featured.
Engagement Increases
A perfectly dubbed video or an informative and exciting program that features voice over both cannot only engage an audience but also keep them interested. The content they are viewing is in their native language, which means that it creates an emotional connection for them as they view it, which makes them more engaged.
Final Notes
So, there you have it. The key differences and benefits between dubbing and voice-over. Both disciples, though they fall within the same family of language services, have their place and serve different purposes.
Don’t forget that at Day Translations, we’re in the business of serving you through language services, and voice-over and dubbing are part of this. Our team of professionals is available to help you 24/7. Let’s get connected today!