Dorama Fansubbing Style Guide

Dorama Fansubbing Style Guide

Introduction

This is a collection of guidelines used during the fansubbing of Japanese drama. Its main purpose is to provide consistency among episodes, as well as among projects. Different projects can use slightly different styles, as more useful and eye pleasing fetaures are discovered.
Adding subtitles involves deciding how to handle the following cases:

Dialogue text
This is of course the main purpose of the subtitles: to tell the viewer what each character is saying.
Credits
To show the name of the characters and who plays them.
Theme song
This is the song usually played while the opening/closing credits roll. Although it may be played during the show itself, in this document we will only consider the theme song as linked with the credits.
Additional information
Important information can require accompanying subtitles, such as: wall signs and labels, names on business cards, titles of books, names of geographical places, etc.
External information
Screens added before or after the show, usually required to eplain obscure points, present warnings, copyrights, fansub credits etc.
We will try to explain the choices taken for each of these cases.

Dialogue Text
The text of the dialogue is what occupies the most screen time, therefore it must use the most undisturbing style possible.
Font and typeface
The font to be used is Arial. The foreground color is yellow, with a black outline. The size of the font for regular text is 32 point bold. The size for upper case text is 28 point bold, because capitalized text looks bigger than it really is. Capitalized text is used when a character screams (e.g. "GET OUT!").
Position
Dialogue text is shown on maximum 2 lines at the bottom of the screen. The text is center-justified, with possible exceptions during credits or fast paced dialogue (see later).
Character names
The names of characters appearing on screen pose a difficult problem, because of the many ways a person can be referred to in Japanese.
It seems that the Japanese use either first name or last name depending on the occasion, friendlyness, age difference etc. JNP/NGN choice is to always use the first name. We use any name the character says. This gives the listener a synchronizing point between the spoken dialogue and the subtitles.
Also sometimes various "honorifics" are added at the end of a name. The honorifics can or cannot be translated into Mr./Ms./Mrs./Dr.
The translation does not work well for "Sensei", which, in addition to "Doctor" can be translated as "Teacher" or "Maestro (writer, composer etc.)" or "Father (priest)".
In these cases we keep the work "Sensei" and possibily add an explaination screen before the first episode explaining in which context it is used.
A similar approach is used for "-san", "-chan", "-sama", "-kun". "-san" is usually dropped for family conversation, is translated with "Mr."/"Mrs." for conversation between strangers, "-chan" and "-kun" are either dropped with an explainatory screen, or kept for effect (e.g. OT: "Such a cute name: Nazuna-chan" emphasis on "-chan").
A more difficult problem is when a character refers to the person he/she is talking to in the third person. It is strange to have the family relation (Father, Uncle, Brother) repeated, so most time we use either "You", "He", "She" or the person's name.
Spelling
Several English words can be spelled in different, although all correct, ways. Regardless of which spelling is chosen, it should be consistent throughout the project.
Here is the spelling we selected for some of these words: Okay, All right, Goodbye
Removing dialogue
Dialogue can be removed for several reasons:
The characters speak too fast or at the same time and the meaning is obvious. When they speak too fast the subtitles tend to become de-synchronized with the dialogue. Short sentences/words can stay on screen for 1 second. It's better if they stay on screen 2 seconds, though. When dialogue cannot be removed because it is essential, different colors or position can be used to indicate which character said which sentence. For example:
      o			o
      +			+
      ^			^

Who said that?
		    I don't know.
The text is not essential, or non-translatable. This is usually the case for sounds like "Eh?", "Ah", "Uhm", which normally would be translated as "What?", "Yes", "I do" etc. Since the sound has the same meaning in all languages, it doesn't need translation.
Character names and or standard sentences can be removed when more important dialogue must be shown. Again this depends on the timing constraints.
Ellipses
Ellipses are usually found at the end of sentence portions when the next sentence may or may not be spoken immediately afterwards. For example, if there is a long pause between the first and the second part of the sentence and/or if the second part can stand alone as a separate sentence. No ellipses will be used before the second sentence. For example:
On top of that... I want the happy times to last longer.
Ellipses can also be used to indicate that a character has been cut-off by another character:
If I hadn't met you that day... ...where would I be?
in this case ellipses are also used at the beginning of a sentence to show it is a continuation of the previous sentence.
Non-translated text
It is often necessary or useful to show non-translated text in the subtitles. This is the case for names of Japanese features that are not present or only have an approximate translation in English. This text is shown in italics, possibly with an English explaination in parenthesis. For example:
They even bought tickets for the Shinkansen (bullet train).
Other non-Japanese text may also be presented in italics such as text spoken in a language different from Japanese (including English).
Japanglish
Sometimes the Japanese use words that sound English but that are not actually present in the English dictionary. These words will be shown using the regular font and without additional explaination. It should be fairly easy for the viewer to figure out the meaning of such words. For example:
Salaryman = white collar worker
OL / Office Lady = Administrative Assistant?

Measures
The fact that the Imperial system is still in use in the US is not a good reason to use it in subs. All measurements will be in the metric system, i.e. using meters, liters, kilograms and Celsius degrees, just like in Japan.
Dates will be converted to the US system (MM/DD/YYYY).
Commas separating thousands will be dropped. Only the decimal point will be used.
Monetary units will be kept unchanged, i.e. the Yen value will be kept in the subtitles.

Punctuation
Punctuation rules will be slightly different from the US standard, expecially when quoted sentences are present. If a whole sentence is a quote, i.e. it is surrounded by "..", then the last punctuation mark will be inside the quotes.
If the sentence starts without quotes and ends with a quoted word of phrase, the punctuation mark will be outside the quotes.
Punctuation marks will always be placed after a closed parenthesis.
Credits

Names
On screen credits are translated when the name of the actors/actresses are in kanji only. Some shows (e.g. Shomu ni) already have the name of the actors/actresses in romaji, but they usually lack the name of the characters.
Our approach is to show the name of the character in 28pt all-capital letters; below the character name, the name of the actor/actress in 32pt; both are in yellow with a black outline. If known, we'll use the Japanese convention of last-first name, as opposed to the US convention of first-last name.
Major characters are each credited on separate screens. The position of the sub should keep the kanji name fully visible. Thus it'll be above the kanji name, or on one side of the screen in the kanjis are on the other side of the screen.
For minor characters we can place multiple credit on the same screen, possibly omitting the name of the character and only leaving the name of the actor/actress. If multiple names are shown, they should be kept symmetrical on screen.
Credits for the writer, producer, and directors are given when known. The strings to be used are:

Written by : name
Produced by : name
Directed by : name

Theme song credits
If the theme song has an English title we will only credit the performer. The usual formula is:

Theme song : "title" by performer
although for very long titles/names we can use the following:

"title" sung by name
If both the theme song and the performer are in English, there will be no subtitle.

Theme Song

If an English translation of the theme song is available, it will be shown along with the credits. Normally the credits will be at the bottom of the screen, while the theme song lyrics will be at the top of the screen. The lyrics are in 22pt, gray color with black outline.
Note that the lyrics must be synchronized with the song and with the credits. This means that a lyric will only stay on screen as much as the credit on the same screen. It is always possible to break a lyric in two screens if required. Lyrics are shown even when there are no credits.
Usually the theme song during the credits is shorter than the version found on CDs. Thus the English translation is also likely to be longer than needed. The rule is to only translate the portion that is actually heard during the credits.
If no English translation is available, no subtitles for the theme song will be shown. We chose not to show the lyrics in Japanese because it is too difficult to keep them synchronized with the sound and with the credit screens.

Additional Information

Quotes
In addition to the spoken dialogue, it is often necessary to show the translation for non-spoken words, like those that appear on street signs, wall labels, titles of books, writing on letters, etc.
This inforamtion is always presented between double quotes: ".." using the same font and color as the spoken text. The same applies when a character is quoting another character.
Single quotes can be used to highlight certain words that are quoted by characters, but that have not been actually spoken or written by other characters. For example:
Your 'Changing Body' jingle is a masterpiece.
Or even to emphasize certain words that would normally be put in italics or between double quotes:
I don't think this 'practical joke' method will attract people to the new product.

Additional credits
The network will be properly credited with the formula:

A production of ...,
with ... being TBS, FUJI TV, Inc. Japan, or NTV.
The translator has on screen credits when he/she has given permission to use his/her name. The formula is:

English translation : name
If there will be no name for the translator, the following formula is used:

English translation from world wide web synopsis pages
Similarly, the person revising the dialogue has on screen credits when he/she has given permission to use his/her name. The formula is:

Dialogue supervision : name
During the credits, a screen should be shown to say that this is a fansubbed show and is not for rent or sale. The following formula is used:

English subtitles Dorama Fansubbing, California [ NOT FOR RENT OR SALE ]
It is acceptable to show this screen over a kanji credit if there is no time elsewhere during the credits.
Dislaimer
Before each episode a standard disclaimer is shown:
The content of this tape is copyright ... and cannot be sold, rented or shown in public. It has been subtitled for the private use of fans of Japanese drama.
where ... is FUJI TV, Inc., TBS - Tokyo Broadcasting System or NTV. For TBS shows, an additional screen may be shown:
Please support TBS by renting or buying their dramas at your local Japanese video store.

External Information

If the show has an official web site it may be shown either during each episode's credits or at the beginning/ending of the series.
Additional information may be shown at the end of the series, like the original date of airing in Japan, and the ISBN of the Japanese novel (usually available through Kinokuniya).
To protect the individuals from harassment, we will not show URL's of fan web sites.
At the end of the series, the following screen will identify the project:
... show title Project # : xxx Completed on : date by Dorama Fansubbing, California
where ... is FUJI TV's, TBS' or NTV's.

Dorama Fansubbing Operation

Participation in a project is totally voluntary. No money will be exchanged between the parties, except to cover costs like shipping and handling.
The following procedures proved to be very effective:

Each party must get a copy of the show being subtitled. The copies may be of different quality and from different sources, as long as the entire show is present (i.e. nothing has been edited out).
Optionally, some party will use the novelization form of the show to provide a more accurate translation. Novels for several dramas can be ordered from Kinokuniya.
Obviously, the project starts with the release of the translation for one or more episodes. The translation/script is placed on the world wide web by the person doing the translation, in form of a web page or synopsis page.
The subtitler uses the translation to time where each subtitle will be shown on screen and its duration so that the next sub remains synchronized with the spoken dialogue.
The subtitler can rephrase sentences, shorten them or drop them altogether in order to keep the dialogue in synch.
The subtitler places the transcript of the dialogue on the world wide web in a private area (i.e. not on a public web page).
The reviewer downloads the transcript and verifies it for translation errors, spelling errors, usage errors, etc.
The reviewer can suggest different forms for a sentence, so that the dialogue is more consistent or to improve the flow.
The reviewer sends the corrected version of the script to the subtitler via e-mail.
The subtitler applies the corrections to the subtitles and generates the master (subtitled) copy of the show.
The process is repeated for all episodes.
Either during the project or at the end of the project, both the translator and the reviewer will receive a copy of the subtitled show for their collection.