4 Tips for Effective Film & TV Dubbing Talent Casting Reviews

Lip-sync dubbing for entertainment content is one of the trickiest types of video localization. And getting it right is critical to whether or not your feature film, TV show or web series has an audience around the world. That means that every element must be spot-on – including the foreign-language casting. As a producer or localization project manager, what can you do to ensure a great foreign-language cast on your dubbed show?

This post will list four tips to help you during your talent selection reviews.

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Casting reviews for dubbing main characters

Here’s the scenario – you’ve received the voice casting samples for the main characters in your film or series, and in general they sound great. In some cases, the voice sounds exactly like what you had in mind for the character, but in a different language. In other cases, you’re not so sure. You may even have serious reservations about one or two of the selections.

What do you need to know to provide feedback to your voice-over & post-production studio? More importantly, how do you ensure that your talent notes help lead to a dubbed show that engages your local audience?

Keep these four tips in mind.

1. Character traits are conveyed differently from one culture to another.

Charming, aggressive, sneaky, innocent – these qualities have different associations and markers from one culture to another. For example, a voice that sounds menacing in the US may sound foolhardy or even silly in a Japanese dubbing context. This is true both of the actual voice profile – its pitch, timbre and any other physical attributes – and the speaker’s tone and performance.

Likewise, remember that voice profiles in a locale are affected by overall speaking patterns as well. For example, it’s common in Latin America to speak through one’s nose, whereas in the US it’s more common for speakers to rely on their diaphragm. This means simply that Latin American Spanish voiceover often sounds slightly more nasal and generally more higher-pitched than its US counterpart.

In short, remember that voice profile, tone and performance – which communicate character – are affected by local cultural expectations. And in some cases, those are quite different from our own.

2. Your local audience (probably) won’t have heard your English-language voices.

You’re listening to a proposed talent, and it fits almost perfectly with your character. The voice profile is right – your character is a smoker, and the voice artist even has a smoky rasp in her voice. Your character is at turns charming and bullying – and the actor can hit both those tones beautifully. Best of all, the actor sounds right within her cultural context, and she’s a seasoned talent with years of voice-over experience who will hit her session targets and provide a great performance.

But there’s a hold-up – the foreign-language voice talent just isn’t your original actor. You can’t see anyone in her place, let alone hear a different voice attached to her image. But remember – your worldwide audience won’t have this problem. For them, the dubbed voice will be the character’s voice. In short, if the foreign-language voice fits your character, it will work for the audience.

3. Trust your studio and their directors…

A veteran director will know what talents work well for each locale. And, an experienced studio like JBI will know which talents are great at the kind of performance that your entertainment localization needs – whether a comedic take for animation or broad comedies, or a more natural one for dramatic or live-action content. Trust your studio vendor. Moreover, rely on them. Don’t hesitate to ask questions about talent selections – or any of the other production choices.

4. …But don’t hold your feedback.

That said, you have invaluable insights into your show or movie. Not sure the talent will sound right in episode 5 when your aggressive character has to be tender and seductive? Need a closer voice profile match because your character sings in episode 9 – and those songs won’t be localized? If you have any concerns about a specific pick, pass them on – and make sure to be specific about why you think a voice may not work. Same goes even if you just have direction for a talent selection you like. These notes will make for better performances and more insightful direction, and will improve the quality of your localized show.

Spend the time to get the casting right

This is especially critical for TV shows and movie franchises, which have long-term runs, but a good rule of thumb for any creative lip-sync project and for video localization in general. Make sure your studio has as much information about your content as possible – character bios, the show “bible,” production or performance notes, and any other information you can provide. Allow for a full talent selection timeline before you start production, as well as reviews and custom auditions. And run the proposed talents by in-country distributors or contacts, if you have them. In short, do everything you can to make sure your foreign-language cast really works. This, as much as any other creative choice made during localization, will guarantee the success of your content around the world.