Subtitles can be difficult when it comes to comedy. Subtitles are often not available and if they are available they are out of sync with what is being said.
The challenge with subtitles and comedy is that comedy is often heavily reliant on wordplay, puns, and linguistic humor. Additionally, comedy heavily relies on timing and delivery. Subtitles should be carefully timed to match the comedic beats, ensuring that the punchlines and humorous moments are not lost in translation. Therefore translators need to consider the duration of on-screen text and maintain a balance between accuracy and comedic timing.
As someone who relies on subtitles and/or lip-reading, subtitles were essential for Lee Riley AKA Lost Voice Guy’s set, but I managed to keep up (just) and he was absolutely hilarious. Subtitles were still a little late which is to be expected with live comedy but the important thing was they were ACCURATE. That is a huge difference. Accurate subtitles are so important to understand what is actually being said and to keep up with the flow of what is being said (no wondering what word was that supposed to be). The subtitles team (and the BLS Interpreters) did a fantastic job and for once I got to relax and enjoy live comedy.
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