Voice Lip Sync. A “how-to” guide from Alpha Studios.

While international audiences are accepting subtitles more than ever – Netflix reported this year that 80% of its subscribers used subtitles once a month, at least – dubbed content remains a preference for many.

As internationally produced content continues to expand into global markets thanks to the modern influx of streaming services (consider the success of titles such as Squid Game), there is an ever-growing need for advanced, high quality audiovisual localization services. For many viewers who want to sit back and unwind with their favorite show, reading the subtitles can feel like too much effort. They’d rather be completely immersed in a native experience, with characters speaking the audience’s language. In which case, dubbing is required.

Dubbing sees the original vocal tracks replaced by vocal tracks recorded in the target language. This means translating the script, finding the perfect voice talent, and, preferably, hiring a vocal director. This can, understandably, be a long process, often requiring companies to liaise with multiple external vendors before they are able to release anything for public consumption.

One decision that should always be made in-house before the translation process starts however, is which kind of dubbing to aim for. Wait – there’s more than one kind of dubbing?

A quick guide to the main varieties of dubbing

• Lip-sync dubbing (also known as lip sync voiceover) – This is by far the most complex of all voiceover formats. The number of studios with the localization capabilities required and the knowledge of how to sync voice with lips on TV is somewhat limited. Lip sync dubbing ensures that the target language matches the lip movements of the characters speaking the source language as closely as possible. Disney is perhaps the most famous studio for this – just check out this video of We Don’t Talk About Bruno from the movie Encanto being sung in 21 languages!
• Phrase-sync dubbing – Unlike lip sync voiceover, phrase-sync dubbing doesn’t try to mimic the original speaker’s lip movements word for word. Instead, it stops and starts in time with each phrase spoken. Since less precision is required, phrase-sync dubbing is much quicker to complete than lip sync voice over.
• Non-synced dubbing – With this type of dubbing, there is no strong requirement for the new audio to match the originals pacing or mouth movements. While content needs to be accurately translated, the lack of adherence to approximate synchronization means non-synced dubbing tends to be a quicker and cheaper process.

There are other forms of dubbing of course, including bilingual delay dubbing, as well as many other forms of voiceover or audiovisual localization.

Before embarking on any localization projects, it’s important to consider what kind of dubbing, subtitling or voiceover your content needs. With extensive experience in the localization field, Alpha Studios is able to help clients understand the pros and cons of each method, and can advise on how best to localize any given audiovisual content.