What’s Dubbing in Content Creation? A Complete Guide

Dubbing your dialogue into a different language makes it more accessible, allowing you to find new audiences worldwide. 

In the past, you could only find quality dubbing in foreign language films, television, and other high-budget productions. But advances in video editing and text-to-speech technology now make it easy for everyone to use subtitles and dubs, meaning you don’t need to break the bank on professional voice actors or studio equipment. 

Learn what dubbing is and how it helps you reach new viewers. 

What’s Dubbing?

Audio dubbing is a post-production video editing process that mixes additional or replacement audio recordings with original audio content. The new recordings are lip-synced to match actors’ mouth movements, making the audio appear natural. 

From social media content to big-screen movies and TV shows, dubbing makes content more accessible to viewers who don’t speak the original language or struggle to read subtitles. English-speaking audiences might see dubbing when watching foreign films or TV content like anime. The same is true when English-language films are shown in other countries, as dubbing allows foreign audiences to enjoy these films in their native language. 

You can also see dubbing techniques in the music industry. Dub music takes beats and instrumentals from an existing soundtrack, removes most or all of the vocals, and layers new sound effects, rhythms, and vocals. This process creates unique remixes that musicians and producers use to quickly experiment with already existing music.

What’s the Difference Between Dubbing and Subtitles?

Dubbing and subtitles allow viewers to engage with content even if they can’t understand the original audio. While they both increase accessibility, they do so in different ways. 

Audio vs. Text

Subtitles translate audio into closed or open captions displayed on screen. This allows viewers to watch a foreign film in its original language and read the dialogue text in a language they understand. 

On the other hand, dubs create audio translations, converting dialogue into a different language. With dubs, there’s no need to read subtitles, as the actors’ speech gets translated into a language you know. 

Authenticity

Filmmaking fans often debate the merits of subs versus dubs. 

Some argue that dubs offer a more immersive viewing experience, as they don’t require you to read text to understand audio content. Others think even the best dubs are unnatural and distracting.

People also debate the authenticity of dubbed videos. To some, subtitled or captioned videos provide a more authentic viewing experience than dubs, as they maintain the content’s original language. Ultimately, choosing subs or dubs boils down to individual preference. 

Accessibility

Subtitles and dubs solve accessibility issues for different viewers. Hearing-impaired audiences — as well as viewers watching videos in loud environments — can’t rely on audio dubbing, so they benefit more from subtitles. Vision-impaired audiences have the opposite experience, as they may struggle to read subtitles, so they benefit more from audio dubs.

Pros and Cons of Dubbing

Dubbing offers numerous advantages, but it may only be suitable for some viewers and contexts. Knowing the pros and cons helps you decide if it’s worth the extra effort to dub your videos. 

Pros

• Enhanced immersion and engagement — Viewers can watch dubbed videos without having to spend time reading subtitles, which creates a more immersive experience. Dubbed videos also increase engagement by allowing audiences to watch videos in their native language. 
• Improved accessibility — Dubs let viewers with reading difficulties watch videos without needing to struggle to keep up with dialogue. 
• Creative license — Dubbing allows voice actors to portray characters in new ways. Many viewers enjoy watching dubs to see how voice actors approach a character and interpret scenes and dialogue. 

Cons

• Loss of intent — Audio dubbing may cause a video to lose some original meaning. Emotion may not come across the same in dubbed audio, which can change a video’s original artistic intent. 
• Higher costs — Dubbed videos require more editing time, leading to higher post-production costs. 
• Syncing problems — Even the best dubs may not always sync to the actor’s mouth movements. This can distract viewers and cause them to miss key story elements. 

How To Dub a Video: 4 Steps

You can use Captions’ AI tools to automatically dub your videos without the manual effort. Alternatively, follow these four simple steps to dub content. 

1. Translation

You need to translate your video script before you can dub the audio into different languages. Use tools like Google Translate or hire a professional to convert your dialogue. Pay close attention to ensure the text preserves your video’s original meaning, as some phrases lose their intent when translated into other languages. 

2. Voice Casting

With your script in hand, you can hire voice actors to read the dialogue. Many voice actors specialize in dubbing, spending years honing their skills to convincingly deliver translated dialogue. Choose actors with the experience and skills to match a video’s original tone and meet the expectations of a foreign target audience. 

3. Recording

Once you have a video transcript and actors, you can start recording the dialogue in different languages. You’ll need the right audio equipment, including microphones, an audio interface, and supplemental software. Choose a quiet space to record, as places with high ambient or environmental noise will complicate the editing process. 

4. Editing and Mixing

Unlike adding voiceovers, where the recording doesn’t need to match actors’ mouth movements on screen, dubbed audio must integrate with the video’s visuals. During the editing and mixing stage, sound engineers and video editors align the dubbed audio with the actors’ lip movements. This requires meticulous attention to detail to ensure the words synchronize with the actors’ timing and rhythm. 

Editors must also focus on other sound quality elements, including volume, clarity, and pitch. They should remove unwanted background noise and ensure the dubbed audio blends with the video’s music and sound effects. This can prove especially difficult as they handle translations across multiple languages. 

Discover a New Way of Dubbing With Captions

Dubbing isn’t just for foreign films or TV. If you’re a video content creator, you can use it to expand your reach and attract new fans. 

With Captions, you don’t need a fancy studio or massive production budget to create quality dubs. Our AI Dubbing feature uses machine learning models to dub your voice from one language to another. Combine dubbing with background noise removal, AI actors, and royalty-free music to create a complete video that will wow your viewers.