Translators Associations Europe: SUBTLE
Elevating the under-appreciated and misunderstood art of subtitling
 SUBTLE is a British organization, with headquarters in London, formed by professional subtitlers to promote high-quality subtitling and to maintain standards of professionalism within the industry.
The Subtitlers’ Association was founded in 2006 and owes its origins to the London e-group Subtitlerbase, created in November 2004 to provide a space mainly for the discussion and sharing of problems within the profession.
This group grew strong and eventually reached some 100 members, most of them subtitlers. Later on, in 2006, some of its members started to meet regularly with the purpose of trying to find solutions to some of the problems and difficulties that endanger this highly skilled profession.
An organization that would raise standards and ensure fair pay for subtitlers we badly needed.
Thus, came to light the Subtitlers’ Association. This translation association was born as a UK based non-profit organization.
In everyone’s interest
Subtitles are crucial for the viewers experience when a movie is in language different from theirs.
Although there is a subtitling industry, the reality is harsh for professional subtitlers. But people involved in subtitling or studying to be so won’t be the only ones being affected if the talent behind subtitles continues to be sidelined and finally disappears altogether.
As a viewer or a professional in the film industry, you should care too.
SUBTLE’s goals
SUBTLE makes sure that the industry knows of the need to safeguard quality standards in subtitling. This translation association hopes that long-term writers, directors, producers and actors will its mission.
The aims of this translators association are to promote the recognition of subtitling as a highly skilled, specialized profession in its own right; to encourage the use of skilled and experienced professional subtitlers by the film/TV industry; to establish a means of regulating the subtitling profession to ensure that recognized subtitlers meet minimum requirements in terms of quality of work and professional conduct; and to promote fair rates and working practices for professional subtitlers.
This is a particularly important mission if you think that interlingual subtitling is not yet a profession with a recognized representation, but simply treated as a job any translator can do.
This happens despite it being a highly specialized and requiring additional skills.
Plus, globalization is forcing these professionals to throw in the towel as companies turn to cheap non-expert providers that put the quality of subtitles in films and programs at risk elsewhere.
To stop this tendency, this translators association works towards gaining professional recognition; getting the profession regulated; and creating a seal of quality or approval so that clients can be assured of our competence as professionals.
Once achieved, these objectives will benefit everybody involved in the creation and enjoyment of subtitles – subtitlers, audiences, companies involved in film and TV production –, as well as film-makers.
If you would like to join this translators association, go to SUBTLE’s website.
Keep in mind that English is the official language in the United Kingdom, where there are around 58 million inhabitants.
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