Curse words and turpiloquies galore: streaming services and the new translation norms for subtitling texts

Abstract

Traditional networks and TV channels, such as RTP [Rádio e Televisão de Portugal] and SIC [Sociedade Independente de Comunicação] in Portugal, and Globosat and HBO [Home Box Office] in Brazil, have a more conservative approach in their general subtitling guidelines regarding the standard language norm (Ramos Pinto, 2010) and the use of profanity and vulgar language (HBO, 2001). Among the general guidelines for subtitle translators are, for example, toning down offensive language and respecting the educated norm of the Portuguese language. With the arrival of Netflix in the subtitling market, a relaxation of these rules has been observed. The streaming service allows the use of profanity without any form of censorship and the creation of more idiomatic and colloquial subtitles (Netflix, 2023). This article aims at identifying the explicit or implicit guidelines that justify this change of approach in the production of subtitles for the Portuguese language on the streaming service. To do so, we conducted an analysis of the general subtitling guidelines from two audiovisual content providers: HBO Latin America (2001) and Netflix (2023), utilizing the concept of translation norms (Toury, 1978) to identify three distinct sets of norms that currently coexist within the Portuguese audiovisual translation system. The article also discusses whether amateur translations, which often disregard the industry's professional guidelines, require a higher cognitive effort from the viewer. As a conclusion, we suggest three explanations for the non-normative behavior on the part of Netflix translators: (1) unfamiliarity with the restrictive norms of other subtitling industry agents, as the advent of Netflix brought a new generation of translators into the market; (2) the fact that streaming service subscribers have an active voice in the production and post-production of the programs they consume; (3) the less normative language guidelines of Netflix have indeed allowed for a greater degree of freedom in translation solutions.

Keywords
audiovisual translation; interlingual subtitling; translation norms; streaming services