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Sample translations submitted: 3
Japanese to English: Remembering Natsume Sōseki・夏目漱石の追憶 General field: Art/Literary Detailed field: Poetry & Literature
Source text - Japanese その途中で、車の前面の幌にはまったセルロイドの窓越しに見る街路の灯ひが、妙にぼやけた星形に見え、それが不思議に物狂わしくおどり狂うように思われたのであった。
先生からはいろいろのものを教えられた。俳句の技巧を教わったというだけではなくて、自然の美しさを自分自身の目で発見することを教わった。同じようにまた、人間の心の中の真なるものと偽なるものとを見分け、そうして真なるものを愛し偽なるものを憎むべき事を教えられた。
しかし自分の中にいる極端なエゴイストに言わせれば、自分にとっては先生が俳句がうまかろうが、まずかろうが、英文学に通じていようがいまいが、そんな事はどうでもよかった。いわんや先生が大文豪になろうがなるまいが、そんなことは問題にも何もならなかった。むしろ先生がいつまでも名もないただの学校の先生であってくれたほうがよかったではないかというような気がするくらいである。先生が大家にならなかったら少なくももっと長生きをされたであろうという気がするのである。
いろいろな不幸のために心が重くなったときに、先生に会って話をしていると心の重荷がいつのまにか軽くなっていた。不平や煩悶はんもんのために心の暗くなった時に先生と相対していると、そういう心の黒雲がきれいに吹き払われ、新しい気分で自分の仕事に全力を注ぐことができた。先生というものの存在そのものが心の糧かてとなり医薬となるのであった。こういう不思議な影響は先生の中のどういうところから流れ出すのであったか、それを分析しうるほどに先生を客観する事は問題であり、またしようとは思わない。
花下の細道をたどって先生の門下に集まった多くの若い人々の心はおそらく皆自分と同じようなものであったろうと思われる。それで自分のここに書いたこの取り止めもない追憶が、さもさも自分だけで先生を独占していたかのように読者に見えるとすれば、それはおそらく他の多くの門下生の各自の偽らぬ心持ちを代表するものとして了解しゆるしてもらわれるべきだと思う。そういう同門下の人たちと先生没後の今日、時おり何かの機会で顔を合わせるごとに感じる名状し難いなつかしさの奥には、千駄木せんだぎや早稲田わせだの先生の家における、昔の愉快な集会の記憶が背景となって隠れているであろう。
記憶の悪い自分のこの追憶の記録には、おそらく時代の錯誤や、事実の思い違いがいろいろあるであろうと思う。ただ自分の主観の世界における先生のおもかげを、自分としてはできるだけ忠実に書いてみたつもりであるが、学者として、作家として、また人間としての先生の面影を紹介するものとしては、あまりにも零細な枝葉の断片に過ぎないものである。これについてはひたすらに読者ならびに同門下諸賢の寛容を祈る次第である。
夏目漱石の追憶より
Translation - English On the way to Sensei’s funeral, I watched as the streetlights passed over our vehicle’s celluloid canopy. They blurred, dancing wildly like stars in elation. Natsume Sensei taught me a great deal. Not only did he teach me the art of haiku, but also how to perceive the beauty of life with my own two eyes. He taught me to discern between the truth and the false in the heart of man and to love the truth and hate the false.
Ask my inner egoist, and I’d admit that I never concerned myself with whether Sensei was a skilled poet, his proficiency in English, or his stature as an author. Those things never even crossed my mind.
Contrarily, I wished he would have remained a humble schoolteacher forever. If Natsume Sensei had not become such an influential author, perhaps he would have lived just a little longer.
When my heart was heavy with misfortune, a conversation with Sensei would lift my spirits. His presence could dispel the darkest clouds of discontent or indifference, allowing me to devote myself entirely to my endeavors again. His existence was my nourishment, the medicine for my heart.
From where did Natsume Sensei’s mysterious influence originate? The more I pondered that question, the more I realized that I did not want to feel so objectively about him as to find the answer. I resolved never to ponder such questions again.
Driving down the narrow roadway to Hanashita, Sensei’s other pupils, the same as me, gathered around with heavy hearts. If my incessant recollections of Natsume Sensei have made you feel I had monopolized his person, this should illustrate that he had many other pupils who felt as I do. We are all representatives of his unwavering impact.
Since Sensei’s passing, we students have occasionally reunited. These gatherings are suffused with an indescribable nostalgia rooted in memories of our times at his estates in Sendaki and Waseda. Admittedly, my recollections might be marred by inaccuracies and misremembered facts—a consequence of my fallible memory. Yet, these are my most sincere, faithful narrations of those times, mere slivers of Sensei’s expansive life as a scholar, author, and human being. They hardly capture his full essence. To my readers and fellow students, I seek your indulgence for any discrepancies.
From Remembering Natsume Sōseki by Torahiko Terada
Japanese to English: Animation Lesson with Genga-chan・原画ちゃんの作画のレッスン General field: Other Detailed field: Education / Pedagogy
Translation - English Director:
Before we begin, I just want to clarify something about the time sheets. I see there are no marks inside them. Are we going to animate this entirely in keyframes?
Genga-chan:
Yup.
Director:
Alright, got it. Just a heads-up about the sheets: as a rule, and unless there’s a specific need, try to steer clear of animating on fours.
Ryoko:
‘Animating on’ or ‘Koma Uchi’ means the interval at which images change. When animating on threes, for example, the image changes every 3 frames. Animating on smaller numbers usually results in smoother animations.
Director:
If you try converting a typical anime to on-fours, you’ll see… it drops frames upon importing.
Genga-chan:
Would it be helpful if I sent you the on-four sequence?
Director:
Yes, please do. I’m looking to see where the frames might be dropping. This is an interesting test to understand the impact of different frame rates. Also, while I’m working on this, there’s something else I need you to do.
Genga-chan:
Sure.
Japanese to English: Interview With an Animation Director・作画監督とのインタビュー General field: Other Detailed field: Journalism
Translation - English Preface:
As things stand, although the industry has seen some upward momentum, it would be a stretch to say that anime creators are starting to see any real financial gain.
People hoped that a large influx of capital from companies like Disney and NETFLIX would significantly improve workers' salaries, but unfortunately, that did not happen...
Toshio Okada and Yutaka Yamamoto summarize why that didn’t happen in the following YouTube video. In short, the issue is the “investor" mindset of production committees and how it influences anime funding strategies.
youtu.be/zA7XKF0ZnsU
Recent strategies of investor-style funding have brought production funds down for animation studios, not up. This is leading to a massive streak of cheap animation and staffing shortages.
Interviewing Okada-san and Yamamoto-san to hear their perspectives, too, would be a good idea.
Question 1) Which roles in the industry have seen the biggest wage increase in the past five years?
That would be anything on the side of production management. So, production facilitators, office workers, producers, etc.
However, it’s worth noting that these positions are not earning more income because the anime industry is cleaning up its act; instead, it’s thought that these wage increases are the result of Shinzo Abe’s cabinet, which implemented work reform policies and stricter laws regarding employee overtime pay, unpaid overtime wages, etc.
This has led to better treatment for positions typically hired as full-time, such as production facilitators.
However, outsourcing and contract work is a massive part of the anime industry in order to cut benefits and save on wages. Most animators are hired as contractors, so they cannot benefit from this work reform.
Question 2) From your perspective, have the wage increases been distributed equally across the industry?
I know a few junior animators who’ve done work for Disney properties, so I checked in with them to answer this question.
On Star Wars: Visions (a Disney property), they were paid 250 yen ($2.25, not accounting for recent inflation changes) per frame of animation. That’s very low and typical of the norm.
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Registered at ProZ.com: Jul 2024. Became a member: Jul 2024.
Accomplished Japanese-English translator and interpreter with a deep passion for media and publishing. Over five years of experience in literary and media translations, enhancing content accessibility and engaging readers through meticulous attention to detail and deep cultural insights.
I specialize in literary translation and have intimate experience working in the Japanese animation and manga industries.
Member since Jul '24
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