In short
- Voice over puts a new voice on the picture; dubbing replaces the dialogue; lip-sync dubbing also matches the mouth.
- If nobody speaks on camera, you almost never need lip-sync.
- Decide the format first. It changes the script, the schedule and the quote more than the voice does.
Three jobs with overlapping names
Voice over is a voice added to a film. For narration, where no one speaks on screen, the new voice simply replaces the old narration in another language. For interviews, some productions keep the original speaker faintly audible underneath and lay the translation over it.
Dubbing replaces the spoken dialogue of the people on screen with a new track in another language, so the viewer hears everyone in their own language and no original voice remains.
Lip-sync dubbing goes further: the translated lines are written and timed so that they sit on the mouth movements of the speakers. It is the most demanding version and is mostly used for drama and close-up speech.
When voice over is enough
Narrated films, explainers, product videos, e-learning and documentaries with off-screen narration rarely need more. Nobody's lips are in shot, so the job is a well-adapted script, a voice that suits the audience and timing that follows the scenes.
Interviews and testimonials sit in between. Many teams keep subtitles and a faint original voice, or use a clean replacement track. Which one suits depends on your audience and where the video is shown.
When you need dubbing
If people speak on camera and the viewer is meant to forget a translation is happening, you want dubbing. The script then has to be adapted to the length of each line, because most languages take more or fewer syllables than the original.
If faces fill the frame for long stretches, lip-sync is the question. It costs more time and constrains the wording, so it is worth asking whether subtitles or voice over would serve the audience as well.
Questions to settle before you ask for quotes
Does anyone speak on camera? For how long, and how close is the shot? Is there music and effects under the dialogue that must be kept? Do you have the original script or only the video? Who approves the translation, and in which language will they read it?
Answering these in advance lets a producer quote the right job instead of the nearest one.
What we do
Our dubbing service produces a new voice track for each language that follows the meaning and length of each line, with a producer directing and a native speaker reviewing. We also offer lip-sync dubbing.
