For people who are working as translators!!! Is it easy to find a job in translating?

Question

I'd absolutly love a job as a translator, particularly writing captions for movies. French and Japanese would be my primary languages.
I was just wondering how difficult it is to get a job in the industry? What if you're not a native speaker (but still have obtained fluency)?
Any advise or comments about translating (or interpreting) would be greatly appreciated...

Answer 1

No. Some people do well, mainly those who get into international organisations through having the right language combination and passing their entry exams (and even there surprising people sometimes get through and surprising people don't!) while others simply get by as freelance translators and have to work ridiculous hours and really mess up their social lives to eke out a living. Having said that, I don't want to put you off, as you might turn out to be one of the fortunate few. And I say few advisedly, as the possibilities are very restricted for the kind of job which you covet. The golden rule of translation is always to translate into your mother tongue, as only in your mother tongue do you fully understand the nuances of language. There are some people who, by being brought up and educated in a foreign country, might claim to know the language of that country to mother tongue standard, which is fair enough.

Take heed of the advice of the answerer who told you how badly paid caption writing is. I fancied doing some a while back and could not believe the low rates offered. Translators have heavy overheads to meet in terms of equipment, the expenses of running their home as an office, professional indemnity insurance and all kinds of other things and they also have to eat, along with the rest of mankind. The cost of living is rising inexorably and freelance translation rates have at best remained static over the past ten years and are even, in some cases, slipping backwards. This does not augur well for the future!

Every good wish to you in pursuing your goal. I think perhaps the best advice (and it doesn't go down too well, but it's based on my own experience) is to make sure you have a bread-and-butter career and do your translations and interpreting as a sideline until such time as you feel you are doing well enough to take up a full time career as a linguist.

Answer 2

no, it is really difficult, especially because people thing that just anybody can translate, so they tend to hire people who are willing to do it for pennies. a few points:
the only really good translating jobs, such as at the EU, the UN, etc. will require a translating degree or an international university degree, and a very high degree of fluency, which I strongly suspect you don't have, considering the naivite implicit in your question.
One usually translates from a foreign language into your native language. So you would translate from French and Japanese into English.
If you are still young enough to dedicate the next Several years to language study, then start working at it. Get a university degree in languages. If the degree is from a university where English is the language of instruction, then you will also need a couple of years at a translators school as well.

Answer 3

Hi Roxy. I was recruited as a bilingual policeman from a small department in South Texas to a big department in east Texas. Fifteen years later, I started working an extra-job interpreting for a company that finds interpreters/translators. I had to wait because they had an abundance of Spanish/English translators. It should be easier for people fluent in French and especially Japanese, especially if you are in a huge city where translators are needed. Additionally, the company I free-lance for as an interpreter/translator prefers native speakers. You will probably have to pass a language proficiency test in the languages you wish to translate. I waited about a month after submitting a resume & cover letter before I was given an assignment. It is GREAT work!

Good luck.

H