Martin Scorsese, Cinema and the Future of Interpreting

Last month, Academy Award winning film director Martin Scorsese delivered the 42nd annual Jefferson Lecture at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Earlier this week, I had a chance to listen to Scorsese’s lecture on the power of images, motion pictures, and what he calls “the language of cinema.” His insights were enlightening, but one of his comments was particularly poignant and encapsulates what I think is the state of the interpreting profession today. 

“Cinema,” he said, “has always been tied to technological development. And if we spend too much time lamenting what’s gone, then were going to miss the excitement of what’s happening now. I mean, everything is wide open. To some this is a cause for concern, but I think it is an exciting time precisely because we don’t know what tomorrow will bring, let alone next week.” 

Of course, interpreting has not always been tied to technological development and it has been around much, much longer than cinema. But the development of interpreting in the modern age has been closely tied to technological development, beginning with the first microphones, amplifiers and mixers that were used to test the feasibility of simultaneous interpretation at the International Labor Organization in Geneva and later to facilitate the war crimes tribunals in Nuremberg. Technological advancement continues and is having a profound effect on how, where and when interpreters work, but more importantly, on how the world communicates.

I agree with Martin Scorsese, it is an exciting time precisely because we don’t know what tomorrow will bring. But there is an unprecedented opportunity to influence the future of interpreting and the way the world communicates. InterpretAmerica 4 will take place on June 14-15, in Reston, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. This will be an unprecedented gathering of interpreters, interpreting industry leaders and technological innovators meeting to bring interpreting into the 21st century. Won’t you join us? 

Early bird registration ends May 12, 2013. 

Barry Slaughter Olsen

3rd Summit on Interpreting Keynote Address: The Digital Revolution and Multilingual Communication--A New Paradigm

The 3^rd North American Summit on Interpreting took place on June 15-16, 2012, in Monterey, California. For the Summit’s first time on the West Coast, InterpretAmerica reached beyond the confines of the interpreting world to invite a keynote speaker who would help the interpreting profession see just how it can not only fit into but also influence the technology-dominated world we live in.

That speaker was author, entrepreneur and technologist Scott Klososky. While Scott normally speaks to CEOs of Fortune 500 companies and business and civic leaders from around the world, he didn’t flinch when we approached him to address an eclectic group of some 180 interpreters, agency owners, professional association leaders, interpreter educators, and end users of interpreting services. He took the time and effort to understand what interpreters do today and how they do it as he prepared his remarks. The result was an informative, engaging and thought-provoking presentation that we now offer to interpreters everywhere here on our blog.

The video is just over an hour long, so carve out some time and prepare to learn and to have your own perceptions challenged. We think it will be time well spent. We look forward to your comments after you watch the video. If you would like to have a copy of Scott’s slides, they may be downloaded here.

Be sure to mark your calendar for the 4^th North American Summit on Interpreting on June 14-15, 2013. For the 4^th Summit, we will be returning to the Washington, DC region. Keep an eye on www.interpretamerica.net for more information.

Finally, thanks to all the interpreters, technicians and dreamers out there who are helping our profession evolve and adapt to the 21^st century. This video is for you. We hope you enjoy it and hope to see you at next year's Summit on Interpreting!

One Profession, One Voice: Selling the Interpreting Profession to the Public

Nataly Kelly, Chief Researcher at Common Sense Advisory and regular contributor to the Huffington Post, recently created a professional meme for the Interpreting Profession as part of her blog, The Interpreter’s Launchpad.

“What I Do” memes are popping up all over social media, and provide an often humorous look at how professions are commonly stereotyped. The meme for The Interpreter, however, gets to the heart of a deeper dilemma facing our profession. A common stereotype implies a common understanding of what a given professional does. For interpreting however, few people actually know: a) what we do; and b) why it matters.

Interpreters routinely complain about poor recognition, low pay, lack of prestige, and how undervalued the service we provide is. However, before something can be truly valued, it must be first perceived and then understood.

Interested in doing something about our professional image?

At InterpretAmerica we feel strongly that it is up to us, members of the interpreting industry, to create that perception and understanding. To that end, we have invited award-winning communications consultant Spencer Critchley from Boots Road Group, an advertising, public relations and digital media firm, to moderate the PR Workgroup Session: One Profession, One Voice – Selling the Interpreting Profession to the Public. Attendees will receive a crash course on PR and then work to create unified messaging for the profession, continuing the discussion that began during the 2^nd North American Summit on Interpreting. Your contributions will be captured and published as a beginning publicity template for our industry.

Complete details can be found at www.interpretamerica.net/summit. Early bird rates, student and teacher discounts, and poster presentation submissions all still available! Register now!

2nd Summit on Interpreting Keynote Address: Technology Trends and the Interpreting Marketplace

The 2^nd North American Summit on Interpreting took place on June 17-18, 2011, in Washington, DC. Nataly Kelly, the chief research officer at Common Sense Advisory, spoke to a standing-room-only crowd on “Technology Trends and the Interpreting Marketplace.”

Many interpreters, industry representatives, and professional association leaders were in attendance. Several attendees traveled from as far away as Canada, Europe, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Brazil for the Summit. However many more were unable to attend for a host of reasons. But thanks to MediaVision USA, the Premier Technology Sponsor for the 2^nd Summit, we were able to record Nataly’s keynote address, which we offer here in its entirety. (Just click on the video above.) The slides of the presentation will be available soon for download as well.

So, if you had hoped to make it to the Summit but didn’t, couldn’t make it because of cost or distance, or simply had no intention of attending but are now curious, we invite you to sit back and open your eyes and mind to the possibilities of what interpreting can become in the 21^st century if we embrace and shape the technologies that are being used to provide interpreting services. Please share your thoughts with us after you watch the keynote address.

The 2nd Summit wasn't all technology. Five workgroups met on the second day to discuss topics vital to the future of interpreting: professional associations, education and training, certification and credentialing, legal and advocacy, and technology. All of the groups took careful notes of their discussions, which will be condensed into a white paper that will be published later this summer.

Thanks to everyone who attended the 2nd Summit and to all those who followed us on Twitter (@InterpAmerica) and Facebook (InterpretAmerica). The Summit on Interpreting will move to the West Coast next year. Mark your calendars now and join us in Monterey, California, on June 15-16, 2012.