As China's television and film industry booms, the number of TV dramas, films and a variety of shows have also seen considerable growth in recent years. Some of them have also been eyeing overseas market for potential foreign audiences.

Many, however, found that translation is one of the big hurdles. Contrary to the Chinese audiences, who share a common cultural and historical background, translation of the scripts and titles is crucial for foreign audiences to understand the content.

Experts say that the Chinese TV series and films have potential to compete with the South Korean TV series and the Japanese manga in the foreign market, adding that a good translation, however, is essential.

Why is it important?

Several hit Chinese TV series have found their overseas Chinese audiences not only because of their attractive storylines, gorgeous clothing and settings, but mostly, the efforts of the translators.

"Nirvana in Fire" is a 2015 hit Chinese TV series, which triggered wide discussion and attracted millions of people in China. It is a "Monte Cristo"-styled revenge story.

Instead of translating the title into "The Ranking of Mount Lang Ya" (Langya Bang), according to its Chinese version, the current English title has manifested well the core content of the story whist familiar to the English-speaking people.

"To the Sky Kingdom", another successfully exported TV series adapted from a mythological romance novel, is also an excellent example underlining the importance of translation.

The translator of the original novel is Professor Chen Xing from Nanjing University.

Many praised the story.

However, there are also failed examples of translation. For instance, the TV series "Empresses in the Palace" which is the most loved TV series of the year in China, could not attract the overseas audiences.

Poor translation of the lyrics is one of the reasons, which charmed the Chinese audiences with its classical flavor.

What could be done?

Even though the translation is a big problem in TV series' export, it takes a long process to fix it. Fans are always one of the most powerful forces in promoting specific cultural products. So far, there are several websites which provide subtitles for Chinese TV series for free, such as Mydramalist and Viki.

Meanwhile, the Chinese government has also been making efforts to improve the weak links. Instead of employing Chinese translators, the country has been holding translation training classes for foreign experts and TV producers.

With a better understanding of the Chinese culture, foreign experts are usually able to find a more native way to translate.

While the Chinese TV series and films are becoming increasingly popular, many foreigners, attracted by the Chinese culture, are more willing to learn about the Chinese language and culture. Some even expressed hopes of traveling or living in China.

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