I asked @fildub 3 questions – Obviously, there were follow-ups.
Hi everyone! While I’m away from the keyboard at the moment, let me tell you about this project called @fildub, which has gradually made a quaint community on Twitter — and eventually, it got noticed by a major TV network’s anime block (let’s just say that the ones who handle the block’s social media handles are very cool because they know what’s up in the anime-viewing community and how to approach it).
Long story short, @fildub is where local anime fans gush on Filipino-dubbed anime in the time where hugot (feels) and implying are prevalent. I was able to talk to its moderator this week,and I asked her three questions first — of course, I followed up with a few more questions.
When did you decided to build @fildub and why?
If I recall correctly, it was the around the time of the first run of the Free! dub? In late 2015. There was a ridiculously funny pun, which was so unbelievable to my ears that I had to look for people watching and confirm it from them!
But good luck doing that in Facebook. It was easier to search Twitter, and eventually I decided I’ll just make an account to talk about the funny/interesting/“hugot” translations from Filipino dubs and hopefully interact with other fans.
What can you say about the voice acting and localization industries now compared to these before, in your perspective?
I’m answering this as an outsider looking in (into the industry) so things might not be entirely accurate. But, one: there seems to be more voice actors now, and not just for anime, because there are a lot of dubbed foreign shows/movies being aired (a trend set by TV5, no?). More dubbing studios too, and these studios hold their own workshops and auditions, so I think it’s an exciting time to get into voice acting!
As for localization, I’ve heard (somebody please confirm this) that more anime are being translated from English subtitles (provided by the licensor) and not from Japanese audio anymore. So from Japanese to English, then English to Filipino, that’s already two levels of translation — and possibly two degrees of meaning loss.
Now that TV5 mentioned Fildub, what are your plans? I took note of the current inactivity now, but may I ask how long the inactivity will be?
Mind you, I didn’t come up with the term. Oldies like me (and you?) used “Tagalog dub,” “Filipino dub,” or even “PH dub,” and it was only through Twitter I discovered that the young ones refer to them as “Fildub” nowadays (convenient too; only two syllables!). So that was a surprise when TV5 invited us “ka fildub”! That’s the first time a channel acknowledged us viewers from this side of the internet. I don’t know if they have any plans, but for @fildub, I’ll just keep on doing what I usually do.
“So that was a surprise when TV5 invited us “ka fildub”! That’s the first time a channel acknowledged us viewers from this side of the internet.”
Right now, I’m keeping up only with Attack on Titan: Junior High and Voltron: Legendary Defender from all the dubbed anime on TV so that’s what I’ll keep tweeting about, or at least try to. I’ve been busy with work recently so I might not be able to watch with everyone live, but I’m recording them so I can watch at a more convenient time. Regular posting will return in a few weeks. (Sorry, @fildub is currently a one-person team, but if anyone’s interested in co-running then hit me up!)
But watch out, @fildub might come to your local con soon! 😉
I was curious about the entry of @fildub to cons. Any hint which month you may appear?
Ay di naman con. Smaller events. March.
What is the one thing that’s common in the @fildub fanbase so far?
This is difficult to answer. *laughs* Viewers of dubbed series have varied opinions — at least those on my feed — but, one thing the majority want, is a way to watch these dubs online.
Now that we got a better gist of what @fildub is, I hope this post answers some of your questions that were not covered in its own FAQ section online, in case you want to get to know its key terms (that includes Oikawa from Haikyuu!!). Looking forward to see it in person soon.
