[Freelance Remote Position] English to Japanese Terminologist at Culture Flipper

[Freelance Remote Position] English to Japanese Terminologist

Are you a hidden inquisitive homo ludens with an organized mind? Yes? Join us as a terminologist!

You will play a key role in the proper name localization for the English to Japanese language pair.

This is a freelance, remote position, ideal for those of you who enjoy having your own schedule and engaging with intellectually stimulating colleagues. If you are particularly the type whose productivity is deeply affected by the ethos of your workplace, continue reading.

Run the following self-qualification check:

• Do you identify as a multilingual (bilingual, trilingual, etc.)?
• Is Japanese your primary language?
• Do you have an eye that spots subtle differences, errors, and typos that 99% of people may not even notice? Especially what they may call “minor”? N.B. What may be deemed minor is valued as “hidden treasures” here.
• Have you ever felt a sense of mania running through your veins while diving deep into certain culture phenomena, stories, films and shows, or games with hours of research?
• Are you more than punctual? Are you always the first one there?
• Are your desk and email inbox always clutter-free and organized because it gives you peace of mind?
• Are you a fast learner?
• Do you know what it means when a 100-person team outshines a single genius? Collaboration is key for us.

Responsibilities:

• Proper name localization research
  Research and localize proper names into Japanese by finding existing translations for proper names in books, web comics, and games that shows and films are based on.

• Proper name localization evaluation
  Evaluate existing localizations of proper names to select the most suitable options based on supporting evidence and consistency with a specific tone and register.

• Phonetic transliterations of proper names
  Develop accurate phonetic transliterations for proper names by collaborating with phoneticians and leveraging social media trend metrics and advanced language models (We will train you in using social media metrics analytics and language models for proper name selection).

• Semantic translations of proper names
  When required, produce semantic translations for proper names (program names, book titles, etc.).

• Glossary management
  Maintain a detailed glossary of terms, including their metadata (definitions, usage examples, genre context, categorizations by client, conceptual hierarchy, and subject matter). Ensure consistency across projects and make updates as needed.

• Collaboration with phoneticians and copywriters
  Work closely with phoneticians to ensure accurate transliterations and collaborate with copywriters for transcreation efforts, especially in genres that require engaging and audience-appropriate proper name translations.

• Collaboration with AI/Neural Machine Translation research engineering team
  Provide evaluation data of proper name localizations for cross-lingual mapping precision for the AI/NMT research engineering team to finetune the relevant language models and evaluate their performance.

• Quality assurance
  Review and verify the accuracy of all proper names, ensuring error-free and culturally relevant translations before submission.

• Knowledge sharing
  Look for ways to improve the internal terminology management system, continuously updating glossaries and workflows for each content universe and/or domain.

Requirements:

• Bilingual proficiency: Strong command of English (source language) and Japanese (target language), with deep cultural knowledge and linguistic nuance.
• Experience: 3+ years in localization, terminology management, or related fields. Knowledge of shows and films based on books, web comics, and games is preferred.
• Terminology management: Experience in managing glossaries and term bases, with a focus on maintaining consistency across projects is a plus.
• Research skills: Proven ability to thoroughly research and verify term translations using multiple sources, including fan communities and official databases.
• Attention to detail: High level of accuracy and thoroughness in checking term consistency, ensuring error-free results.
• Interest in pop culture: A genuine passion for pop culture, including a deep understanding of trends and fan communities, to ensure culturally relevant and engaging term translations.
• Collaboration: Skilled in working with phoneticians and copywriters to deliver accurate and creative term solutions across teams.
• Problem solving: Adaptable and creative, capable of making informed decisions on transcreation and localization challenges.
• Quality assurance: Strong experience in performing quality checks to ensure linguistic accuracy and alignment with the original IP.
• Time management: Able to meet tight deadlines in fast-paced environments, delivering high-quality work on time.

Work schedule and location:

• Positions Available: 2
• Location: Remote (work from home)
• Compensation: Based on experience and performance. Kindly include your desired hourly rate for consideration.

Application process:

• Submit application > Resume screening > Written test > Interview > 3-month freelance trial period > Formal freelance contract (upon successful completion of the trial period)
• Processing time: Please expect 2-3 weeks for application processing before being contacted.

About Culture Flipper

Culture Flipper is a localization expert group focused on an immersive fan experience in the entertainment industry.

Domain experts and writers in each country collaborate with language experts to create a brand experience that gains audience trust in many languages. What we deliver is an intuitive localized experience for fans. The impact of Culture Flipper’s methods of localization lies in our multi-step collaborative workflow where we take translation as the first step in creating vibrant experiences that aim to touch the hearts of fans in their local languages.

The people of Culture Flipper break free from conventions and enjoy lifestyles that allow them to be inspired and continuously reborn. It is our thrilling and deep-rooted mission to find ways of communicating that move audiences with experiments and new attempts to change people and the world.

Culture Flipper was born on January 17, 2017, and is a diverse and inclusive multicultural corporation based in California, U.S.A.