Amateur translation agency in action: a case study of scanlation

Resumo

This article focuses on the phenomenon of scanlation, which in practice sees non­ professional translators involved in the unauthorised translation and online distribution of graphic narratives. The case study presented here focuses on the amateur translation of Japanese visual narratives (known as manga) into English. The aim of this paper is to shed light specifically on translational aspects of scanlation into English: what motivates the selection of a particular text or genres for translation? What problems emerge during the process of translation? How are these problems solved?