Q1. What sort of work do you do currently?
Currently, I am in the Multilingual Translation Team, which works on translating English and Japanese content to all sorts of different languages.
I am mostly in charge of projects involving Swedish, which I majored in during my university days.
I also use my English skills to help the Japanese–English Translation Team in Japanese-to-English and English-to-Japanese translation projects.
Q2. What sort of tasks do you enjoy, and what sort of tasks are you good at?
Most regular companies do not have work that involves using Swedish, so I’m really glad that at Torindo, I get to use Swedish in my work on a daily basis and improve my language skills.
I also enjoy reading Japanese books and manga, and writing in Japanese, and through experiencing various translations projects, I felt that I particularly enjoy and excel in Japanese proofreading work. I wanted to further improve my skills in this area I excel in, and so I acquired a qualification in Japanese technical writing. Now, in addition to proofreading translations submitted by our translators, I’ve also been having more and more opportunities to translate from English to Japanese myself.
Q3. Is there any project that particularly left an impression on you?
In particular, a project that involved translating an American comic to Japanese left a big impression on me. At Torindo, most of our work involves technical translations, such as translating manuals, and for these projects, we are required to keep faithful to the source language without omitting information or adding excess information. However, for entertainment-related translations, rather than translating literally, it is essential to localize the content, translating more liberally into natural prose that takes into consideration the culture and language conventions of the reader.
For example, in comic translations, first-person pronouns of characters in the source English all use “I.” However, in Japanese, there are various forms of “I,” such as “Atashi,” “Ore,” and “Boku,” and we have to choose the appropriate first-person pronoun according to the character’s personality and characteristics when translating. There are many other areas that require extra effort—rhymes in the source English have to be smartly rewritten in a way that makes sense in Japanese, and the length of dialogue lines have to be adjusted so that they fit the size of the speech bubbles.
I worked together in close cooperation with the translator, and our completed translated comic was published as a comic book and in a comic anthology. We’ve heard from Japanese fans of the comic that they really appreciate being able to read the comic in Japanese, and that gave me a real sense of pride and joy in my work.
Q4. What sort of corporate culture does Torindo have?
Teamwork is crucial here in Torindo. During busy periods, we naturally help each other and handle our work flexibly while supporting one another. Our workplace has a calm atmosphere, and although we mostly work from home, we have a system in place that allows us to promptly contact our coworkers and ask questions when necessary. Our senior employees are always ready to answer questions to the best of their ability and this warm support from them gives me peace of mind.
Q5. How do you spend your days off?
I spend my days off relaxing and indulging in my hobbies.
Q6. Are there any challenges you’d like to take on in the future?
If I get the chance, I’d like to try the technical writing work that our other department is in charge of. I also want to further grow my possibilities by building my skills in sales through actually meeting and talking to clients, and introducing new clients to our company’s services.
A Message to All Those Going Through Job-Hunting
Back when I was job-hunting as a student, I initially wanted a job in a different industry, but I wasn’t getting positive results. After reflecting on myself and thinking about what I really wanted, I settled on finding a job in the translation industry. I remember my interview with Torindo being completely different to the ones I had with companies of other industries, and I felt that I was truly able to be myself in that interview.
As long as you stay true to yourself in your job-hunting journey, I am sure that eventually you will find a company that suits you well. Sometimes a job you’ve never even considered before may turn out to be the one that’s perfect for you, so I think it’s important that you keep an open mind. And, if fate has it, I’d be delighted if Torindo turns out to be that company for you.
Don’t push yourself too hard, take breaks and refresh yourself when needed, and I wish you all the best in your job-hunting journey.