TRANSLATION - SUBTITLING
Without translation, Indigenous cinema is doomed to remain a "niche" phenomenon in France.
How many Indigenous films remain invisible today in this country only because they haven't (yet) been subtitled? And yet, the interest for Indigenous-made content is stronger than ever.
You are an Indigenous producer or you recently produced a film directed by an Indigenous filmmaker or will be distributing one soon and wish to have it subtitled into French? Let's work together!
Since 2009, Ciné4A has been offering professional subtitling services with a strong focus on Indigenous audiovisual content. Contact us for an adaptation that will meet both professional technical standards and the linguistic/cultural/political specificities of Indigenous contexts.
Who am I ?
A Master's graduate (DESS) in translation with a specialization in audiovisual adaptation, I have been subtitling films since 2002. Although I appreciate all types of content and formats, over the past two decades I have primarily subtitled Indigenous films in order to give them greater visibility in France.
Since 2009, I have translated and/or adapted over a hundred Indigenous films.
I also occasionally work as a literary and scientific translator, again primarily for projects that highlight and focus on the promotion of Indigenous artists.
Type of Service #1 : subtitling - audiovisual adaptation
Type of Service #2 : script translation
Type of Service #3. : translation of scientific articles and research papers
Working languages
English into French
A FEW ARTWORKS I TRANSLATED
Waska, the Forest is my Family
Film
A documentary by Nina Gualingua (Kichwa), Eli Virkina et Boloh Miranda, Ecuador, 2025, 15mn
As commodification and extractivism in the Amazon Rainforest extends to the plant medicine hayakwaska, the granddaughter of a Yachak (shaman) reveals the essence of what it means to live as part of the forest.
Translated to be presented in 2025 as part of the Nantes Museum d'histoire naturelle 150 anniversary screening I curated for De la Plume à l'Écran.
© Photo : 4th World Media
Small Island, Big Song
Film
A documentary by Tim Cole, Australia, 2020, 81mn
Filmed over three years on 16 Island nations across the Pacific & Indian Oceans, this grassroots musical follows the ocean highways uniting ancient musical lineages. From Madagascar to Rapa Nui/Easter Island, Taiwan to Zenadth Kes/The Torres Strait. A heartfelt plea for environmental awareness and cultural preservation from those on the frontline of the climate crisis.
Translated to be presented in 2023 as the opening screening of the Nature Nomade Festival in Nantes.
© Photo : SIBS
Dawnland
Film
A documentary by Adam Mazo and Ben Pender-Cudlip, USA, 2018, 86mn
For decades, child welfare authorities have been removing Native American children from their homes to “save them from being Indian.” In Maine, the first official Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the United States begins a historic investigation. Dawnland goes behind-the-scenes as this historic body grapples with difficult truths, redefines reconciliation, and charts a new course for state and tribal relations.
Translated to be presented in 2019 as part of a French tour co-organized by De la Plume à l'Écran (France) and Upstander Project (USA), with Christopher Newell (Passamaquoddy) in attendance.
© Photo : DPAE 2019
Smokin' Fish
Film
A documentary by Cory Mann (Tlingit) and Luke Griswold-Tergis, USA, 2011, 80mn
Cory Mann is a quirky Tlingit businessman hustling to make a dollar in Alaska. He gets hungry for smoked salmon, nostalgic for his childhood, and decides to spend a summer smoking fish at his family's traditional fish camp. By turns tragic, bizarre, or just plain ridiculous, Smokin' Fish, tells the story of one man's attempts to navigate the messy zone of collision between the modern world and an ancient culture.
Translated as part of the Festival Ciné Alter'Natif 2013, with Cory Mann as the main festival guest, and then distributed in France by De la Plume à l'Écran.
© Photo : DPAE 2013
Mohawk Midnight Runners
Film
A Fiction film by Zoe Leigh Hopkins (Kanien’keha:ka/Heiltsuk), Canada, 2013, 13 mn
A Mohawk man starts a midnight running club to honor the life of a friend he lost to suicide. Together with his buddies, Grant carries on his departed friends love of… streaking all over the reserve.
Translated as part of the Festival Ciné Alter'Natif 2024, with Zoe Hopkins as the main festival guest.
© Photo : Big Soul Production
Emptying the Tank
Film
A documentary by Caroline Monnet (Anishnabé), Canada, 2018, 10mn
A striking portrait of Chippewa mixed martial artist Ashley Nichols. Director Caroline Monnet eloquently demonstrates and celebrates Ashley's inner strength, fortitude and dedication to her physical and spiritual health. This short documentary explores what makes Ashley so determined to rise to the top of the extremely competitive and controversial world of mixed martial arts.
Translated as part of the Festival Ciné Alter'Natif 2024.
© Photo : DESC Images / Caroline Monnet / Eric Cinq-Mars
Ronnie BoDean
Film
A Fiction film by Steven P. Judd (Kiowa/Choctaw), USA, 2015, 12mn
Ronnie BoDean is a larger-than-life “toughman” suffering from a mean hangover. When his neighbor is jailed, his native warrior’s need to teach takes over so he shows her two precocious kids modern “survival skills”.
Translated as part of the Festival Ciné Alter'Natif 2015, with Steven Paul Judd as our main festival guest.
© Photo : SPJ
Other films by Steven P. Judd that I subtitled : Neil discovers the Moon (2011), The Search for the World's Best Indian Taco (2010), Shhh (2013), RoundDance (2014).
Goodnight Irene
Film
A Fiction film by Sterlin Harjo (Creek/Seminole), USA, 2006, 14mn
Two young men have a life-changing encounter with an elder in the waiting room of an Indian Health Service clinic.
Translated as part of the Rencontres cinématographiques de Digne-les-Bains in 2012, for which I curated a special Indigenous programm during 10 years.
© Photo : Indion Films
Lily Gladstone : Far Out There
Film
A documentary by Brooke Pepion Swaney (Salish/Blackfeet), USA, 2021, 14mn
Filmmaker Brooke Pepion Swaney profiles independent film actress Lily Gladstone as she prepares for the release of a high-profile Hollywood film. Drawing from her childhood on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana and her peripatetic life as a professional actor, Gladstone learns to stand on her own two feet in order to make her voice heard.
Translated as part of the Festival Grand West, for which I curated a special Indigenous programm in 2023, with Brooke Swaney in attendance.
© Photo : PBS
Trudell
Film
A documentary by Heather Rae (Cherokee), USA, 2009, 80mn
Combining images and archival footage with interviews and performances, this biography reveals the philosophy and motivations behind Native American activist and poet John Trudell’s work and its relationship to contemporary Indian history.
Translated for the French release of the film in 2009.
© Photo : Appaloosa Pictures
Apikiwiyak
Film
A narrative short by Shane Belcourt (Metis) and Maria Campbell (Metis), Canada, 2014, 13mn
In this truly collaborative work of art, renowned author Maria Campbell and filmmaker Shane Belcourt explore the consequences of post-colonial violence that permeates the contemporary lives of Indigenous communities.
© Photo : Frog Girl Films
Une vie brûlée
Book
Translation of 60 poems by Will Wagonburner (Omaha), 2010, Éditions À Ta Turquie
Will Dunn White was an Omaha musician, composer, and performer. Born in Sioux City, Nebraska, in 1951, he passed away in Metz, France, on December 25, 1999.
A committed activist, Will chose his stage name with a touch of irony: "Wagonburner," the "Indian" warrior who attacks stage-coaches... He left behind the memory of remarkable performances during his European concerts, numerous songs, and those previously unpublished lyrics, translated into French for the first time.
© Photo : À Ta Turquie
