If nothing else, the evolution of digital media has been all the rage for the last couple of years. There are two primary reasons explaining the whys and hows behind the evolving habits in the media:
Mr. Beast’s ambitious focus on original content production is a strong demonstration of the power of localizing content for global audiences. However, shooting original content in multiple languages from scratch is quite time-consuming and costly, blocking many content creators from appealing to a global audience. Even Mr. Beast recognizes the benefits of repurposing existing video content for different languages by using AI-powered dubbing.
With AI dubbing creating a frenzy in the creative sector, there is no sign of the buzz slowing down. It continues to improve day by day, and an increasing number of forward-looking content owners are experimenting with it to reach a global audience.
Refika Birgül, one of the most famous Turkish content creators who shares recipes on her website and YouTube channel, eagerly tried AI dubbing for one of her videos. After uploading the video dubbed by Ollang's AI dubbing tool, she asked her more than 2 million followers for their thoughts on the technology: Does it simplify and enhance our work, or complicate our lives?
Refika considers the importance of speaking the language of her viewers. She adds the English audio track to some of her videos as the speaker herself. This definitely helps her connect with the audience on a more personal level, allowing her followers to hear her own voice and intonation. And yet, with the demand for more content in different languages, not only English, constantly increasing, it is neither efficient nor scalable to pursue this strategy or completely rely on traditional in-studio dubbing.
More will come about the pros and cons of AI dubbing and traditional studio dubbing later; but now let’s see how Ollang used voice cloning technology to generate Refika’s AI voice and dub this video for English-speaking audiences.
Ollang offers AI dubbing solutions in a wide number of languages, generating synthetic voices. Our cutting-edge localization software chooses the most suitable voice in the pool, based on certain criteria, such as naturalness, a native-like feel, and authenticity. The ultimate goal is to create in the viewer the engagement and pleasure that they experience with the voice of the original actor.
However, in Refika’s case, we adopted a different approach: voice cloning. After several correspondences with Refika and her team, we agreed on the details and decided to use this experimentation as a chance to take the pulse of the public about AI dubbing.
Refika's consent was non-negotiable for cloning her voice. Once we obtained her consent, we began training the AI to clone her voice using a small dataset. In fact, we didn't even ask Refika to provide us with a new record of her voice; but used her existing records. By applying a fast cloning method, we enhanced efficiency and accelerated the process, resulting in quicker delivery times.
Refika’s followers shared their thoughts and feelings about the impact that Refika’s AI voice had on them. Considering the number of comments and engagement from her viewers, it is obvious that people are quite interested in dubbing solutions leveraged by technology, and are very likely to watch a video tailored to different languages with AI dubbing. With that being said, they still prefer Refika herself speaking English in her videos, finding her intonation and accent more engaging and relatable.
Here are some of the comments from her viewers*:
“... [AI dubbing] was smooth but one can not help but compare it to you. I vote for Original Refika - but I guess for business it might reach broader audiences!”
“Great idea, Refika. This will help us to reach more of your recipes!”
“No AI ever could compare to your warm, delighted-about-food, smiley tone of voice. ... It was an interesting try, even if Refika is infinitely better than RefikAI.”
“I love the AI interpretation, and your wonderful personality comes through even with it. Your enthusiasm is contagious!”
“The AI voice-over is interesting, one of the best I've heard for changes in tone. ... a pre-recorded opening from you introducing English speakers to your Turkish content might encourage the AI resistance to give it a try and encourage new viewers to browse around your channel.”
(*Aside from minor edits like correcting typos, the comments are published as they were originally written.)
But why not see it for yourself and watch Refika as AI dubs her content?
AI DUBBING PROS:
↦ Efficiency: Saves time and effort.
↦ Cost Savings: Reduces expenses at a fraction of the cost.
↦ Consistency: Ensures uniformity in voice and delivery.
↦ Accessibility: Simplifies localization into multiple languages.
AI DUBBING CONS:
↦ Emotional Depth: Likely to result in a dub that lacks emotion and inflection.
↦ Cultural Adaptation: Difficulties in adapting to diverse cultures.
↦ Artistic Touch: Lacks creative interpretation and improvisation.
↦ Voice Diversity: Limited range for capturing the full range of human voices.
STUDIO DUBBING PROS:
↦ Authentic Performances: Better at reflecting the emotions of the original actors.
↦ Expressive Range: Human actors provide nuanced performances.
↦ Cultural Sensitivity: Incorporates cultural nuances and delicacies.
↦ Flexibility: Human voice actors can adjust performances.
STUDIO DUBBING CONS:
↦ Resource-Intensive: Requires significant time, effort, and financial resources.
↦ Consistency: Demanding to maintain consistent performances.
↦ Talent Availability: Challenges in finding suitable voice actors.
↦ Localization Constraints: Difficulties capturing humor and subtle nuances that are difficult to convey in TL.
Both human dubbing and AI dubbing have their place in localization, meaning that they don't have to be in constant conflict with each other. The wisest move is to benefit from technology as much as possible without the expense of human touch. The Human-in-the-loop (HITL) model is an ideal approach for all kinds of content genres, as AI and humans excel in different aspects. Human dubbing brings creativity and nuanced performances, while AI dubbing offers efficiency and scalability. The future of dubbing lies in harnessing the strengths of this symbiotic relationship to deliver exceptional and alluring localized content.
At Ollang, we envision a language-free world where stories transcend borders. To realize this vision, we continually enhance our AI localization software tool and support content creators and media companies every step of the way in their journey to expand globally. We enable them to create high-quality multilingual video content at affordable prices and with faster turnaround times. Why not empower Refika and other content creators to connect with wider audiences by adapting their videos into multiple languages?
Let us roll up our sleeves and witness how we weave the most engaging storytelling into your content.
Are you ready to go global? Upload your content to Olabs, our personalized project management platform, or book a consultation with our team to discuss your project in detail.
