Dubbing (filmmaking)

Dubbing, mixing, or re-recording is a post-production process used in filmmaking and video production in which additional or supplementary recordings are "mixed" with original production sound to create the finished soundtrack.

The process usually takes place on a dub stage. After sound editors edit and prepare all necessary tracks (dialogue, automated dialogue replacement (ADR), effects, Foley, and music), the dubbing mixer or mixers proceed to balance all of the elements and record the finished soundtrack. Dubbing is sometimes confused with ADR, also known as "additional dialogue replacement", "additional dialogue recording", and "looping", in which the original actors re-record and synchronize audio segments.

Outside the film industry, the term "dubbing" most commonly refers to the replacement of the voices of the actors shown on the screen with those of different performers speaking another language, which is called "revoicing" in the film industry.

In the past, dubbing was practiced primarily in musicals when the actor had an unsatisfactory singing voice. Today, dubbing enables the screening of audiovisual material to a mass audience in countries where viewers do not speak the same language as the performers in the original production.

Films, videos, and sometimes video games are often dubbed into the local language of a foreign market. In foreign distribution, dubbing is common in theatrically released films, television films, television series, cartoons, and anime.

Automated dialogue replacement (ADR) is the process of re-recording dialogue by the original actor after the filming process to improve audio quality or reflect dialogue changes (also known as "looping" or a "looping session"). ADR is also used to change original lines recorded on set to clarify context, improve diction or timing, or to replace an accented vocal performance. In India the process is simply known as "dubbing", while in the UK, it is also called "post-synchronisation" or "post-sync".

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