The struggle of dubbing performers in Hungary
All foreign production in Hungary shown on cinema and television is dubbed. The commercial success of these international audiovisual works relies heavily on the talent of performers who give their voice to foreign actors, allowing them to be understood and enjoyed by the Hungarian audience. Dubbing is an important employment opportunity for performers in the country, who work as free lancers, with little or no social protection, have to cope with highly flexible hours and… are paid next to nothing in return! FIA was informed that dubbing performers in Hungary only gain a scanty compensation for each reel, a level so low that no one in the civilised world would offer to pay. Local production companies refuse to bargain with the actors’ union and force 10-year old rates in their individual contracts instead!
This is clearly unacceptable. When Hungarian dubbing artists finally resolved to strike for three days on April 10 to 12 to voice their frustration and resentment, FIA supported their campaign by urging all main studios to accept dialogue. Perhaps not surprisingly, this call remained unanswered. It is easier to hide against a wall than to meet a challenge. But… does it really pay back? Performers’ ability to keep up and develop their skills, to the benefit of the industry, also relies on their ability to make a decent living of their work. It is hard to believe that, by paying performers a ludicrous token at a rate that does not even take soaring living costs in Hungary into account, one can really expect them to continue to improve their talent and provide the same high standards.
Dubbing is a highly specialised industry, largely based on trust. Actors in foreign audiovisual productions need to be reassured that their dubbing colleagues can work in acceptable conditions, or else their own performance may ultimately suffer from it. If this becomes impossible, distribution terms and conditions will inevitably have to change. Much to the dislike of Hungarian dubbing studios. By stuffing all the profits in their pockets, the latter are shooting themselves in the foot.