M+E Europe

Caroline Baines, director of client services for MESA, has recently joined the advisory board of The Poool.

OOONA launched The Poool, which is a new directory for professionals working in the audio-visual localisation industry. It is an online service which assists Language Service Providers (LSP’s) and individuals to find professional, suitably qualified audio-visual translators specialising in different fields and language pairs.

Baines joins an impressive list of representatives from across the localisation industry, including language service providers (LSPs), experts from the world of academia, audio-visual association members and highly experienced audio-visual translators.

The Poool is a cross-industry collaboration bringing together all sides of the localisation industry, which seeks to fulfil two key aims: provide an agnostic platform for localisation professionals to showcase their skills and experience, expand their network and enhance their industry standing and visibility, and provide LSPs with a comprehensive global database to locate highly skilled and experienced audio-visual translators.

One group is tasked with tackling all topics related to the logistics of the platform while another is focused on providing technical advice and is discussing the potential introduction of an industry approved certification programme.

While there is much work to be done, the advisory board is very optimistic about what can be achieved and how this initiative can benefit the entire industry.

To date, The Poool has achieved impressive statistics, including well over 500 audio-visual translators registered across 63 countries, and 90 LSPs involved, across more than 30 countries.

There have already been more than 15,000 searches via the platform to date, and feedback from translators who have found work via The Pool has been positive.

“I was delighted to be asked to join the advisory board,” Baines said. “The localisation sector is one of the key pillars of the MESA community and we are committed to raising the profile of the industry and working with our members and other industry partners to support key endeavours such as this.”

Fellow advisory board member Jennie Smith, translation manager at Take 1, seconded Baines’ thoughts on The Poool: “I see this as an opportunity to meet others involved in the localisation industry, to listen and to learn more and also put forward my own thoughts and experiences. I want to help create awareness of the importance of localisation and encourage utilisation of the best professionals out there. Also, I wish to be involved in supporting localisation experts and help to keep standards high.”

Mara Campbell, COO and founder of truesubtitles, added: “It is an honour to be part of The Poool Advisory Board and join forces with the best in the business to help shape the landscape of localisation. I am very eager to contribute my expertise for the creation of different tools to serve the current and future generations of professionals. The mix of academics, associations, and big and small companies promises to be of great benefit to the project, and I look forward to networking with all of them.”

Nick Ivanov, CEO of Graffitti Studio concluded “I was also honoured by the invitation to join The Poool’s advisory board! It’s an exciting opportunity to collaborate with other localisation executives and enhance professionalism in our industry. I believe that together we will bring a whole new set of opportunities to audio-visual translators and LSPs while empowering them to remain resilient in this constantly changing environment”.

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