The meaning
Lip sync, short for lip synchronisation, is the alignment of what a mouth does with what the ear hears. In film it is done in post-production when dialogue is recorded after the shoot. People also use the term for performing to a recorded song.
Lip sync in dubbing
When a film is dubbed, the new words are a different length and shape from the original. If the speaker is on screen, the mismatch can be distracting. There are two ways to reduce it: adapt the translation so that its length and key sounds fit the picture, or adjust the picture itself so that the mouth follows the new voice.
When it matters
It matters most for films with people speaking to the camera: interviews, spokespeople and testimonials. It matters little for narration over scenes, product films and animation, where no mouth is on screen. Many ads can be dubbed well with careful adaptation and timing alone.
What we offer
In every case we adapt the script to the timing of the picture and check each version.
How to decide
Ask whether a person speaks to the camera. If not, adapted timing is usually enough. If so, tell us in the brief: it changes the approach and the scope.
