She brings characters to life with her voice

Do we really need real dubbing artists in the age of generative artificial intelligence?

Indeed, many have harbored doubts about the future and necessity of real dubbing artists, because an increasing number of videos on social networks are works of GenAI, which sound increasingly close to genuine — meaning the voice, devoid of any metallic tinge and digital hoarseness, sounds genuinely human.

Yet for Kathryn Lin, a leading dubbing artist from China's Taiwan island, the profession signifies the shared happiness of generations of audiences on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Suffice it to say the profession has changed her life. "I joined the profession simply because of economic needs, and have had to work very hard," she said in a recent interview with China Daily.

Born in 1975, Lin wanted to become a teacher or a journalist, not a dubbing artist.

"My first public speech was made at a kindergarten graduation ceremony. Maybe I was chosen because I was chubby and looked adorable," she said, bursting into laughter.

The following 12 years saw her being frequently chosen by her school to take part in various speech contests and storytelling competitions. The turning point in her life came in her first year of college. Her family faced a major financial crisis, and she had no choice but to drop out of college and take up part-time jobs in shops and restaurants.

"I have younger brothers and sisters, so I had to start working to feed the family," she said. The chance to join the dubbing industry was given by the dubbing artists' union on Taiwan island. In the 1990s, the union members joined a prime-time TV variety show to recruit students for dubbing performances.

"That night I was at home and watched the show on TV by chance," she said. She was rejected by the judges because she was still in college, but she succeeded in getting the chance in the second year.

Since she was a newcomer to the industry, she had to complete her apprenticeship before getting real work. And there was no specific time limit for the apprenticeship. "I needed the job. So I spent almost 24 hours a day in the studio following and learning from the veterans, shadow performing and analyzing the performances," she said.