(Re)creating actuality in the environmental documentaries: The case of Before the Flood

This study intends to contribute to the translation of environmental documentaries seen as creative forms of disseminating scientific knowledge through audiovisual modes (e.g., dubbing, subtitling, voice over). The main aim is to identify the degree of creativity in the translation of a very popular and successful documentary, i.e., Before the Flood, and to provide explanations for manipulations. Against the backdrop of Schjoldager’s (2008) creative strategies and intercultural research (Hofstede 2003; Hofstede et al. 2010), the translation process of the environmental documentary presents a number of translatorial interventions which are only partially explained by the constraints posed by the audiovisual modes adopted. The creative shifts identified take account of the cultural distance when translating and (re)create an audiovisual product which is more objective, persuasive and distrustful than its original counterpart.