Case Studies

The Client:

The client is a congressionally chartered nonprofit organization that fosters affordable housing and community development. As part of their efforts, they have created an award to honor extraordinary community leaders. For one of these award recipients, they wanted to film a documentary showcasing his outstanding contributions to the development of his underserved rural community.

The Challenge:

• The documentary producer/videographer only spoke English and needed to interview the Spanish speaking award recipient as well as community members and volunteers.
• He needed to convey instructions during set up and filming as well as ensuring participants’ engagement.
• The production plan included filming in two different cities and multiple indoor and outdoor remote locations including residences, community centers, vegetable gardens, and a farm.

The Client’s needs:

• An escort interpreter who could travel with the client to multiple locations to facilitate communication with Spanish speakers participating in the documentary film production.
• The client needed not only an excellent English/Spanish interpreter, but also a cultural liaison and assistant.
• The interpreter had to be flexible since the interpretation was necessary for long hours in informal settings and had to adapt to changes in the production plan in terms of location and scheduled times as needed.
• The client needed an interpreter to assist with navigating cultural differences with accuracy, high quality, and professionalism.

The Lighthouse solution:

• The Lighthouse’s interpreter was able to provide the cultural support needed in addition to the professional interpretation adjusting the register to the diverse participants.
• The interpreter accompanied the client at all times, facilitated direct interactions overcoming communication barriers and assisted in making the interviewees feel comfortable in front of the camera during filming.
• With the assistance of the escort interpreter, the client was able to conduct multiple interviews and shoot the footage at various locations as needed for the production.
• The interpreter was able to adapt to changes in the production plan and was flexible when moving from one location to the next, ensuring smooth communication among parties and assisting the client in terms of logistics.

Conclusion:

The client was able to experience effective interactions with all participants. Lighthouse assisted the client in navigating the cultural context and facilitated communication so the client as well as the participants of this production felt comfortable. It helped the participants feel at ease when interviewed and the production could run seamlessly. Lighthouse readily adapted to the client’s specific needs providing exceptional personalized interpretation services.