Workshops | Shadow Heroes

Our Workshops

Across our recent workshop series, 85% of students rated the workshop content 8/10 or above.

We will discuss the selection of workshops most suited to your students’ educational needs, their interests and linguistic skills. A one-off workshop sparks curiosity and introduces new approaches. Bespoke series of three to five workshops provide in-depth engagement with art and literature from around the world. See our sample series below for more information.

Keeping your eye on the Dragon Ball: translating Japanese anime

Does dubbing allow the Anglophone world access to the nuances of Japanese anime? In this workshop students will explore the challenges of translating this unique art form.

A translator’s tour of Turkish pop

Tune in to the nuances of language and music culture and sound out ways of translating a Turkish hit single… in the style of a British artist.

Translating Russian feminist protest art

Students take to the streets of St Petersburg in this workshop, investigating the subversive potential of language through their translations of feminist political placards.

Superheroes are not afraid of translation: webcomics in Arabic

In this workshop, students become superheroes tackling translations of an Arabic webcomic one episode at a time.

Messages of solidarity in multilingual songs

Religion, language and race are a complicated tangle. In this workshop on Arab and Jewish music, we find clarity in solidarity.

What’s in a house? A translation journey through race and class

Language is charged with race and class prejudice. What if we propose translation as a tool for resistance that centres care?

A Luta Continua! Translating Portugal’s colonial past

Who gets to write history? This workshop compares accounts of the Portuguese colonial experience to explore how translation can enable a richer understanding of history.

Your English, my English: languages, hierarchies and stereotypes

Led by researcher and translator Mohini Gupta In this workshop, students travel between the worlds of English, Hindi and Urdu to translate…

All about register: translating slang

During this dynamic workshop students will explore the power structures evident in our own language and navigate these in their translations of a popular Brazilian rap song.

Electric Guitar Jakarta

An introduction to Bahasa Indonesia and Jakarta, through rock music, this workshop focusses on translation as multisensorial, potentially anti-colonial, and—very importantly—creative play.

Translating political satire from Egypt

How can translators capture voices of dissent in their specific contexts? This workshop will explore political satire from Egyptian Arabic.

Jugni goes to the UK: translating Punjabi Jugni

Jugni is everywhere in Punjabi poetry, music, and Bollywood songs. But who can say what or who Jugni is? This workshop tells you more.

A translator’s best friend: trusting your instinct

Using an Urdu poem, discover how you can embrace and nurture your sharpest tool as a translator and make it your ally in the long run.

Finding the translator in the text

Can the way we read a text ever be neutral, and should it? This workshop highlights how our different life experiences shape the way we interpret texts.

Sample series

A Shadow Heroes series provides students with intensive training to become flexible and confident critical thinkers. We work with teachers to design bespoke series for each student group. Examples of these are listed below. Please contact us for more information.

Sample Series I

Who and what are you translating for? Know your target then get creative! This series presents students with a number of translation conundrums across different art forms, as well as the tools to tackle them. Students acquire a taste of both the constraints and the limitless possibilities that translators face in their work.

Workshops

Workshop 1 - Keeping your eye on the Dragon Ball: translating Japanese anime

Workshop 2 - A translator’s tour of Turkish pop

Workshop 3 - Translating Russian feminist protest art

Workshop 4 - A translator’s best friend: trusting your instinct

Sample Series II

Translation encourages a discerning approach to language. In this series, students encounter the power of words to reflect or challenge relationships of power. They will explore concepts of multilingualism and linguistic diversity, and acquire a fresh outlook on literature, all while learning and applying key translation strategies.

Workshops

Workshop 1 - Superheroes are not afraid of translation: webcomics in Arabic

Workshop 2 - Messages of solidarity in multilingual songs

Workshop 3 - What's in a house? A translation journey through race and class

Workshop 4 - Your English, my English: languages, hierarchies and stereotypes

Workshop 5 - All about register: translating slang

Sample Series III

Translation is a listening exercise. Sound is an intrinsic part of any creative translation, and the workshops of this series bring that into focus. Through exploring concepts like slang and onomatopoeia, students learn to listen to the musicality of words, think about register and rhythm, and gain creative confidence by being aware of these elements in their own writing.

Workshops

Workshop 1 - All about register: translating slang

Workshop 2 - Electric guitar Jakarta

Workshop 3 - A translator’s tour of Turkish pop

Sample Series IV

Stereotypes simplify the world, but the world’s richness would be lost without the layers of complexity that exist in every story. Translation, practised with ethical awareness, can bring these layers to life. This series equips students with the intellectual tools to recognise linguistic and cultural biases, and the creative techniques to challenge stereotypes.

Workshops

Workshop 1 - Messages of solidarity in multilingual songs

Workshop 2 - What's in a house? A translation journey through race and class

Workshop 3 - A Luta Continua! Translating Portugal's colonial past.

Workshop 4 - Translating political satire from Egypt

Workshop 5 - Jugni goes to the UK: translating Punjabi Jugni