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Born in pre-1949 - Liu Guangning, 74

Source: Shanghai Daily | September 17, 2013, Tuesday | Print Edition

Program Code: 090934613095007

For most Chinese, the voice of the ill-fated ballerina Myra in the 1940 movie “Waterloo Bridge” was that of Liu Guangning, not Hollywood superstar Vivien Leigh.

Born in Hong Kong in 1939, Liu moved with her family to Shanghai in 1943, where she later became a familiar voice and dubbing specialist.

She was the voice of the vengeful Jacqueline de Bellefort in “Death on the Nile” (1978) and delivered the dialogue of the title role in “Tess” (1979). She has dubbed characters ranging from a little boy to old women in movies produced all around the world.

“We had no idea about becoming famous,” Liu says of her career. “In the early days, we mostly dubbed films from other Communist countries, and we didn’t even get into the credits. In the late 1970s and into the 1980s, I suddenly started receiving fan letters.”

After dozens of years cut off from foreign books and films, young people rushed to embrace Western movies when they began reappearing in China. At first, entry to the films was limited to selected “internal personnel” at specified theaters, and tickets were extremely difficult to come by.

The dubbing back then was superb, with solid preparation work. Translators listened to soundtracks and took notes. Dubbing scripts were written. Lines were well-rehearsed before recording.

“As dubbing artists, we didn’t get paid much,” Liu says. “We didn’t think about becoming famous. We were just trying to excel at what we did. A lot of effort was involved. The key was not to try to imitate the original voice, but rather to encapsulate the essence of that character. Why has she done what she’s done? What will she do next? We were just like actors but without a bodily presence.”

In the 1980s, when nobody spoke much English, dubbing artists like Liu quickly rose to stardom. “Waterloo Bridge” was originally designated as an “internal film” intended only for the eyes of political leaders and vetted artists. Though a tragic love story, the film was held up as a condemnation of capitalism and was also used to lend ideas for the performances of yang ban xi, the revolutionary operas of the era.

“It was actually strange,” Liu recalls. “First, we got together to condemn the capitalist ideas in the film, then we needed to do our best to dub it well because the party bosses in Beijing would watch it.”

She adds, “It was the busiest period in my career. The movies just kept coming, and the deadlines were really tight. My throat got over-worked, and I still cough a lot today.”

Due to copyright issues, most of the “internal films” dubbed during that era have never been screened to general public, but surreptitious copies do make the rounds. Sometimes fans send them to Liu, who is grateful.

“I would like a collection of all the videos featuring my dubbing,” she says.

After a successful career in Shanghai, Liu moved to Hong Kong with her husband and children in the 1990s, but she couldn’t cope with the dubbing world there.

“The Hong Kong film market was booming, and famous actors would make 10 movies a year,” Liu says. “They didn’t care about the quality of the dubbing. It was not about getting into the skin of the characters. It was all quick, exaggerated and commercial.”

After teaching Mandarin in Hong Kong, Liu recently moved back to Shanghai.

“I’m getting old, but I still would like to contribute my voice. It’s the only thing I’m really good at. But it’s not up to me. Times have changed. There isn’t much left for a voice artist today,” she laments.

 

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