Preface

What does it take to be a fansubber?

While I’d like to say that the most and only important thing is a healthy (or unhealthy) love of anime, that would be a lie. Being a fansubber takes a lot of work—it can be like having a second job, depending on how many projects you pick up. Even though fansubbers provide a free product as volunteers, there are still expectations that you will put in the time and effort to complete your part in a timely manner.

Now, I don’t want to scare you away, but I do want you to be aware of what you’re getting into.

The most successful fansubbers are often those with lots of spare time such as students, physically disabled persons, and single adults without many commitments outside of work. While an unrestricted schedule isn’t a hard requirement, it is something to keep in mind as you start this process.

That said, some roles can be a means of keeping up or honing a skill. The translator, editor, and quality checker roles are particularly suited to this situation as they require skills that are easily applicable to careers outside of fansubbing. However, these roles are also incredibly difficult to teach, especially with the resources available to fansubbers, so if they are addressed in this guide, it will not be in as much depth as other roles.

If you don’t even know what roles there are to choose from, don’t worry—we’ll get there. For now, let’s move on to some practical requirements.