The mouth of the character is moving and the line has not started yet; the end of the line is needed before the scene moves on. When this occurs, there is a tendency to rush or say words more rapidly in sync to try to catch it. This may have its own problem, for if the consonants or word endings are not clear and it has a disconnected quality to it, the result might not sound like a good sync. Good sync timing does not mean reading rapidly. A well-timed sync line is one that begins at a visual cue and ends with an audible finish.
If you want to practice an exercise in timing, find a small scene. Watch the scene and notice at what point the mouth is ready to speak. Notice at what point the mouth starts speaking and notice at what point the mouth stops speaking. After watching, speak the translation in sync with the scene, but without the microphone. This will allow the voice of a translator to decide whether the translation fits before the translation is read in recording pressure.
Before increasing speed for too long a sync, look at the sync and note the stress. If a line is too long, some of the words are important and some can be read faster in order for the whole line to fit. A sync line like “I never asked you to come back here” can be emphasized on the words never, asked and here. By emphasizing on these words, one may be able to speed up through the line by not emphasizing on the other words. The line can then still be in sync and still sound normal as opposed to rushed words in sync.
The timing of the breath can also help. If breath is taken after the cue has been seen, the line might be late on the cue. However, if not enough air is taken, the line might have a hard finish. The breath can be taken before the mouth is ready to talk and a breath in can then be taken before the cue appears. If it is a longer sync line that requires more than one breath, breathe at the end of the thought that precedes it. If there are words in a sync that need to be connected together, do not read through the pause between them because there does not appear to be room for it in the sync time frame.
There are other sync adjustments such as shortening pauses. A student might read the hesitation of the original, the reaction sound, and a pause for the same length of time, even if the translated dialogue for that line is too short for the time that the character has given. The purpose or meaning of the pause should be read, but the actual timing does not always have to be read. Even if the student reads the line more quickly with a shorter pause than the original, the meaning is still there, as in a shorter pause can sound just like hesitation. There is no room to remove any time that is unnecessary to remove from the beginning and the end of the line, which is what may allow the line to still sound good.
It may be helpful to read two takes, with the first being with a cue that needs to be hit accurately and the second be a clean finish at the finish of the line, while at the same microphone distance. While listening, the second half of the line may sound rushed, and may be the area of concern where the line is spoken too quickly. If the translator is concerned, have the translator isolate the sync line and repeat the sync line while the translator says the line slowly several times. By repeating the section where there may be a problem, a translator does not have to begin with the whole line, and the translator can work with what is needed to make a correction rather than just begin the take again. If the translator reads a well-timed sync line, one does not necessarily have to copy the sync line exactly, as one needs to find a natural beginning, read through the middle and finish at the sound cue of the line. By finding these things in a synced voice line, the sync line may sound like it is in sync and not sound rushed. If one can watch the sync line while looking at the mouth for one viewing and then while listening only, the sync line would be in sync if it is in sync in both viewings.