Bob: Does he want me to, to turn from the right or turn from the left?
Interpreter (in formal Japanese, to the director): He has prepared and is ready. And he wants to know, when the camera rolls, would you prefer that he turn to the left, or would you prefer that he turn to the right? And that is the kind of thing he would like to know, if you don’t mind.
Director (very brusquely, in colloquial Japanese): Either way is fine. That kind of thing doesn’t matter. We don’t have time, Bob-san, O.K.? You need to hurry. Raise the tension. Look at the camera. Slowly, with passion. It’s passion that we want. Do you understand?
Interpreter (In English, to Bob): Right side. And, uh, with intensity.
Bob: Is that everything? It seemed like he said quite a bit more than that.

Scene frome the movie Lost In Translation

The above scene is an example of something that could go wrong with an ineffective translator. Two simple things can happen during a translation; (1) The translator adds unnecessary information, or (2) the translator subtracts significant points from the source.

The two circumstances can mislead the receiver of the translation and would cause misunderstanding between two parties (source and receiver). The translator acts as the middle man between two parties that need to comprehend each other, so it would go against its purpose if it can cause added confusion than trying to resolve the differences.

A good translation service must be faithful to the meaning of the original text. The translated text must be as accurate as possible and the translator must not be baised to either of the parties concerned.

An example of a translation service that needs to be accurate and high fidelity is during the question and answer portion of a Miss Universe Pageant. A circumstance could arise wherein the translated reply could not be what the participant actually had in mind. That’s why unbiased and excellent translators are required for these kinds of translation services.

To sum it up, translators must be impartial, transparent and must be proficient in the languages to be translated so as to be accurate in delivering the true meaning and intent of the source.