Subtitle Free After a Week: Giulia’s Subtitle Freedom Journey

I’d like to welcome yet another student interviewee to the blog today: Giulia who lives in the north-east of Italy, near Venice. She joined me for the July round of Freedom from Subtitles.

She wanted to work on a series I’d never seen before: Jane the Virgin. It’s one the craziest TV shows I’ve heard of. Thankfully I had Giulia to explain the plot to me.

It’s all about the main character, Jane, who gets pregnant even though she’s never had sex! I’ll share the trailer at the end so you can find out how that happened.

The plot is rather over the top. Meaning that crazy, unexpected and inexplicable events take place every week. That’s a lot of effort for your ears to make. After a week together on Freedom from Subtitles, Giulia sent me this feedback.

“I feel more confident with actors’ voices and accents. Last night I tried to watch the episode without subtitles and it went quite well. Ok, I didn’t catch the whole episode but I caught some expressions more! I’m happy!”

Today she’s sharing her full subtitle freedom journey in this interview. Enjoy. And stick around to find out how you can get subtitle free for your favourite show too.

What hesitations did you have before investing in Freedom from Subtitles?

Giulia: Well, once I read the title of the course, I have been interested in it! However, I was a little worried about having enough time to do my homework as the programme lasted 4 weeks. To be honest, the course was so exciting that I did my exercises happily all the time!

Cara: Awesome! Yes, I worry that it’s a bit intense too, but I’ve found that my students manage to keep up. You were indeed organised with your work and sending it to me on time.

What convinced you to invest in Freedom from Subtitles?

Giulia: I wanted to be literally Free from Subtitles, I needed to relax and enjoy the TV show without reading subtitles and getting frustrated!

Cara: Haha! It’s a good goal isn’t it? Being subtitle free. And a realistic one if you do the right work.

What have you achieved since we started working together?

Giulia: Now I really feel more confident with this specific TV show: every Saturday, at the end of the week, I felt more and more confident with actors’ voices and expressions and I feel like I’ve practiced my listening skill in a relaxing way!

Cara: I loved when you told me at the end of each week that you understood the episodes better and better. It’s great that your Saturday nights spent watching Jane the Virgin are relaxing, not stressful now. That’s exactly how they should be and it’s what I want for everyone who participates in the programme.

What did you like most about the programme?

Giulia: I loved the way we worked together. First, the course wasn’t boring because it dealt with a TV series I chose and I liked. Then, we worked in 2 opposite directions: on the one hand, the course helped me to focus on the general meaning without struggling on a single word I didn’t catch; on the other hand, I improved my pronunciation, focusing on a word or a couple of words, analyzing and imitating the intonation of voices.

Cara: Yes, it’s important to focus on a series or film you’re motivated to understand. That’s one of the keys to subtitle freedom. And yes, you have to find the balance between ignoring or not worrying about some things. That could be unknown words or cultural references that you wouldn’t know. And training your ear to catch typical expressions that we “squash” together in fast speech. Working on your pronunciation is a great way to do that.

How else have you benefited from it?

Giulia: Once I felt more confident with the plot of the movie, I stated to analyze the lips movements and I found it very useful.

Cara: Yes, I remember you telling me that was one of the benefits. That’s exactly what I’ve been talking about on my blog in the last few weeks. Once you stop relying so much on the subtitles, you can use other clues to help you understand. Lip movements are a great example and that’s the type of clue you use in a real life conversation where you won’t find subtitles.

Would you recommend it to other Leo Listeners?

Giulia: Yes, absolutely. Thanks to Freedom from Subtitles, I improved my listening skill finding it easier and more relaxing!

Cara: Thanks Giulia for sharing your story. I’m so pleased the programme helped you.

By the way, here’s that Jane the Virgin trailer if you’re curious about the show.

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