Mimesis, reality and ficticious intermediation

Films containing two or more languages have existed since the birth of the talkies. However, be it due to huge fluxes of people moving from one region of the world to another; be it due to the process of globalization, recently the number of multilingual movies has risen exponentially. Obviously, the presence of two different languages on screen causes a number of problems. These problems are often solved by the presence of a character who just so happens to speak both languages involved in the communicative process. This chapter provides an overview of the fictional representation of heterolingualism and the role of incidental interpreters within imaginary performances that contain inter-lingual communication. The chapter also examnies non-professional interpreters on TV such as anchor men and women who interview foreign guests without the aid of a professional interpreter. Here too, the interpreter is incidental in the sense of not having had any formal training, yet the interview genre falls into a factual rather than fictional category. Why the absence of a professional? It would appear that non-professional interpreters might well provide an intriguing instance of the blurry divide between fiction, pretence and reality.