Brand transcreation as multimodal configuration

Abstract

This article aims at revisiting some key concepts in translation studies by taking into account a new translation or multimodal practice called brand transcreation. Unlike translation proper or brand design proper, brand transcreation involves interlingual and multimodal production in the target culture. It relies on verbal instructions rather than the source text, and intersemiotically, transforms verbal messages into polished multimodal products. Using the systemic-functional sociosemiotic framework, this study delves into the types and dynamic orchestration of semiotic modes involved in two successful brand transcreations from a producer-researcher perspective. The findings reveal that brand transcreation can be defined as a goal-oriented textual production that configures multiple modes and serves specific communicative purposes. In this regard, the concepts of texts, contexts, meaning, and particularly (the categorization of) translation have evolved and require reconsideration.