It’s no secret that a great way to improve your language skills is by hearing it spoken naturally through movies and television. At Yabla we use videos with interactive subtitles in both English and French for just this reason. Because let’s face it, no amount of watching Amelie with English subtitles is going to make you a fluent French speaker. But then again, watching Amelie with no subtitles (assuming you haven’t watched it enough times that you’ve memorized the dialogue) is bound to leave you completely lost.
One of ways we work with subtitles here at Yabla is by using both English and French subtitles that you can choose to show or hide depending on your confidence in the language. So when you’re watching French television or a film, try adapting that same methodology on your own.
Starting With Subtitles
If you’ve started to feel more at ease with the language, it’s time to take the first step towards watching French movies without the help of English subtitles, though it can be tempting to keep them. Start by watching a film you’re familiar with, but change the subtitles to French. A familiar movie will be easier to follow, and the French captions will alert you to words or phrases you don’t know. It can often be helpful to see exactly how things are spelled and how sentences are constructed. Using French subtitles can be a useful tool even after you’ve become fluent enough to watch French programs without them.
Moving Away From Subtitles
Starting to watch movies or television in French sans sous-titres can be frustrating at first. The actors may speak very quickly, and it can be hard to follow every word. You may even start to doubt your own proficiency. The first thing to remember is to relax, and use context clues to follow along. Remember that even in English it can sometimes be difficult to catch every word!
If you’re just beginning to wean yourself away from subtitles, it’s a good idea to start small, with shorter videos. There is a lot of (hilarious) French sketch comedy available on Youtube, which is a really fun way to practice your comprehension. Golden Moustache and Norman fait des videos are both good places to start. The clips are each just a few minutes long which make them easy to replay as many times as it takes to fully understand them. As a bonus, the sketches will help you appreciate French humor, which is often brilliantly ironic.
You may find that the more time you spend watching French TV, the easier it is to understand. But then when you return to it after having been away from French for a while, it seems as if everything you learned has gone out the window. This is totally normal, and improves the more time you spend with the language.
Getting Confident!
Eventually, you’ll be confident enough to start watching longer programs. Tellement Vrai, for example, is an excellent guilty pleasure, also available on Youtube. Or maybe start with some kids’ movies with less complicated dialogue, and progress from there.
Always keep in mind that learning a language is a process. The more you absorb, the better and faster you’ll improve!
Bon courage !