Foto del docente

Valeria Illuminati

Junior assistant professor (fixed-term)

Department of Interpreting and Translation

Academic discipline: FRAN-01/B French Language, Translation and Linguistics

Curriculum vitae

Download Curriculum Vitae (.pdf 335KB )

Junior assistant professor (RTD-a) for the project "Studi traduttologici per l’analisi del processo traduttivo in ambito editoriale/teatrale in Francia e in Italia in chiave sincronica e diacronica, attraverso metodologie interdisciplinari e in prospettiva di genere, con attenzione all’accessibilità” (SSD L-LIN/04), Dept. of Interpreting and Translation, University of Bologna - Forlì Campus. Her research combines her interests in translation, gender studies and children’s literature. She is also interested in the field of audio-visual translation and accessibility and inclusion/inclusivity.

 

Qualifications

National Scientific Qualification (ASN) as Associate Professor, Academic Recruitment Field 10/H1 – French language, literature and culture, 2023

Ph.D in Translation Studies (Durham University), 2018

Ph.D in Translation, Interpreting and Intercultural Studies (University of Bologna), 2017 

Laurea Magistrale in Specialised Translation (University of Bologna), 2012

Laurea in Applied Interlinguistic Communication (University of Bologna), 2009

 

Academic career

After three years as a research fellow (2018-2020 and 2021-2022) at the Department of Interpreting and Translation, and after several years as adjunct professor (from 2016 to 2022) at the Department of Humanities of the University of Macerata and at the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the University of Bologna, in 2022 she became a Junior assistant professor (fixed-term - RTD a) in the disciplinary area L-LIN/04 Language and Translation - French at the Department of Interpreting and Translation of the University of Bologna. In December 2023, she obtained the National Scientific Qualification (ASN) as Associate Professor for the Academic Recruitment Field 10/H1 (French language, literature and culture).

 

Teaching Experience

Since 2023, she has been teaching French Language I and Laboratory (Bachelor in International Studies, L-36) and French Language II and Laboratory (1st cycle degree programme in Diplomatic and International Sciences, L-36 and Bachelor in International Studies, L-36) at the Department of Political and Social Sciences (University of Bologna – Forlì campus).

Since 2023, she has also been teaching Translation from French into Italian II (first language) in the 1st cycle degree programme in Intercultural and Linguistic Mediation at the Department of Interpreting and Translation (University of Bologna – Forlì campus).

From 2020 to 2022, she was adjunct Professor of various French language courses for the 1st cycle degree programmes (BA level) in Diplomatic and International Sciences at the Department of Political and Social Sciences (University of Bologna – Forlì campus). From 2016 to 2019 she was Adjunct Lecturer of Multimedia Translation – French (2nd cycle degree programme/MA level), Department of Humanities, University of Macerata.

In 2021-2022, she taught Audio description for blind and visually impaired people for the post-graduate programme “Linguaggi per l’accessibilità e l’inclusione” of the University of Bologna (Dept. DIT).She also carries out teaching and training activities on accessibility and inclusion and on audio description (invited lectures and talks, seminars, workshops and training courses).

 

Research profile

Between 2018 and 2020 she was research fellow at the Department of Interpreting and Translation for an Almaidea project on gender issues in the translation of children’s literature (“La traduzione di testi per l’infanzia in una prospettiva di genere: aspetti teorici e applicati”), funded by the University of Bologna and supervised by Roberta Pederzoli (Principal Investigator). She edited with Adele D’Arcangelo and Chiara Elefante the volume Translating for children beyond stereotypes / Traduire pour la jeunesse au-delà des stéréotypes (2019) and more recently, with Roberta Pederzoli, the volume Tra genere e generi. Tradurre e pubblicare testi per ragazze e ragazzi (2021, FrancoAngeli). She has recently published the book La traduzione dei classici per l’infanzia in una prospettiva di genere (2022). She is a member of the MeTRa Centre (Centro di Studi Interdisciplinari sulla Mediazione e la Traduzione a opera di e per ragazze/i) and participated in the European projects G-BOOK, Child Readers and Library Collections and G-BOOK2: European Teens as Readers and Creators of Gender-positive Narratives (www.g-book.eu), aimed at promoting gender-positive children’s and YA literature. Between 2021 and 2022, she was research fellow at DIT for the project “Traduzione e accessibilità: l’audiodescrizione museale e per lo spettacolo dal vivo in Italia.” She has been a member of the scientific committee of the post-graduate programme “Linguaggi per l’accessibilità e l’inclusione” (University of Bologna), also teaching the module on audio description for blind and visually impaired people.

Her main research interests are the translation of Children's and YA Literature, especially from a gendered perspective, gender and/in translation, retranslation and the genetics of translation, audiovisual translation and cultural accessibility and inclusion. Her work as a researcher is complemented by her practice as a translator, mainly in the field of accessibility and inclusion. She has been working as an audio describer since 2014 and since 2016 she has been supervising the cultural accessibility project “Teatro No Limits”, implemented by the Centro Diego Fabbri in Forlì. She has audio described more than 50 theatre performances, films and museum exhibitions and has taken part in several training courses, as well as in some European projects dedicated to accessibility and inclusion (Theatres4All, Castle, Inclusive Theatre(s)).

 

Participation in research projects and groups, in editorial and scientific committees, membership of Italian academic associations

2015 - Member of MeTRa UniBo Research Centre (Centro di Studi interdisciplinari sulla Mediazione e la Traduzione a opera di e per Ragazze/i), https://metra.dipintra.it/

2020 - Member of the scientific committee of the post-graduate programme “Linguaggi per l’accessibilità e l’inclusione” (University of Bologna, Dept. DIT, director: Licia Reggiani).

2022 - Member of the editorial committee of the online journal mediAzioni.

2022 - Member of Do.Ri.F, Centro di Documentazione e di Ricerca per la didattica della Lingua francese nell'Università Italiana.

Research and European Projects

Member of the research team for the project “Les fabriques de la traduction. Traduction et productions populaires et médiatiques”, Université Paris Nanterre, Centre de Recherches Pluridisciplinaires Multilingues – CRPM (scientific supervision: Dorothée Cailleux, Lucia Quaquarelli).

Member of the research group “Traductologie, traduction et édition pour l’enfance et la jeunesse” of Do.Ri.F (coordinators: Mirella Piacentini, University of Padova, and Roberta Pederzoli, University of Bologna).

Participation in the EU Creative Europe-funded G-BOOK2 (European teens as readers and creators of gender-positive narratives) project. Coordinator: Raffaella Baccolini (December 2020 - June 2023).

Participation as audio describer, researcher, and trainer in the EU Creative Europe-funded Inclusive Theater(s) project (December 2019 - December 2022).

Member of the research team for the ALMA IDEA project “La traduzione di testi per l’infanzia in una prospettiva di genere: aspetti teorici e applicati” (The translation of children’s literature from a gendered perspective: theoretical and practical issues), funded by the University of Bologna in 2017; Principal Investigator: Roberta Pederzoli (January 2018 - May 2020).

Project assistant of the Erasmus + project “CASTLE – New employability skills and business creation in audio description and subtitling sector” (Novembre 2017 – October 2019).

Participation in the EU Creative Europe-funded G-BOOK1 (Gender Identity: Child Readers and Library Collections) project. Coordinator: Raffaella Baccolini (July 2017 – February 2019).

Participation as audio describer and researcher in the EU Creative Europe-funded T4All (Theatres4All) project (September 2015 – April 2017).

 

Institutional activities and academic appointments

2024 - Representative for Disability of the Department of Interpreting and Translation.

2024 - Representative for the Alumni - DIT Chapter of the Department of Interpreting and Translation.

2023 - Member of the AQ group for the 1st cycle degree programme in Languages and Technologies for Intercultural Communication.

2023 - Member of the Internship Committee for the 1st cycle degree programmes in Languages and Technologies for Intercultural Communication and in Intercultural and Linguistic Mediation.

2023 - Contact person for the Erasmus+ exchanges with Université de Strasbourg and Université d'Angers (Exchange coordinator: Elio Ballardini).

 

Public engagement

Since 2016, she has been participating in a number of third mission and public engagement projects and activities at DIT (e.g., European Researchers' Night; Unijunior - February 2020; the project "DIT CHIAMA SCUOLA. Spunti e strumenti per ripensare la didattica delle lingue/DIT CALLS SCHOOL. Ideas and tools to rethink language teaching" - April 2023). In particular, as part of the activities at the MeTRa Centre, she has been contributing to the MeTRa Centre and Forlì Women’s Centre joint project on gender and education since 2016 and took part in the Audience development activities of the G-BOOK projects. She is also involved in training and dissemination activities and events on accessibility and inclusion at different organisations and institutions and in various contexts.

 

PhD. supervision

- Co-supervisor of Martina Antonina Bruno's thesis: "Easy Language and Machine Translation in Museum Accessibility. Professional, Theoretical and Social Repercussions"

- Co-supervisor of Monica Peluso's thesis: "Verso un'educazione ecocritica e sostenibile attraverso le narrazioni sull'ambiente per giovani lettrici e lettori"

 

Grants, awards, and recognitions

2021-2022: Post-doctoral research grant awarded by the Department of Interpreting and Translation (University of Bologna).

2019: CIUTI PhD Award Laureate, awarded by CIUTI (Conférence internationale permanente d'instituts universitaires de traducteurs et interprètes) to the PhD thesis for its contribution to the development of research in the discipline.

2018-2020: Post-doctoral research grant awarded by the Department of Interpreting and Translation (University of Bologna), funded through the project “La traduzione di testi per l’infanzia in una prospettiva di genere: aspetti teorici e applicati” (The translation of children’s literature from a gendered perspective: theoretical and practical issues).

2013: three-year research grant (University of Bologna) within the doctorate course in Translation, Interpreting, and Intercultural Studies from the Department of Interpreting and Translation (DIT), University of Bologna – Forlì campus.

2007-2008: Erasmus exchange program grant (University of Bologna), for a study period abroad (6 months). Coventry University (Coventry, UK).


Working experience and other activities

2014 - 2024: Audio describer of theatre shows for the project "Teatro No Limits" (Centro Diego Fabbri, Forlì). Since 2016 coordination and scientific supervision of the project.

2018 - 2024: Audio describer for selected exhibitions at the San Domenico Museums in Forlì, as part of the accessibility and inclusion projects implemented by Centro Diego Fabbri.

2018 - 2020: supervision of subtitles at Human Rights Nights (HNRs) Film Festival.

February 2020: Revision of the English translation and surtitles of the play Get Your Shit Together by Luca Carboni and Gabriel Da Costa, produced by Emilia Romagna Teatro Fondazione in the 2019- 2020 season for "VIE Festival."

May 2022: translation into Italian of the play Dans la mesure de l'impossible by Tiago Rodrigues, produced by La Comédie de Genève with the collaboration of CICR - Comité International de la Croix-Rouge - Doctors without Borders. The published translation was also used to create the Italian surtitles for the performances on 25, 26 and 27 May 2022 at the Piccolo Teatro Strehler, within the framework of the International Theatre Festival "Presente Indicativo: per Giorgio Strehler (paesaggi teatrali)" (Piccolo Teatro, 4-31 May 2022).