Banff International Literary Translation Centre (BILTC) 2009

Inspired by the network of international literary translation centres in Europe, the Banff International Literary Translation Centre (BILTC) is the first of its kind in North America. The primary focus of the residency program is to afford literary translators a period of uninterrupted work on a current project, within an international community of translators. Translators may request a joint residency (of up to one week) with a writer, allowing the translator to consult and deepen his or her knowledge of the writer’s intentions and the context of the work being translated. Consultation with the program director and experienced translators in residence as faculty will be available. Three or four times a week participants gather for readings by invited writers and informal presentations by faculty, or simply to exchange information and discuss their work in progress.

The program is open to literary translators from Canada, Mexico, and the United States translating from any language, and to international translators working on literature from the Americas (both the North and South American continents). Since the inaugural program in 2003, the Centre has hosted translators from 21 countries translating work involving 28 languages. Writers from Canada, the United States, and Mexico (among others) have been invited to spend a week in residence to consult with their translators from abroad.

Literary translators are also invited to apply year round for independent residencies in The Banff Centre’s Leighton Artists' Colony.

Photo above: Elizabeth Hay (right) speaks with translator Nina Van Rossem, at the 2008 BILTC