Luke James is a professional translator

Helping you translate your official documents, and helping Japanese and French-speaking companies reach a larger audience

Luke smiles while sitting at his desk, his hand resting on a computer mouse. The desk contains a small plant, a laptop, keyboard and monitor. Luke wears headphones, glasses and a black knitted jumper.

Hi, はいさい and bonjour !

My name’s Luke, I’m a native English speaker from the South Wales coast in the United Kingdom, and I’ve been working in the translation industry for over 6 years now. I’m currently based in Bristol, England.

As a qualified member of the ITI, I offer certified translation services of official documents. I also translate marketing, UI and other content from Japanese and French into English, and provide English editing and accessibility services.

Qualifications and experience

Formal education and practical experience to ensure you are getting the best service possible

Delivered the talk Extending reality, localising space: Translation for the virtual reality market at the 2024 ITI Conference in Edinburgh.

MA (Distinction) Applied Translation Studies (Japanese into English and French into English), University of Leeds

Japanese Language Proficiency Test N1

Qualified Member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (MITI)

Experience living and working in France, Japan and Luxembourg

3-time winner of the ITI J-Net Japanese > English translation competition, 2019–2021

Luke standing at the Pont de Tilsitt, an old stone bridge over the river Saône in Lyon, France. The sun is shining over Vieux-Lyon architecture in the background, including the Fourvière basilica atop a wooded hill.

The start of my lifelong passion

As an avid reader and gamer, I have always been fascinated by the power of words to transport us elsewhere. I also loved learning languages at school, and from the age of 17 began teaching myself Japanese alongside my French lessons. I started taking formal Japanese lessons in the evening while completing my degree in English and French at the University of Warwick.

As part of my degree, I had the opportunity to live and work for a year in Lyon, France. This was my first experience of immersing myself in another language and culture, and I cherished every moment.

I knew that languages would be a part of my life forever. So, straight after graduation, I went to Japan.

My time in Japan

I jetted off to sunny Okinawa, Japan’s southernmost prefecture, to work as an assistant language teacher. I found myself on a small island with a population of 200 people, and I won’t lie, the first few months were tough. It’s here that I understood just how isolating it can be when cultures collide, trying to communicate but not quite having the right words.

Thankfully, through my role as a teacher, I soon became integrated into the local community. I would come to play in the inter-island sports tournaments and even take part in a “sumo dance” performance! I also got to know the local wildlife, swimming with sea turtles in summer and going whale watching in winter.

After a while, locals started to come for me asking me to translate short texts for them into English, whether it was local restaurant owners wanting menus for international tourists, or the village government needing to send out a warning about an incoming typhoon! These experiences are what made me realise just how much I enjoyed translation, and so, after two years of island life, I returned to the UK to complete an MA in Applied Translation Studies, specialised in both Japanese and French into English.

Work for the European Parliament and in-house experience

After graduating with Distinction, I was selected as part of one of the last cohorts of British trainee linguists at the European Parliament. At the Parliament’s Clear Language and Editing Unit in Luxembourg, I joined a team of experienced editors and translators and honed my writing craft, producing texts for politicians and citizens alike. While speaking French every day in Luxembourg, I didn’t forget my Japanese. In fact, it was here that I achieved my goal of passing JLPT N1, the highest level of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test.

After these experiences, I dove straight into the translation industry, returning once more to the UK to work in-house at the Quality department of an ISO-certified translation agency. I turned my somewhat geeky passion professional, specialising in marketing and UI for tech brands. I also received extensive technical training in computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools and quality assurance (QA) practices, which I now apply to my work as a freelance translator and editor.

Three people sitting in front of a presentation screen during a Japanese to English translation workshop. Women on the left and center are smiling; man on the right is holding papers and a pen.

Board member, VR localisation expert and freelance translator and editor

I have been a full-time freelance translator and editor since May 2022 and an active member of the translation community. From 2023 to 2025, I served as a Board member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI)’s Japanese network, J-Net, after having been selected as a winner of its Japanese-into-English translation competition for three years in a row (2019–2021). In June 2024, I was invited to give a talk at the ITI Conference on the topic Extending reality, localising space: Translation for the VR market.

As a qualified member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI), I pledge to uphold the highest standards of quality and professionalism. I now offer certified translation services, where I faithfully translate your official documents and accompany them with a signed declaration and the ITI seal.