Los Angeles Superior Court/U.S. District Court: Interpretation in simultaneous mode in jury and court trials and in consecutive mode for witnesses. Sight translation of documents when required by the Court. Interpretation in attorney/client meetings.

Independent contractor: Freelance work for different local and national agencies. Selected by defense to interpret at videotaped depositions of 30+ plaintiffs flown in from Nicaragua for a pesticide case against major U.S. corporations. (Resume provided by New York–based translation agency.) Assignment required travel to Nicaragua and El Salvador for special hearings regarding the case.

Selected from among 12 candidates to travel out of state to interpret at Check interpreter/primary interpreter: Worked for several days as check and primary interpreter in a software patent infringement case against several U.S. corporations. a videotaped deposition of a reluctant witness who was an eyewitness to an airplane crash. In addition, went to the location of the accident and conducted an interview to recount the events to be heard in a Civil Federal Court in Texas.

The Annual Latin Grammy Awards: Three consecutive years working for the Los Angeles CBS primetime special. Simulcast interpretation televised worldwide.

Daytime Emmy Awards: Simulcast in Spanish for the first time. Primetime telecast of daytime drama series aired on CBS.

America: Tribute to Heroes: All-star telethon to collect funds for the New York victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Televised in the United States and abroad on all major television networks.

Network Television Time, L.A. County Board of Supervisors: Ongoing simultaneous interpretation of televised meetings of local politics held weekly and lasting from two to five hours. Subjects included political, social, environmental, and economic issues of the County of Los Angeles. http://bosvideoap.co.la.ca.us/mgasp/lacountyvideo/meetingdate.asp (You can hear me on most days.)

Dialect Coach for NBC TV series Law and Order: Los Angeles: Second season premiere “Zuma Canyon” – Script translation, localized Spanish from Sonora, Mexico; accent and slang coach. On-site coaching for actors Skeet Ulrich, Alfred Molina, Rachel Ticotin, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Quinton Lopez, Damián Delgado, Liz Loza, and others.

Dialect Coach for actor Jimmy Smits in NBC TV Series Outlaw: Script translation, language consultant, courtroom setting consultant, and language coach for actor Jimmy Smits and guest stars, who needed to learn their lines in neutral Spanish and Mexican accent from Monterrey.

Dialect Coach for NBC TV Series Heroes: Translated English scripts into Spanish. Helped actors with their Spanish lines in all Spanish-language scenes. Actors needed coaching to make their Spanish more neutral; some needed assistance with Spanish pronunciation, Mexican slang, and Guatemalan accents. Assisted script supervisor in following the Spanish and comparing it to the English version. 2007 season.

Dialect Coach for actress Jennifer Garner in ABC TV Series Alias: Translated lines into Spanish, localized it into Cuban Spanish, and helped actors learn their lines with a Cuban accent.

Dialect Coach for Colombian actress Paola Rey: A Neutrogena “Oil-Free Acne Wash” TV commercial. Worked on the set, helping the actress learn some English lines and making sure her Spanish rendition was flawless and free of regional accent.

Home Depot commercial: Worked with a production company from Spain. Helped the actor eliminate his Cuban accent for the part and worked on his Spanish enunciation.

MTA World Medical Tourism & Global Healthcare Congress; Century City, CA (2009, 2010): Conference interpreter for world conference on medical tourism; 65 countries represented.

Produce Marketing Association (PMA), International Fresh Produce Conference; Anaheim, CA: Several workshops with topics ranging from scientific findings on E.coli to working with policymakers in Washington, D.C.

Liberty League; Century City, CA: International conference on marketing for all members.

California Coalition Against Sexual Assault (CALCASA); Honolulu, Hawaii: Training college and university professionals from across the United States and Puerto Rico on sexual assault and prevention.

26th Border Governors Conference; Hollywood : One-day round table discussions focusing on economic development along the border states in the United States and Mexico.

Los Angeles Philharmonic – Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela: Served as an escort interpreter to over 200 orchestra members and conductor Gustavo Dudamel (the new L.A. Philharmonic conductor for 2008) during the first stop on their U.S. tour. Assignment lasted four days, during which I interpreted at school visits, free concerts, and evening events that were held in the community as well as at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Entire event was filmed by the TV show 60 Minutes. See event pictures here: http://picasaweb.google.com/zinnesther/ORQuestaJuvenilSB, http://picasaweb.google.com/zinnesther/SBYOV
Environmental Protection Agency: Simultaneous interpretation of fact-finding mission involving pesticide mitigation in crops and surrounding areas.

Town Hall meetings: Los Angeles City and Los Angeles County Mayor and Supervisors’ offices.

McDonald’s Corporation Mom’s Panel: Three-day event (a combination conference and escort interpretation assignment) that featured Argentinean celebrity chef Maru Botana, who is a member of this international panel comprised of well-known celebrity moms from different countries.

American Venous Forum (scientific conference): Four-day conference for doctors and surgeons from around the world on latest studies, trials and findings, and equipment utilized in the venous system to prevent venous disorders. More than 100 paper presentations.

Billboard’s Mexican Regional Music Summit: Two-day conference on Internet downloads, the IRS, and immigration issues that affect musicians abroad. Mostly into English.

Honda World Convention: Three-day event. Simultaneous interpretation for representatives of Honda Mexico and Honda Spain into English. Presentations from representatives from Malaysia, Japan, Brazil, and Taiwan from English into Spanish concerning development of new manufacturing systems and their application in all Honda plants.

Free Trade Agreement, United States and Panama; Los Angeles: Three-day negotiations proceedings with government officials from each country. Topics were environmental protection and labor law.

Weapons and Ballistics Conference: Simultaneous interpretation of conference to serve as a demonstration for interpreting students of skills and terminology required for conferences.

Morinda International Marketing Conference: Three-day conference on marketing potential of the international market. Training workshops. Anaheim Convention Center.

Freelance interpreter and translator for several agencies in Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, Washington, D.C., Georgia, and Texas. CA Board of Education interpreter.

California State University in Los Angeles. Translation and Interpretation Program. Southern California School of Interpretation. Conference interpreting training program. Translators program. Continuing education as mandated by the Judicial Council, 30 units per year. Entertainment industry seminars (hosted by the American Translators Association): The use of interpreters and translators in film and television: voice-overs, subtitles, dialect coach, and script reviews.

American Translators Association
California Federation of Interpreters (former board member)
California Court Interpreters Association
Proz.com, profile available here: http://proz.com/pro/7598
Examiner for Southern CA School of Interpretation