In language education, traditional views of translation as a rote, uncreative task have been challenged by fan translation. Fan translation refers to linguistic work conducted by fans of popular culture. These fans often translate from the L2 into the L1 mediating across texts based on their affinities or enthusiasm for certain figures. By engaging in fan translation, fans not only make popular culture accessible to other linguistic communities but also learn a foreign language (L2), oftentimes while interacting with others and publicizing their translations in digitally mediated contexts. Integrating fan translation into the curriculum, particularly for advanced students, can transform translation into a motivating, communicative, and creative classroom activity. These projects involve students translating L2 media content aligned with their interests or analyzing translations through the dual perspectives of fans and language learners. This approach, inspired by the pedagogical framing of bridging activities, has the potential to promote active learning, motivation, and collaborative problem-solving related to cultural and linguistic understanding, such as how to best translate humor in texts. This chapter details five proposals for achieving active student participation in fan translation as a real-life language-learning task. In this way, learners’ communicative skills, cultural understanding, and critical thinking are enhanced, alongside 21st-century skills including collaboration and digital literacy. It concludes by arguing that, ultimately, fan translation can redefine translation’s role in language learning and lead to more engaging, relevant teaching and research practices, viewing translation practices as inherent to language learning.