Award-Winning Website for Deaf Cinema-Goers Under Threat
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Subscribe online for FREE Want EXTRA COPIES for and read the latest issue at your waiting room? www.hearingtimes.co.uk call 0845 2930688 for more info ® HearingMay 2011 Timeswww.hearingtimes.co.uk “Beautiful finger- Award-winning website for signing” recorded Older sign language users’ skills in spelling out individual words with deaf cinema-goers under threat their fingers have been recorded YourLocalCinema.com provides information on over 600 subtitled film screenings per week, but the closure of UK before the method disappears Film Council has thrown the future of the site into doubt Finger-spelling has been declining, according to Highland Council’s Deaf Charlie Swinbourne Communication Project. An award-winning website which has Backed with almost £50,000 from the played a key role in increasing the number Heritage Lottery Fund, the project team have of subtitled screenings for deaf cinema-goers been documenting the stories of profoundly is under threat after losing its main source of deaf people in the north. They include sign funding. language users in the Highlands, islands and YourLocalCinema.com is the only Moray. comprehensive source of information for A documentary cut from nine hours of subtitled cinema in the UK, attracting over raw footage will be shown at Eden Court in 150,000 visitors to the site each month. It Inverness on Friday. features listings for subtitled screenings all Project manager Jenny Liddel said there over the UK (searchable by town or by film), was a “compelling need” to make the film subtitled trailers, and sends out a weekly now because the way people sign has been newsletter to over 65,000 subscribers. The changing. site also features thousands of listings for audio described films, aimed at visually “It seems like a slow way impaired people. to communicate, but in fact it’s The UK Film Council has been the primary amazingly fast and beautiful to funders of the site since 2004, but lost its watch, and its part of our heritage.” funding responsibilities after being axed by the government. While some UK Film She said, “Older deaf people don’t use as Council departments have been transferred many signs, but instead use their fingers to to the British Film Institute (BFI), the diversity spell out individual letters. department - which funded YourLocalCinema. The unique site features listings for subtitled screenings all over the UK (searchable by town or by “It sounds like a slow way to communicate, film), subtitled trailers, and sends out a weekly newsletter to over 65,000 subscribers com - has been abolished, leaving little hope but in fact it’s amazingly fast and beautiful to of the BFI maintaining funding for the site. Year award in 2006. As recently as February, people in employment. The only costs are watch, and its part of our heritage. the site won an Innovation in Cinema award people’s time. It’s a virtual business with no “We wanted to capture this wonderful “It’s not just the site that is at risk, voted for by the UK Film Industry. office costs.” communication style on film while we still it’s everything we do, such as In the eleven years the site has been What would happen if the site closed? can.” working with the cinema industry, running, it has played a crucial role in the Dean says, “if we ceased to exist, deaf Researchers Jean Pentland and John and deaf organisations to make dramatic increase in subtitled screenings. people would have much more difficulty Montgomery interviewed 15 deaf signers. changes for the better.” “In 2000, there was nothing,” says Dean. “It finding out what’s subtitled, where and when, Jean said it was important to record the use of has been very much a collaborative effort, and the deaf community would lose a site that sign language in the same way as Gaelic has While the UK Film Council is not the site’s between many people in the UK film industry, has been successful in fighting their corner been. Those interviewed included Lena Hay, sole funder, it is by far the biggest. Founder to get us to where we are today. There’s now to making improvements in cinema access.” from Elgin, who recalled how local variations Dean Rhodes Brandon said, “we receive more than 600 English language subtitled For more information vist of sign language could have embarrassing some funding from all the major cinema shows weekly, of almost every popular film, YourLocalCinema.com misinterpretations. companies, as well as the major studios in almost every major cinema nationwide.” She said, “At the Milan Deaf Olympics in – such as Disney, Warner Bros, and 20th After originally being run for free, the rapid 1957, I was chatting to an American girl and Century Fox. But the UK Film Council has increase in accessible screenings and traffic I used my Scottish sign for ‘lemonade’. She always provided the vast majority of our to the site meant that being funded by the UK was very shocked because to her that was funds.” Film Council from 2004 was vital in paying for the sign for a very rude swear word.” If an alternative source of funding is not the costs of the site. Colin McLean, head of the Heritage Lottery found, the innovative site will run out of funding “We did it for free in the beginning,” Dean Fund in Scotland, said, “I am delighted that in December this year - resulting in the loss told Hearing Times, “for around three years HLF has been able to help capture the legacy of a vital portal of information for thousands until we managed to persuade companies of Highland finger-spelling before it dies out of deaf and visually impaired film fans. Dean completely. said, “it’s not just the site that is at risk, it’s “There’s now more than 600 “This film is not only extremely interesting everything we do, such as working with the English language subtitled shows and educational for all but will, I’m sure, give cinema industry, and deaf organisations like weekly, of almost every popular deaf people a stronger affinity with their the RNID and the NDCS to make changes film, in almost every major identity through greater understanding of for the better.” cinema nationwide” their history and traditions.” Dean set up YourLocalCinema.com in 2000, when he was only 15 years old. His to sponsor us, but there wasn’t so much “I was chatting to an American work won him, and the site, vast publicity and to do back then. More subtitled and audio girl and I used my Scottish a variety of awards, including the Daily Mail described films and shows has resulted in sign for ‘lemonade’. She was People’s Choice Enterprise Award, the British more time being required to collect, collate very shocked because to her Telecom BT Remote Worker Award (both in and disseminate the info.” that was the sign for a very rude 2009) and RADAR’s Young Person of the Ironically, the site’s future has been thrown into doubt just as the future for subtitled swear word.” cinema looks brighter than ever. Dean said, In the eleven years the site has been running, In 2009, a professor argued that signing “we’re confident that thanks to recent and the site has played a crucial role in the should be treated as an indigenous and upcoming digital cinema standards, 2011/12 dramatic increase in subtitled screenings minority language. will see further improvements in UK cinema Prof Graham Turner, of Heriot-Watt access. Basically it will soon be easier for University in Edinburgh, said records of sign cinemas to improve their ‘subtitle’ service. language in Britain could be traced back to Eventually there will be at least 500 UK 1575. cinemas with built-in digital subtitle facilities. What do you think? Two years ago about 50,000 people were So things will get even better.” using sign as their first or preferred language Dean and his father, who also works on Have your say: in the UK, fewer than speak Gaelic or Welsh. the site, plan to keep looking for new funding. Prof Turner said in terms of numbers of users While a significant sum, the amount of funding email [email protected] and political support it received, it was in a the site requires is relatively small compared minority. He also said there had not been the to many other access organisations. Dean same scientific studies of signing as spoken Dean Rhodes Brandon set up YourLocalCinema. said, “it’s just enough to keep one and a half com in 2000, when he was only 15 years old languages. 2 News www.hearingtimes.co.uk May 2011 In the news 50 years of service to Deaf Trust celebrated Doncaster Deaf Trust has recently celebrated two of its staff members reaching their 25 years service milestone All Party Parliamentary Group on deafness (APPGD) - AGM and Davina Middleton,41, is an NVQ assessor, Screening meeting which gives her the responsibility to At their recent annual AGM, the APPGD assess care workers and ensure they gain re-elected Malcolm Bruce MP as Chair. enough work based evidence to pass their A meeting focusing on hearing screening qualifications. followed, this was started by a review, by Davina who joined the Deaf Trust aged just Brian Gale, Director of Policy and Campaigns 18 after passing her qualifications - lives in at NDCS and Dr Sue Archbold, CEO of the France and visits the Deaf Trust three times a Ear Foundation, of the New Born Screening year, in the meantime she runs online training programme which has enabled an early and development classes for the Deaf Trust identification of hearing impairment and staff from home.