Understanding Video description- A hands on Approach
By Carol Colmenares

 

Chances are that that when talking about video/ audio description outside of our work areas, we inevitably follow with a long explanation of what it is, why it is important and yes “people who are blind do watch television”  and no “it is not the same as radio”. 

Dicapta and the Video Description Research and Development Center (VDRDC), recently had the opportunity to share with media students and professionals a few thoughts on Video Description.  The Broadcast Educational Association (BEA) provided some space and time during their annual conference in Las Vegas, for these two organizations to come together and conduct a hands-on workshop where participants got to experience fist hand what visually impaired individuals might be missing from a video or film program as well as learn some basic skills necessary to describe a video program.  

A segment of the film “The Lamp”* was shown without any images, and participants were asked to provide an explanation of what was happening.  A second time the film was shown with description and still no images which gave participants a taste of the amount of information that one can miss out on.   Workshop participants were given the opportunity to create their own descriptions and “test” them by reading them out loud, in sync with the segment chosen for this exercise.  Dr. Josh Miele, graciously commented on each description, pointing out the strengths and flaws of each piece.  Needless to say, participants were surprised and in awe of the amount of work and creativity that went into producing description for such a short segment.  Many of them were inspired and approached us later to find out how they could further their skills or play a bigger role in Video Description. 

Describing for video is truly an art form.  Creative writing skills, attention to detail and great command of the English language are essential to create a good description.  Video describers have to decide what is relevant, important and interesting and adhere to a constrictive time slot in which the description is placed.  

Our goals were two-fold.  We wanted to bring attention to a service that we believe is a right for any visually impaired individual.  We also wanted to entice media producers, seasoned and fresh, to include video description in their future media programs.   At the very least, I believe we gave those participants something to think about for their next production. 

 

 

*The film “The Lamp” was generously lent for this workshop by the Narrative Television Network. 


Carol Colmenares has worked in children’s media since 1995 and has worked on nearly every aspect of television production from the technical aspects of media production to casting and directing. Her professional experience includes positions as a content producer, advisor, and media outreach expert to Hispanics in the United States including involvement in producing several bilingual productions for the Public Broadcasting System (PBS).   Carol is the Director of Education and Outreach at Dicapta.