Extending the Audience: Delivering Closed Captions and Descriptions for First-Run Theatrical Films

Approximately 34 million Americans with hearing or vision loss are unable to enjoy first-run films in theaters because they are not captioned or described. The WGBH Educational Foundation has developed innovative technologies that make it possible for exhibitors to provide captions and descriptions for those who need or desire them, without altering the movie going experience for the general audience. WGBH—working with Digital Theater Systems, General Cinema Theatres, Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, and Sony Pictures—has successfully demonstrated how closed captions and descriptive narration can be delivered during a film's regularly scheduled presentations in a theater. This paper provides a summary of WGBH's Motion Picture Access Project, describes the Rear Window Captioning System and DVS Theatrical, and outlines equipment and production requirements for providing theatrical closed captioning and descriptive narration.

Print ISSN

0036-1682

Published

1999-04

Content type

Information

DOI

10.5594/J15724