Description
We intend to film 6 shows in theatres and use our own method do audio describe and post them on our website at www.audiodeskrybowane.pl for blind and visually impaired children and youth from primary, middle and secondary schools across Poland. In addition, audio description texts in the form of audio files along with related computer software will be made available to theatres so that they can offer shows to blind audiences and to centres for blind and visually impaired people. Software and audio description methods will be presented to 6 theatres and 9 centres in training sessions with a minimum of 15 certificates of completion distributed to participants. A legal opinion and a training video will be commissioned on the use of art in audio description. The Partner contributes a quality theatre audio description method, experience and software as well as contacts in the blind community. The project is follow-up and extension of the current agenda of the Foundation.
Summary of project results
"Access to education and culture is limited for individuals with disabilities, in particular blind and visually impaired people. Blind people cannot watch films or plays without a special commentary known as audio description. Audio description is a narrative that describes events, situations and individuals on the screen or stage that would otherwise be unavailable to blind audiences. By giving blind children and youth and opportunity to fully and independently appreciate dramatic art they become more readily accepted and respected by their able-bodied peers. On the other hand, blind children feel more valuable members of the school community because they can do things on their own and without extra support just like their seeing peers. In the long term, the project sought to reduce barriers to experiencing culture by blind children. The project allowed 664 blind children appreciate plays both at the theatre and online. The tools that have been developed by the project can now be used by blind people themselves to create and share audio description projects. The project produced audio description of six plays for children staged by theatres in Cracow, Łódź, Poznań, Bielsko-Białe and Warsaw. Each show was followed by a meeting with actors and blind children could touch the costumes, puppets, the set and could talk to the actors. Training was provided to employees of theatres and facilities for blind people in Lublin, Cracow, Bydgoszcz, Warsaw, Laski, Wrocław, Dąbrowa Górnicza, Radom.The software provided to centres allows blind students with interests in IT to download videos from YouTune and partner with a seeing person to create an audio description for it. The project targeted blind theatre going children and children, youth, teachers and tutors in facilities for blind people. The partner, Handisoft Andrzej Woch Agency, has been active in the blind community for many years. It has contributed its proprietary theatre audio description software. It has the audio description expertise and trainers. Furthermore, it has an advanced knowledge of IT solutions for blind people and vast experience in training blind and visually impaired people."
Summary of bilateral results