Subtitles for the deaf have different characteristics than standard subtitles.
Thanks to the use of elements such as symbols and colours, character identification, synthesis and increased screen time, the dialogues are more accessible to the target audience.
Cinema, tv, exhibitions and social
Through the most recent MiBACT interventions, Italian production companies are increasingly required to subtitle and audio-describe films as early as the production phase, sometimes including accessibility as a constraint for financing.
If a director wants RAI (national public broadcasting company of Italy) to broadcast his/her documentary, for example, the director will have to make sure it is complete with subtitles and audio description.
Even a museum has every interest in subtitling its video content in Italian, in order to guarantee the right to culture to the deaf community and expand its audience.
Once a product has been made accessible, foreigners who are learning Italian, elderly people and all those who need to turn the volume of a video down or off at a given time will also be able to use the subtitles.
And, again, imagine visiting an exhibition that hosts different video contents in the same exhibition space. Thanks to the subtitles, it is possible to keep the volume of the videos low since the visitor is accompanied in listening by the text on the screen and the enjoyment of different contents at the same time is not compromised.
Even to those who intend to make a video tutorial or wish to promote themselves on social subtitles are of paramount importance. Benefits related to subtitles include an increase in views and an increase in the number of followers. Think about how many times you have had to stop watching a movie on your cell phone when you are in a public place. When a video is complete with subtitles, you do not need to: just mute the audio to continue watching it, without losing any information.
For a film to be really accessible, the subtitling for the deaf is also combined with audio description for the blind.
Our work
Among our customers, several independent production companies, such as I Cammelli, Indyca and Zenit Arti Audiovisive.
Here is an example of our subtitles, taken from the documentary “Ragazzi di Stadio, quarant’anni dopo” (by Daniele Segre – Italy-France, 2018, 82′ – I Cammelli, Rai Cinema, 13 production)
Mute the sound and look hard for a total immersion!
