Seeing films through sound: Sound design, spatial audio, and accessibility for visually impaired audiences

López, Mariana; Kearney, Gavin; Hofstadter, Krisztian

doi:10.1177/0264619620935935

Cited by 19 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Previous research explored the design of audio films, a format of sonic art that eliminates the need for visual elements and a describer, by providing information through sound, sound processing, and spatialisation (Lopez, 2015; Lopez & Pauletto, 2009a, 2009b, 2010). Sound effects are used both to represent actions and as soundmarks to help the listeners identify the different spaces in the narrative (Schafer, 1994).…”

Section: Sound Design and Accessibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Artificial reverberation (i.e., the simulation of the acoustics of a space) is employed to provide each space with a characteristic sound while spatial audio (6.1 surround sound) is used to suggest the layout of the spaces as well as indicate the movement of the characters. A pilot study with visually impaired volunteers has demonstrated the viability of this format as well as the need for further research (Lopez, 2015).…”

Section: Sound Design and Accessibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Audio Description in the UK: What works, what doesn’t, and understanding the need for personalising access

López¹,

Kearney

Hofstadter

2018

British Journal of Visual Impairment

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Audio Description for film and television is a pre-recorded track that uses verbal descriptions to provide information on visual aspects of a film or TV programme. In the UK it is currently the only accessibility strategy available for visually impaired audiences and although it provides access to a large number of people, its shortcomings also fail to engage others in audiovisual experiences. The Enhancing Audio Description project explores how digital audio technologies can be applied to the creation of alternatives to Audio Description with the aim of personalising access strategies. Such personalisation would allow users to select the method utilised to access audiovisual experiences, by having choices that include traditional forms of accessibility as well as sound design based methods. The present article analyses the results of a survey and focus groups in which visually impaired participants discussed the advantages and disadvantages of AD and it demonstrates not only the diversity of experiences and needs of visually impaired groups but also their eagerness for change.

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Section: Sound Design and Accessibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sound Design and Accessibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Audio Description in the UK: What works, what doesn’t, and understanding the need for personalising access

López¹,

Kearney

Hofstadter

2018

British Journal of Visual Impairment

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“…A full analysis of the redesign of Pearl's soundtrack can be found in a previous article by the authors, which also explores the results of a series of interviews with 50 visually impaired participants (Lopez et al, 2020a). The analysis of said interviews demonstrated that the EAD soundtrack performed as well as traditional AD in terms of the information provided and the enjoyment experienced, and was just as accessible, demonstrating the potential of the format to be offered as an alternative to traditional AD and cater for different aesthetic preferences among audiences (Lopez et al, 2020a).…”

Section: Example Of the Use Of First-person Narration (I-voice) In A Section Of The Film Pearl ©University Of Yorkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…An approach in which accessibility is integrated to the creative process, such as the one proposed by the field of accessible filmmaking (Romero-Fresco, 2019), while also considering the personalisation of experiences (Lopez et al, 2018) and the potential of creative sound design (Lopez et al, 2020a), could offer a solution to these limitations. A future in which end users can select the type of accessibility method, including AD, that they would like to access.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Instead, the project favoured the creation of accessible experiences through sound design strategies that can be integrated to the creative and technical workflows involved in film and television productions, and which could be offered as an alternative to traditional AD. The project focused on the combination of three main methods for accessibility purposes, which are referred to as Enhanced Audio Description (EAD) (Lopez et al, 2018(Lopez et al, , 2020a.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Enhancing Audio Description: Inclusive Cinematic Experiences Through Sound Design

López

Kearney

Hofstadter

2021

JAT

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This paper explores the creation of an alternative to traditional Audio Description for visually impaired film and television audiences. The Enhanced Audio Description (EAD) methods utilise sound design as the main vehicle for accessibility and advocate for the integration of accessibility practices to filmmaking workflows. Moreover, this integrated strategy results in an organic form of accessibility that can cater for both visually impaired and sighted audiences, championing inclusive cinematic experiences. The present article reflects on the discussions held during focus groups in which mixed audiences of visually impaired and sighted people watched the same film, with the same EAD soundtrack over headphones. The discussions highlight the potential of the format as an example of universal design and accessible filmmaking, which can be enjoyed regardless of audience’s sight condition and can be offered alongside traditional Audio Description (AD) in order to cater for different aesthetic preferences. Lay summary Audio Description (AD) is a third person commentary added to film and television productions to make them accessible for visually impaired audiences. Traditionally, AD is added to productions after they have been completed, meaning that the creative and accessibility teams do not work together to produce the accessible version of the production. This paper explores an alternative to traditional AD, called Enhanced Audio Description (EAD), whose methods are integrated to filmmaking workflows. EAD moves away from a focus on verbal descriptions and instead focuses on sound design strategies. In EAD the traditional third person commentary is replaced by the combination of three techniques. The first is the addition of sound effects to provide information on actions, convey abstract scenes as well as indicate time, place, and the presence of characters. The second is the use of binaural audio (3D audio over headphones) to convey the position of characters and objects portrayed on the screen. Finally, first-person narration is used to portray feelings, gestures, colours as well as certain actions. The application of EAD methods results in a form of accessibility that can cater for both visually impaired and sighted audiences, championing inclusive cinematic experiences. Focus groups with audiences of visually impaired and sighted people demonstrated the potential of the format to be widely enjoyed, and to be offered alongside traditional Audio Description (AD) in order to provide accessible experiences which cater for different aesthetic preferences.

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Event boundary perception in audio described films by people without sight

Johansson,

Rastegar,

Lyberg‐Åhlander

et al. 2024

Applied Cognitive Psychology

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Audio description (AD) plays a crucial role in making audiovisual media accessible to people with a visual impairment, enhancing their experience and understanding. This study employs an event segmentation task to examine how people without sight perceive and segment narrative events in films with AD, compared to sighted viewers without AD. Two AD versions were utilized, differing in the explicitness of conveyed event boundaries. Results reveal that the participants without sight generally perceived event boundaries similarly to their sighted peers, affirming AD's effectiveness in conveying event structures. However, when key event boundaries were more implicitly expressed, event boundary recognition diminished. Collectively, these findings offer valuable insights into event segmentation processes across sensory modalities. Additionally, they underscore the significance of how AD presents event boundaries, influencing the perception and interpretation of audiovisual media for people with a visual impairment and providing applied insights into event segmentation, multimodal processing, and audiovisual accessibility.

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Seeing films through sound: Sound design, spatial audio, and accessibility for visually impaired audiences

Cited by 19 publications

References 35 publications

Audio Description in the UK: What works, what doesn’t, and understanding the need for personalising access

Audio Description in the UK: What works, what doesn’t, and understanding the need for personalising access

Enhancing Audio Description: Inclusive Cinematic Experiences Through Sound Design

Event boundary perception in audio described films by people without sight

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