[Greater-Baltimore] Audio Description Resource Guide - National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) | Library of Congress

[William Borner]

https://www.loc.gov/nls/about/services/reference-publications/guides/audio-description-resource-guide/

Audio Description Resource Guide
2018

Descriptive video is a form of audio-visual translation used primarily by blind and visually impaired consumers of television and film. Television and movies use descriptive video when they employ a Secondary Audio Program (SAP), when the images and actions on screen are described during natural pauses in the dialogue.

In addition to descriptive video, audio description includes live performances where a narrator describes the actions on stage, as well as tour guides who are trained to describe visual elements.

The Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) requires that ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC television affiliates in the top sixty markets of the United States provide fifty hours of described prime time and/or children’s programming per quarter. In 2016, the Federal Communications Commission began the process of changing that requirement to approximately eighty-two hours of descriptive primetime and/or children’s programming per quarter. Descriptive video for cable television, movie theaters, DVDs, and streaming video services is also becoming widely available.

This guide provides sources of descriptive video for television, film, DVDs, and web-streaming services, as well as information on audio-described live performances and tours. The guide includes information about the CVAA, the technology and training behind descriptive video, and vendors who provide descriptive services on demand. The contact information for each organization mentioned in the guide and a bibliography for further reading can be found at the end of the document.

Contents

Sources of Descriptive Video
Broadcast and Cable Television
Feature Films
Home Video
Streaming and Web-Based Video
Further Reading on Audio Description
Descriptive Video Technology, Training, and Vendors
Performing Arts, Museums, and Tours
Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act
Bibliography
Contact Information
Sources of Descriptive Video

Broadcast and Cable Television

ABC: Audio Description
ABC
http://abc.go.com/audio-description 
Current list of ABC programing with audio description.

Accessibility at USA Network
USA Network
www.usanetwork.com/accessibility 
Includes information on accessing video description for content on the USA Network and a schedule of descriptive content. Updated daily.

Accessing Video Description, Step by Step
American Foundation for the Blind
https://www.afb.org/about-afb/what-we-do/afb-consulting/afb-accessibility-resources/video-description/accessing-video 
Introduces SAP and video description, including step-by-step instructions on enabling SAP using a cable set-top box or cable by satellite.

Access to Emergency Information on Television
Federal Communications Commission
www.fcc.gov/general/access-emergency-information-television 
Guidelines for using descriptive audio to relay emergency information scrolling on the bottom of a television to individuals who are blind or have a visual impairment, what emergency information should be included in the descriptive audio, and how to file a complaint.

CBS Press Express
CBS
www.cbspressexpress.com/cbs-entertainment/closed-captioning-practices/ 
Lists current described programming on CBS and provides contact information for the Video Description Department.

Described TV Listings
American Foundation for the Blind
www.afb.org/tv.aspx 
Allows users to search video-described television programming by zip code, cable provider, date, and time.

DIRECTV: How Do I Enable My Video Description?
DIRECTV
https://support.directv.com/dtv-programming/how-do-i-enable-my-video-description 
How to utilize video description with DIRECTV.

Fox Audio Description
Fox Broadcasting
www.fox.com/article/audio-description-5987a9810054d000205ff116/ 
Lists current FOX primetime television shows with audio description.

Learn about Video Description Service
COX Cable
www.cox.com/residential/support/learn-about-video-description-service.html 
Overview of video description, instructions on setting up voice guidance, and links to managing secondary audio programming settings.

Schedule of USA Audio Described TV Programs
American Council of the Blind Audio Description Project
http://bit.ly/adptv 
Plain text weekly, day-by-day schedule of television programs with audio description.

Viacom
http://viapub.viacom.com/sites/trafficguidelines/documents/Viacom_Delivery_Specs.pdf [PDF]
Provides information on parent company of television stations Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, Spike, and Logo, which offers closed captioning and descriptive video.

Video Description for U-verse TV
AT&T
www.att.com/esupport/article.html#!/u-verse-tv/KM1065436 
Introduces video description for AT&T U-verse consumers. Provides step-by-step instructions on setting up, enabling navigational sounds, and setting the default audio language and on-screen language preferences.

What is Video Description?
Comcast XFINITY
https://customer.xfinity.com/help-and-support/cable-tv/video-description/ 
Includes step-by-step instructions for enabling video description on an X1, Motorola TV BOX, SD digital adapter, or HD digital adapter.

Zap2it
Tribune Media
https://tvlistings.zap2it.com 
Provides local television listings for the United States and Canada.

Feature Films

Assistive Moviegoing: Making Movies Fun for Everyone
AMC (Lowes Cineplex Entertainment, Cineplex Odeon, General Cinema Theaters)
www.amctheatres.com/assistive-moviegoing 
Describes assistive devices available from AMC movie theaters for people with visual impairment to hear audio description of the movie. Offers moviegoers the opportunity to leave comments about specific AMC theaters by going to
www.amctheaters.com/contact/feedback

Bow Tie Cinemas Theater Locator
Bow Tie Cinemas (Clearview Cinemas)
www.bowtiecinemas.com/locations 
Allows users to locate Bow Tie and Clearview Cinemas by address or ZIP code. Clearly states accessibility features offered on each location’s homepage.

CaptionFish Showtimes
CaptionFish
www.captionfish.com 
Displays theaters, movies, and show times near you that offer descriptive video.

Captioning and Descriptive Video
Regal Entertainment Group (United Artist Theaters, Edwards Theaters, Cineplex Odeon)
https://www.regmovies.com/static/en/us/theatre/captioning-and-descriptive-video 
Describes captioning and descriptive video services offered by Regal movie theaters. Allows users to search Regal theaters by state and equipment available.

CineMark Theaters
CineMark (Century Theaters, Tinseltown USA, CineArts, and Rave Cinemas)
www.cinemark.com/theatres.aspx 
Allows users to search for a CineMark theater by city, state, or zip code. Individual movie titles listed in show times indicate whether a movie has an audio description option.

Cineplex Closed Caption/Described Services
Cineplex Entertainment
www.cineplex.com/Theatres/CCDS 
Search by location and date to find movies at Cineplex theaters.

Described Movies at Local Theaters
Described and Captioned Media Program
www.dcmp.org/caai/nadh199.pdf [PDF]
Introduces what described theater is, describes what kind of equipment is used, and provides links for finding theaters with video description.

Fandango
www.Fandango.com 
Allows users to search show times by city, state, ZIP code, or movie. Highlights accessibility devices available at the theater/movie chosen above the show times. Also available on an app.

Landmark Theatres: Accessibility Equipment
Landmark Theatres
www.landmarktheatres.com/boston/kendall-square-cinema/accessibility-equipment 
Overview with illustrations of the accessibility equipment, including audio description, used in Landmark theaters. List of theaters by state includes accessibility features offered at that theater.

MoPix: Motion Picture Access
http://ncam.wgbh.org/mopix/nowshowing.html 
Find current movies offered with descriptive video and search theaters with descriptive audio in the United States and Canada.

Showcase Cinemas: Assistive Moviegoing
Showcase Cinemas (Cinema Du Lux Multiplex, National Amusements, Superlux Locations)
https://www.showcasecinemas.com/assistive-moviegoing 
Information on visual and audio aid technology available through Showcase Cinemas.

Home Video

DVDs and Blu-ray Discs with Audio Description
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/dvds.html 
Lists DVDs and Blu-ray Discs with audio description for the current year with the newest releases listed first. DVDs for past years listed back to 2010.

Rated G or PG for Kids
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/dvdsforkids.html 
Lists DVDs with a G or PG rating and allows users to search by title or year.

Streaming and Web-Based Video

ABC APP
ABC
http://abc.go.com/watchabc-overview 
An overview of ABC’s streaming service for mobile devices, Airplay, and Chromecast.

Amazon Digital Content: Turn on Audio Descriptions
Amazon Prime
www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=202166380 
Step-by-step instructions for turning audio descriptions on when watching streaming content on Amazon.

Audio Descriptions for Netflix Movies and TV Shows
Netflix
https://help.netflix.com/en/node/25079 
Links to titles on Netflix with audio description, lists devices that will play audio description on Netflix, and provides contact information to get technical support.

Captioning and Video Description for the Web
Media Access Group at WGBH
http://main.wgbh.org/wgbh/pages/mag/pdfs/marketing_web.captioning.pdf [PDF]
Discusses adding captions and descriptive video to videos on websites.

Disney Movies Anywhere Audio Description
Disney Movies Anywhere
www.disneymoviesanywhere.com/#14484 
Discusses how to enable audio description for the Disney Movies Anywhere app currently available on iTunes, Amazon Prime, Google Play, VIDI, and Microsoft Movies and TV.

Find audio-described content in the iTunes Store
Apple Support
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205742 
Provides step-by-step instructions for finding, downloading, and viewing descriptive video for iTunes content from a Mac or PC computer, iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, or Apple TV.

How to Audio Describe a YouTube Video
Media Access Australia
https://mediaaccess.org.au/web/how-to-audio-describe-a-youtube-video 
Discusses different options for adding audio description to YouTube videos.

How to Find Accessible Media
Media Access Australia
https://mediaaccess.org.au/web/how-to-find-accessible-media 
Guidance on how to find audio description and closed captioned videos on iTunes and YouTube.

iTunes Audio Described Movies
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/itunesad.html 
Lists more than 400 movies with audio description available through iTunes.

Netflix Audio Described
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/netflixad.html 
Approximately 700 titles audio described in English and available from the streaming service Netflix.

New and Future Releases
Amazon.com
www.amazon.com/new-releases-dvd-bluray/b/ref=sv_mov_0?ie=UTF8&node=2921748011 
Lists new and future releases of movies and TV shows with descriptive audio. Includes DVD and Amazon Video, Amazon’s streaming video service.

Streaming Video
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/streaming.html 
Lists programming with audio description available from streaming video providers and web services.

Tell Me TV
www.tellmetv.com 
Described video on-demand, streaming service.

Video Description
American Foundation for the Blind
www.afb.org/info/living-with-vision-loss/video-description/13 
Provides information on video description.

Vimeo: Audio Described
Vimeo
https://vimeo.com/search?q=%22audio+description%22+%7C+%22audio+described%22 
Allows users to search for videos with audio description on the streaming web service Vimeo.

Further Reading on Audio Description

Descriptive Video Technology, Training, and Vendors

3PlayMedia
www.3playmedia.com 
Accessible media company provides descriptive audio and closed captioning serves.

Accessibility Solutions and Research Center
www.amacusg.org/captioning.php 
Non-profit educational organization providing audio description for students accessing video as part of their classroom experience.

Access-USA
www.access-usa.com 
North American production house for all types of alternative media.

Arts Access
www.artsaccessinc.org 
Non-profit organization providing audio description on demand. Works with movie theaters to supply the Arts Access Audio Description headset for live performances. Website includes a list of services, a schedule of current audio described performances, and a directory of individuals and companies that supply audio description for live performances on demand.

Audio Description Institute
American Council of the Blind
www.acb.org/adp/education.html#adi 
Source of training in audio description. Held as part of ACB’s Annual Conference in July and at several other times throughout the year.

Audio Description Training and Education Resources
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/education.html 
Organization providing information on audio-describer training, educational description, and articles on the methods used to create audio description.

Audio Descriptive Associates: Training
www.audiodescribe.com/training/ 
Audio description vendor offering training and workshops.

Descriptive Narration for TV, Films and Web-based Video
Media Access Group at WGBH
http://main.wgbh.org/wgbh/pages/mag/pdfs/wgbh_descriptive_narration.pdf [PDF]
An introduction to described video.

The Development of the Descriptive Video Services
National Center to Improve Practice in Special Education through Technology, Media and Materials
www2.edc.org/NCIP/library/v&c/cronin.htm 
A detailed history of the development of descriptive video.

DV Works
www.descriptivevideoworks.com 
Organization providing audio description services for NBC, CBS, the Discovery Channel, Viacom channels (including Bravo, Comedy Central, VH1, and MTV), and the A&E channel. DV Works has described more than 11,000 television shows, including the recent Rio Olympic Games, and 800 major movies. Member of the Netflix Post Partner Program.

Media Access Group at WGBH
http://main.wgbh.org/wgbh/pages/mag/ 
Provider of closed captioning and descriptive video.

Services Involved with Audio Description
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/services.html 
State-by-state contact information for small, on-demand audio description services.

Use Audio Descriptions to Hear Narration Describing a Video Clip, Show, or Movie
Apple Support
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204657 
Instructions on how to turn on audio descriptions to view iTunes content on a Mac, iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch and how to create descriptive audio in Final Cut Pro X.

Video Description Explained
American Foundation for the Blind
www.afb.org/info/living-with-vision-loss/video-description/video-description-explained/135 
Article on video description includes list of resources and information on how to access video description from your television.

Performing Arts, Museums, and Tours

Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability
The Kennedy Center
http://education.kennedy-center.org/education/accessibility/lead/ 
Describes methods for implementing accessibility in cultural environments, communicates information about arts and accessibility, and shares resources and knowledge among professionals.

Making Museums & Cultural Institutions Accessible
Media Access Group at WGBH
http://main.wgbh.org/wgbh/pages/mag/pdfs/WGBHMarketingFlyer.pdf [PDF]
Includes ways to enhance the museum experience for visitors with disabilities.

Performing Arts with Audio Description
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/theatres.html 
Offers overview of audio description of live performances.

Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA)

Consumer Guide: Twenty-First Century Communications and Video
Accessibility Act
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
https://transition.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/CVAA-access-act.pdf [PDF]
A short introduction to the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA), including what it means for consumers.

Consumer Help Center: Access for People with Disabilities
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc/en-us/sections/200700550-Guides-to-Filing-Accessibility-Complaints 
Guidelines for filing an accessibility complaint with the FCC.

Legal Requirements for Audio Description
3Play Media
www.3playmedia.com/2017/03/22/legal-requirements-audio-description/ 
Article explores federal laws and regulations regarding descriptive video services.

Media Bureau Announces Comment and Reply Deadlines for Video Description Expansion Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
Federal Communications Commission
https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-16-596A1.pdf [PDF]
Official public notice of the FCC’s intention to expand the hours that broadcast networks are required to offer descriptive audio.

President Obama Signs Historic Technology Access Bill
American Foundation for the Blind
www.afb.org/info/president-obama-signs-historic-technology-access-bill/
Article on the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act.

Top Sixty Markets Which Must Provide Audio/Video Description
American Council of the Blind, Audio Description Project
www.acb.org/adp/tvfcctop60.html 
A listing of the top twenty-five and top sixty markets where broadcast television stations must provide audio description.

Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act
Federal Communications Commission
www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/21st-century-communications-and-video-accessibility-act-cvaa 
A line-by-line consumer guide to the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010. Also available in Spanish.

Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act
Federal Communications Commission
www.fcc.gov/general/twenty-first-century-communications-and-video-accessibility-act-0

Summary of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010.
Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010
US Government Information
www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-111s3304enr/pdf/BILLS-111s3304enr.pdf [PDF]
Official text of the 2010 act to increase the access of people with disabilities to modern communications.

Video Description of Video Programming
US Government Publishing Office (GPO)
www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=7435e6f252ce50bfd33e3de98ae55bb8&mc=true&node=se47.4.79_13&rgn=div8 
Text of the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 47 (Telecommunication), Part 79 (Accessibility of Video Programming), §79.3.

Bibliography

Aafaq, Nayyer, Syed Zulqarnain Gilani, Wei Liu, and Ajmal Mian. “Video Description: A Survey of Methods, Datasets, and Evaluation Metrics.” ArXiv:1806.00186, June 1, 2018. Retrieved from https://arxiv.org/abs/1806.00186.

Alamri, Huda, Vincent Cartillier, Rapheal Gontijo Lopes, Abhishek Das, Jue Wang, Irfan Essa, Dhruv Batra, et al. “Audio Visual Scene-Aware Dialog (AVSD) Challenge at DSTC7.” ArVix, June 1, 2018.

Anderman, Gunilla, and Jorge Diaz-Cintas, eds. Audiovisual Translation:Language Transfer on Screen. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009.

Cintas, Jorge Diaz, Pilar Orero, and Aline Remael, eds. Media for All: Subtitling for the Deaf, Audio Description, and Sign Language (Approaches to Translation Studies 30). 1st ed. New York, NY: Rodopi, 2007.

Cryer, Heather and Sarah Home. “Exploring the Use of Synthetic Speech by Blind and Partially Sighted People.” RNIB Centre for Accessible Information. Birmingham, UK: Literature Review #2, November 2008.

Cryer, Heather and Sarah Home. “User attitudes towards synthetic speech for Talking Books.” RNIB Centre for Accessible Information. Birmingham, UK: Research Report #7, May 13, 2009.

Douze, Matthijs, Hervé Jégou, Cordelia Schmid, and Patrick Pérez. “Compact Video Description for Copy Detection with Precise Temporal Alignment.” In European Conference on Computer Vision (ECCV ’10), 522-35. Proceedings of Compact Video Description for Copy Detection with Precise Temporal Alignment, Greece, Heraklion. Vol. 6311. Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 2010.

Kent, Michael, Katie Ellis, and Kathryn Locke. Audio Description and Australian Television: A Position Paper. Working paper. School of Media, Creative Arts and Social Inquiry (MCASI), Curtin University of Technology, School of Media. 2018.

Kent, Michael, Katie Ellis, Gwyneth Peaty, Latter Natalie, and Kathryn Locke. Mainstreaming Captions for Online Lectures in Higher Education in Australia. Working Paper. Curtin University of Technology, Department of Internet Studies. 2017.

Laokulrat, Natsuda, Naoaki Okazaki, and Hideki Nakayama. “Incorporating Semantic Attention in Video Description Generation.” In LREC. 2018. Retrieved from www.lrec-conf.org/proceedings/lrec2018/pdf/98.pdf. [pdf]

Contact Information

Accessibility Solutions and Research Center
512 Means St. NW, Ste. 250
Atlanta, GA 30318
(404) 894-8000
866-279-2964 toll-free
866-418-2750 customer support toll-free
amactech at amac.gatech.edu www.amacusg.org

Access—USA
PO Drawer 160
242 James St.
Clayton, NY 13624
800-263-2750 toll-free
www.access-usa.com

Amazon.com Inc.
410 Terry Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98109
(206) 266-1000
Amazon.com

AMC Entertainment, Inc.
PO Box 725489
Atlanta, GA 31139-9923
www.amctheaters.com

American Council of the Blind
1703 N. Beauregard St., Ste. 420
Alexandria, VA 22311
(202) 467-5081
800-424-8666 toll-free
www.acb.org

American Foundation for the Blind
2 Penn Plz., Ste. 1102
New York, NY 10121
(212) 502-7600
www.afb.org

Apple Accessibility and Assistive Technology Support
877-204-3930 toll-free
800-694-7466 iPhone support toll-free
800-275-2273 corporate toll-free

Arts Access Inc.
PO Box 10574
Raleigh, NC 27605
(919) 833-9919
www.artsaccessinc.org

AT&T DirecTV
800-531-5000 customer support toll-free
www.att.com/directv

Audio Description Associates
6502 Westmoreland Ave.
Takoma Park, MD 20912
(301) 920-0218 24-hour messaging service
jsnyder at audiodescribe.com 

Bow Tie Cinemas
641 Danbury Rd.
Ridgefield, CT 06877
(203) 659-2600
comments at bowtiecinemas.com www.bowtiecinemas.com

CaptionFish
Captionfish.com
www.captionfish.com/contact

CineMark USA, Inc.
3900 Dallas Pkwy., Ste. 500
Plano, TX 75093
800-246-3627 toll-free
www.cinemark.com

Columbia Broadcasting System
51 W. 52nd St.
New York, NY 10019
888-274-5343 toll-free
www.CBS.com

Comcast Center
1701 JFK Blvd.
Philadelphia, PA 19103
800-934-6489 Comcast XFINITY
customer service toll-free
https://corporate.comcast.com/contact-information

Cox Communications
6205 B Peachtree Dunwoody Rd. NE
Atlanta, GA 30328
888-278-6660 toll-free
www.cox.com

Described and Captioned Media Program
National Association of the Deaf
1447 E. Main St.
Spartanburg, SC 29307
800-237-6213 toll-free

Disney/ABC Television Group
77 W. 66th St., Rm. 100
New York, NY 10023
(212) 465-7777
TWDC.Corp.Communications at Disney.com  www.disneyabcpress.com

Fandango Media
12200 W. Olympic Blvd., Ste. 400
Los Angeles, CA 90064
(310) 954-0279
866-857-5191 customer service toll-free
www.fandango.com

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
445 12th St. SW
Washington, DC 20554
888-225-5322 toll-free
www.fcc.gov

Fox Broadcasting Company
10201 W. Pico Blvd., Bldg. 1003220
Los Angeles, CA 90064
(310) 369-1000
www.fox.com

Government Publishing Office
732 N. Capitol St. NW
Washington, DC 20401
(202) 512-1800
www.gpo.gov

Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability (LEAD) Conference
The John F. Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts
2700 F St. NW
Washington, DC 20566
(202) 416-8727
800-444-1327 toll-free
access at kennedy-center.org http://education.kennedy-center.org/education/accessibility/lead/

Media Access Group at WGBH/MoPix Motion Picture Access
One Guest St.
Boston, MA 02135
(617) 300-3600
access at wgbh.org https://www.wgbh.org/foundation/mopix

Regal Entertainment Group
7132 Regal Ln.
Knoxville, TN 37918
865-922-1123 corporate toll-free
877-835-5734 option 2 customer service
toll-free
www.regmovies.com

Showcase Cinemas
National Amusements
846 University Ave.
PO Box 9108
Norwood, MA 02062
www.showcasecinemas.com/about-us/contact-us

Viacom
Sandy Luna
M&E Digital Operations Group
345 Hudson St.
New York, NY 10014
Closedcaption at viacom.com 

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