Accessible film festivals: a pilot study

This work provides an overview of the state of accessibility at film festivals all over the world, identifies its selected audiences and also encourages innovative solutions in relation to linguistic and technical issues emerged during the processes of subtitling. The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 has resulted in many film festivals all over the world being either cancelled, postponed or moved to online platforms. What has arisen is the question whether and to what extent people with sensorial disabilities, in particular deaf and hard-of-hearing and blind and visually impaired people, have been left behind or have been part of projects of inclusion. The accessibility of forms of art, such as those in the contexts of museums, theatre and opera, has seen unprecedented advances, and research has grown exponentially in recent years. Conversely, the accessibility of film festivals is a relatively new field, still neglected and unexplored. Against the backdrop of accessibility studies and film festivals, this study introduces and discusses accessibility practices within the aesthetic framework of Sole Luna Doc Festival from the perspectives of audiovisual translation norms, conventions and guidelines, and aims to testify to which technical and linguistic strategies of subtitling for the deaf and hard-of-hearing have been adopted within the national (Italian) context applied to the film festival under examination

Accessibility at Film Festivals: Guidelines for Inclusive Subtitling

In today's media-dominated world, the imperative for accessibility has never been greater, and ensuring that audiovisual experiences cater to individuals with sensory disabilities has become a pressing concern. One of the key initiatives in this endeavour is inclusive subtitling (IS), a practice rooted in the broader contexts of subtitling for the deaf and hard of hearing (SDH/CC), audiovisual translation studies (AVTS), media accessibility studies (MAS), and the evolving field of Deaf studies (DS). This study aims to offer a comprehensive exploration of how inclusive subtitling contributes to fostering accessible and inclusive audiovisual experiences, with a particular focus on its implications within the unique environment of film festivals. To gain a holistic perspective of inclusive subtitling, it is essential to examine its lineage in relation to analogous practices, which is the focus of the first chapter. Inclusive subtitling is an extension of SDH/CC, designed for individuals with hearing impairments, and SDH/CC, in turn, is a nuanced variation of traditional subtitling extensively explored within the realm of AVTS. To encapsulate the diverse techniques and modalities aimed at making audiovisual content universally accessible, the study recognises the term "Audiovisual Accessibility" (AVA). The second chapter explores the interconnection of accessibility studies (AS), AVTS, and MAS, highlighting their symbiotic relationship and their role in framing inclusive subtitles within these fields. These interconnections are pivotal in shaping a framework for the practice of inclusive subtitling, enabling a comprehensive examination of its applicability and research implications. The third chapter delves into Deaf studies and the evolution of Deafhood, which hinges on the history and culture of Deaf individuals. This chapter elucidates the distinction between ‘deafness’ as a medical construct and ‘Deafhood’ as a cultural identity, crucial to the understanding of audiovisual accessibility and its intersection with the Deaf community's perspectives. In the fourth chapter, the focus turns to the exploration of film festivals, with a specific emphasis on the crucial role of subtitles in enhancing accessibility, particularly when films are presented in their original languages. The chapter marks a critical point, highlighting the inherent connection between subtitles and the immersive nature of film festivals that aspire to promote inclusivity in the cinematic experience. The emphasis on inclusivity extends to the evolution of film festivals, giving rise to more advanced forms, including accessible film festivals and Deaf film festivals. At the core of the chapter is a thorough examination of the corpus, specifically, the SDH/CC of films spanning the editions from 2020 to 2023 of two highly significant film festivals, namely BFI Flare and the London Film Festival. The corpus serves as the foundation upon which my research unfolds, providing a nuanced understanding of the role subtitles play in film festival contexts. The main chapter, chapter five, thoroughly analyses the technical and linguistic aspects of inclusive subtitling, drawing insights from the Inclusive Subtitling Guidelines - a two version document devised by myself - and offering real-world applications supported by a case study at an Italian film festival and another case study of the short film Pure, with the relevant inclusive subtitles file annexed. In conclusion, the research sets the stage for a comprehensive exploration of inclusive subtitling's role in ensuring accessible and inclusive audiovisual experiences, particularly within film festivals. It underscores the importance of accessibility in the world of audiovisual media and highlights the need for inclusive practices to cater to diverse audiences

Stability of quark-antiquark models of mesons: A study on the validity of the spectator, Dirac, and Salpeter equations

Mesons are made of quark-antiquark pairs held together by the strong force. The one channel spectator, Dirac, and Salpeter equations can each be used to model this pairing. We look at cases where the relativistic kernel of these equations corresponds to a linear combination of scalar exchange and vector exchange. The vector exchange will be either the time-like component or the full four vector. The systems covered here are referred to as quasirelativistic, which means retardation, regularization, and form factors are not included. Since the model used in this paper describes mesons which cannot decay physically, the equations must describe stable states. We find that this requirement is not always satisfied, and give a complete discussion of the conditions under which the various equations give unphysical, unstable solutions

Towards a multilingual database of sound effects

One of the most significant linguistic and technical challenges applied to subtitling for the deaf and hard of hearing persons (SDH) is the linguistic description of sound encapsulated within the space of subtitles. This subtitle typology is crucial to hearing impaired audiences, since its main purpose is to improve the level of comprehension and appreciation of the plot, character development and, in general, of the nuances of audiovisual products. The scope of this study is to investigate the possibilities and the applications of a multilingual database of sound effects. Such database will combine the most recent technologies in Respeaking, viewed as “the production of subtitles by means of speech recognition” (Romero-Fresco, 2018) applied to sound effects, and the most recent technologies in Machine Translation, which is more widely used in (non-AV) text translation than in AVT (Burchardt et al., 2016). Drawing upon the BBC Sound Effect database and by means of what is supported by agencies producing Foley sounds, along with specialised SDH subtitlers and linguists, this universal tool can be potentially transformed into the common point of reference for the appropriate labelling of SDH. The use of the database can be extended to more languages with the scope of consolidating and unifying the labelling of sound effects for SDH across Europe. Part of this research will also focus on some aspects of Sound Studies and Deaf Studies with the aim of investigating the loudness of sound effects and the limit under which a subtitle will be rendered either irrelevant or unnecessary. The outcome of this research could be used as the foundation for further interdisciplinary research and its results and data are expected to become useful resources for educational and training objectives