Miss-Delectable
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EagleTribune.com, North Andover, MA - New technology allows hearing-impaired teens to enjoy movie theaters
Like most teens, 14-year-old Kara Mongell of North Andover thought "Spiderman 3" was pretty cool. So did her friends from across the North Shore and the Merrimack Valley who meet once a month to do something fun.
But unlike most teens, Kara and her friends are deaf. Most of them wear powerful hearing aids to help them hear. But hearing aids can only do so much.
So Cheryl Mongell, Kara's mother, did her research and discovered MoPix, a pair of technologies that makes movie theaters accessible to visually- and auditory-impaired individuals.
Mongell was interested in the Rear Window Captioning System, a unique method of providing closed captioning to deaf and hard-of-hearing patrons. If Mongell could convince a local movie theater to install the technology, then Kara and other deaf children could enjoy movies when they first come out like every other teen.
"I called Loews in Methuen for a year with no response," Mongell said. "And then when AMC theaters bought Loews, they agreed very quickly to install it. AMC theaters has been wonderful."
AMC installed the technology free of charge, and Vice President of Special Projects Phil Pennington provided Mongell complimentary tickets for the movie two weeks ago.
AMC has installed the Rear Window Captioning System in more than 150 of its theaters across the country, according to WGBH, a partner in the project. The Rear Window Closed Captioning technology was co-developed by the Media Access Group of WGBH, a public broadcast station, and Boston Light and Sound, Inc.
In theaters with the closed-captioning technology, a display is mounted on the back wall and emits reversed text onto screens patrons attach to their seats' cupholders. The technology allows deaf and hard-of-hearing patrons to see and read captions without distracting other patrons.
"It's an expense to the theater, so it's great that they were willing to do this," said Cathy Bakkensen, a teacher and mentor of deaf teens.
The technology will also make family experiences more enjoyable for everyone, especially families with both hearing-impaired and non-hearing-impaired children, said Bakkensen, who also teaches a class about rehabilitation procedures for deaf children and adults at Emerson College.
"It sounds mean, but sometimes the hearing-impaired child doesn't always know what he or she is missing," Bakkensen said.
Some of the teens in the group admitted that watching movies isn't as easy for them.
"Half of the time I can't understand what's going on," said Corey Burns, a 17-year-old from Acton. "When there's a joke I usually laugh after everyone else because I didn't understand it right away."
Some of the teens had used the closed-captioning system in other theaters, including the National Amusements Cinema in Revere and the IMAX Theater at the Museum of Science.
"I was able to know what the movie was about and enjoy it," Kara said.
For some of the teens, this screening of "Spiderman 3" was their first trip to the theater at the Loop. They all had favorable opinions of the new system after the movie.
"I saw this movie last week and I really liked the captions today," Burns said. "I was able to understand more of the conversations especially with all that was going on."
Lida Parsons, general manager of the Methuen AMC Theaters, will rotate movies through the specially-outfitted theater every week.
"It's an issue of access," Bakkensen said. "It goes beyond an educational issue and becomes a civil rights issue. This opens it up to a more typical teen experience rather than staying home."
How It Works
* Patrons receive portable transparent screens from the theater's general manager.
* Each screen is mounted onto a flexible arm and fits into any seat's cupholder.
* The patron adjusts the screen to see the captions projected from a light-emitting display at the rear of the theater, while also being able to see the movie screen.
Like most teens, 14-year-old Kara Mongell of North Andover thought "Spiderman 3" was pretty cool. So did her friends from across the North Shore and the Merrimack Valley who meet once a month to do something fun.
But unlike most teens, Kara and her friends are deaf. Most of them wear powerful hearing aids to help them hear. But hearing aids can only do so much.
So Cheryl Mongell, Kara's mother, did her research and discovered MoPix, a pair of technologies that makes movie theaters accessible to visually- and auditory-impaired individuals.
Mongell was interested in the Rear Window Captioning System, a unique method of providing closed captioning to deaf and hard-of-hearing patrons. If Mongell could convince a local movie theater to install the technology, then Kara and other deaf children could enjoy movies when they first come out like every other teen.
"I called Loews in Methuen for a year with no response," Mongell said. "And then when AMC theaters bought Loews, they agreed very quickly to install it. AMC theaters has been wonderful."
AMC installed the technology free of charge, and Vice President of Special Projects Phil Pennington provided Mongell complimentary tickets for the movie two weeks ago.
AMC has installed the Rear Window Captioning System in more than 150 of its theaters across the country, according to WGBH, a partner in the project. The Rear Window Closed Captioning technology was co-developed by the Media Access Group of WGBH, a public broadcast station, and Boston Light and Sound, Inc.
In theaters with the closed-captioning technology, a display is mounted on the back wall and emits reversed text onto screens patrons attach to their seats' cupholders. The technology allows deaf and hard-of-hearing patrons to see and read captions without distracting other patrons.
"It's an expense to the theater, so it's great that they were willing to do this," said Cathy Bakkensen, a teacher and mentor of deaf teens.
The technology will also make family experiences more enjoyable for everyone, especially families with both hearing-impaired and non-hearing-impaired children, said Bakkensen, who also teaches a class about rehabilitation procedures for deaf children and adults at Emerson College.
"It sounds mean, but sometimes the hearing-impaired child doesn't always know what he or she is missing," Bakkensen said.
Some of the teens in the group admitted that watching movies isn't as easy for them.
"Half of the time I can't understand what's going on," said Corey Burns, a 17-year-old from Acton. "When there's a joke I usually laugh after everyone else because I didn't understand it right away."
Some of the teens had used the closed-captioning system in other theaters, including the National Amusements Cinema in Revere and the IMAX Theater at the Museum of Science.
"I was able to know what the movie was about and enjoy it," Kara said.
For some of the teens, this screening of "Spiderman 3" was their first trip to the theater at the Loop. They all had favorable opinions of the new system after the movie.
"I saw this movie last week and I really liked the captions today," Burns said. "I was able to understand more of the conversations especially with all that was going on."
Lida Parsons, general manager of the Methuen AMC Theaters, will rotate movies through the specially-outfitted theater every week.
"It's an issue of access," Bakkensen said. "It goes beyond an educational issue and becomes a civil rights issue. This opens it up to a more typical teen experience rather than staying home."
How It Works
* Patrons receive portable transparent screens from the theater's general manager.
* Each screen is mounted onto a flexible arm and fits into any seat's cupholder.
* The patron adjusts the screen to see the captions projected from a light-emitting display at the rear of the theater, while also being able to see the movie screen.
