A film about a deaf person

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Hume

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I'm a filmmaker and I'm currently writing a script in which the protagonist is deaf. I'm not deaf, and I have been reading these forums in order to educate myself about the reality of being deaf.

I'm very keen to ensure that the film I'm writing is not simply a hearing person's ignorant idea of "what it's like to be deaf" and is actually informed by the authentic experiences of real people who live with deafness.

I would be very interested to hear from you regarding your objections to how deaf people are typically represented in film and television - the inaccuracies, the cliches, the prejudices - and also some positive suggestions about what an insightful portrayal of the deaf experience might include.

Thank you for any feedback you can offer.
 
Let me put this another way: if you were writing a story about your life, what would you be keen to include and exclude?

Obviously, there is no single experience called "being deaf" as everyone is different and we experience things differently. But if there was a film made about YOUR life, what might surprise people?
 
posts from hell said:
Just curious - What film, where, and how will it be marketed?
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It's an independent film that I am writing and will later direct. It will be the kind of film that is shown at festivals before it (hopefully) gets a wider release. I want to make something that is truthful, and I'm not motivated by anything other than that.
 
Hume said:
It's an independent film that I am writing and will later direct. It will be the kind of film that is shown at festivals before it (hopefully) gets a wider release. I want to make something that is truthful, and I'm not motivated by anything other than that.
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Why deaf if you are not deaf?
 
Hume said:
I'm a filmmaker and I'm currently writing a script in which the protagonist is deaf. I'm not deaf, and I have been reading these forums in order to educate myself about the reality of being deaf.

I'm very keen to ensure that the film I'm writing is not simply a hearing person's ignorant idea of "what it's like to be deaf" and is actually informed by the authentic experiences of real people who live with deafness.

I would be very interested to hear from you regarding your objections to how deaf people are typically represented in film and television - the inaccuracies, the cliches, the prejudices - and also some positive suggestions about what an insightful portrayal of the deaf experience might include.

Thank you for any feedback you can offer.
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I think it might be better if your film is about a hearing person dealing with deaf people. perhaps... CODA?
 
Hume said:
People make films about cowboys and wizards without being cowboys or wizards.
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You may have lost some of the affection of the crowd already. :hmm:

Do you have an answer to my question?
 
Bottesini said:
You may have lost some of the affection of the crowd already. :hmm:

Do you have an answer to my question?
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I'm sure the crowd has more affection than that.

I'm writing a film about a deaf person because I'm interested in deaf culture, the challenges faced by a deaf person, and how those challenges are overcome. I'm also interested creatively in the narrative possibilities that arise when people go through life without hearing. I happen to think that deaf culture is underrepresented, and I would like to remedy that in a faithful way.
 
The reason I am withholding is because I have a friend, that is Deaf, that is now waiting for his non profit organization to be approved by the IRS. (Within a few days of this post) He is a film maker, and he is wanting to make change in the deaf community.

Dont take this personal. Its just that its a dog eat dog world out there. Far tooo many filmmakers miss the conveyance of the "Deaf can do anything."
 
posts from hell said:
The reason I am withholding is because I have a friend, that is Deaf, that is now waiting for his non profit organization to be approved by the IRS. (Within a few days of this post) He is a film maker, and he is wanting to make change in the deaf community.

Dont take this personal. Its just that its a dog eat dog world out there. Far tooo many filmmakers miss the conveyance of the "Deaf can do anything."
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your last sentence - yep. Look at many movies with same synopsis. A few of those movies were made by directors with direct experience to synopsis... compared to dozens of movies made by directors with absolutely no experience (direct and indirect) with it. Makes you wonder why those few movies won many awards such as Sundance, Best Director, Best Film, etc....

Hume said:
I'm sure the crowd has more affection than that.

I'm writing a film about a deaf person because I'm interested in deaf culture, the challenges faced by a deaf person, and how those challenges are overcome. I'm also interested creatively in the narrative possibilities that arise when people go through life without hearing. I happen to think that deaf culture is underrepresented, and I would like to remedy that in a faithful way.
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precisely why you should try it from a different angle especially from hearing person perspective on deaf culture. there's not a lot of films like this.

give it a thought.
 
What do you think about the representation of deaf people in films like "Children of a Lesser God", "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" and "Beyond Silence"?
 
Hume said:
What do you think about the representation of deaf people in films like "Children of a Lesser God", "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" and "Beyond Silence"?
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Children of a Lesser God has been discussed many times on this board. Here's one of the more recent threads about it: http://www.alldeaf.com/our-world-our-culture/49817-children-lesser-god-2.html

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is, first off, a very good book. Carson McCullers did something that few hearing people writing about deaf characters do, and that is to write about the deaf character from a hearing person's point of view and just simply let the deaf character be himself. The movie is, more or less, a faithful recreation of that.

One thing you should make note of between the two films is how sign language is portrayed. Notice how in CLG, William Hurt's character acts as a mouthpiece for Sarah's signing. The audience receives all information of ASL through the translation and voice of a male character. This strikes me as ironic, because it's so emblematic of the patriarchal treatment of the deaf by hearing. It reduces Sarah's agency as a character. In HLH, on the other hand, all scenes involving sign language are shot in such a way that the audience gets the implied meaning of the signing, even if they don't understand the individual signs. There is no "voice over" and there are no subtitles, either. This gives agency to sign language itself, forcing a hearing audience to meet it on its own terms, not through the (mis)representation of another modality. Of course, the movie is about John Singer's lack of ability to connect with people--his lack of agency in a hearing world, but that lack of agency is not inadvertently created through a faulty execution of the film.

It's been a year since I watched either movie, but if I remember correctly, the actor portraying John Singer's character in HLH was hearing, and his signing articulation was a bit shaky (though, I think a non-signing audience would not have picked up on that). That is probably the biggest gripe I have about the movie, but it was the 1950s, so I guess that is expected.


Beyond Silence is a good movie, but this post is long enough. :)
 
I think there can never be enough movies about deaf folks, especially if they are portrayed accurately.

Have you seen the threads about audism? I think that would be a good focus point. ;)

Best of luck to you.
 
Pls do not make a film about CIs or deaf being against hearing people.

I think we need more deaf characters as just regular successful people instead of these "angry" deaf people who are fighting against discrimination by hearing people.

Like that CSI show a few days ago. Deaf people were portrayed as suspects to a murder. Now that is a nice change from being against the hearing world. :lol:
 
I see what you mean, Shel. It strikes me that this idea of making a film, book etc and portraying a culture or group on either end of a scale, or making the project be about "just" a controversy or aspect of that community, is a common thing across many cultural groups, especially when there is someone who is not a member of that group doing the project. Instead of being simply about people who are living their lives and happen to "be" - whatever - the endeavor is about "the disabled who overcome" or "the d/Deaf" or something.
 
TheWriteAlex said:
Children of a Lesser God has been discussed many times on this board. Here's one of the more recent threads about it: http://www.alldeaf.com/our-world-our-culture/49817-children-lesser-god-2.html

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter is, first off, a very good book. Carson McCullers did something that few hearing people writing about deaf characters do, and that is to write about the deaf character from a hearing person's point of view and just simply let the deaf character be himself. The movie is, more or less, a faithful recreation of that.

One thing you should make note of between the two films is how sign language is portrayed. Notice how in CLG, William Hurt's character acts as a mouthpiece for Sarah's signing. The audience receives all information of ASL through the translation and voice of a male character. This strikes me as ironic, because it's so emblematic of the patriarchal treatment of the deaf by hearing. It reduces Sarah's agency as a character. In HLH, on the other hand, all scenes involving sign language are shot in such a way that the audience gets the implied meaning of the signing, even if they don't understand the individual signs. There is no "voice over" and there are no subtitles, either. This gives agency to sign language itself, forcing a hearing audience to meet it on its own terms, not through the (mis)representation of another modality. Of course, the movie is about John Singer's lack of ability to connect with people--his lack of agency in a hearing world, but that lack of agency is not inadvertently created through a faulty execution of the film.

It's been a year since I watched either movie, but if I remember correctly, the actor portraying John Singer's character in HLH was hearing, and his signing articulation was a bit shaky (though, I think a non-signing audience would not have picked up on that). That is probably the biggest gripe I have about the movie, but it was the 1950s, so I guess that is expected.

Beyond Silence is a good movie, but this post is long enough. :)
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Thanks for this post, TheWriteAlex - it's very informative, and you've drawn my attention to things that I would never have identified on my own.
 
Hume said:
Thanks for this post, TheWriteAlex - it's very informative, and you've drawn my attention to things that I would never have identified on my own.
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Good reason to have deaf film makers, or at least pay a Deaf advisor.

Hume Cronin?
 
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