Film student has some questions

[Hanhart]

Hi everybody,

I registered here today because I have a few questions. I'm a film student at the Academy of Fine Arts KASK here in Belgium and curently were working on a short. We all have to write script, get a crew together and shoot the movie. Basically, we have to make a short movie.

Now, i've been brainstorming, writing, throwing away scripts, rewriting for a while now and have come to the point that I want to do something with sound. Film is basically two things, image and sound. Sound in the filmindustry is very underrated, so I decided to do a project around sound.

I figgured that it might be interesting to tell a story around a person who loses his hearing. Whats the world like if you can't hear, but onces you were able to etc. That quickly sums up the idea.

Now, I have a few questions, and I think you guys can help me with these. (I'll try to explain as good as I can since english isn't my mother tongue.)

a) Is it possible that, at some point in your life you start to get deaf? As in, losing your hearing over the course of a couple of months? Basiclly noticing your hearing is getting worse and worse every day/week.

b) If it is possible. Is the cause of it damaging your ear or is it possible that your hearing fails in a "natural way" as in, losing your hearing without any reason?

c) If you turn deaf, how does it affect your social life? Is it possible that some people close themself off, maby because they are affraid of communicating without sound?

I hope you guys can help me with this.
Thanks in advance. - Han

 

[deafbajagal]

a) yes - some people have experienced gradual hearing loss until they've regressed to being completely deaf...there's a medical term for it but I cannot remember what it is called
b) Yes...again, there's a medical term for it
c) There are lots of articles out the about the experiences of late-deafened adults...I think generally (of course, this doesn't apply to every single person) they are used to communicating with hearing people - and all of the sudden they cannot hear. So they are having to learn how to cope with not being able to hear what is being said - most of them do not read lips (and it is really not that easy to just start speechreading) or know any sign language. I've read many accounts that people will eventually shut themselves off because it is so frustrating.

So, when will I get to be a movie star in your movie?! (Just kidding!)

 

[Hanhart]

Many thanks!