The British Deaf Association (BDA) and Light House (Wolverhampton) are proud to announce that the 9 th Deaf/Sign Language Film and Television Festival will open in a few weeks’ time, on 26 November 2004, with the UK premiere of the first American Sign Language feature film, The Golden Legacy. Deaf director Arthur LUHN will attend in person to introduce his film.
The Golden Legacy marks a new direction for Deaf film-making. It is not a film about the ‘social problems’ of Deaf people or their attempts to fit into hearing society. Instead, it celebrates the culture of Deaf people and one of their many Sign Languages, American Sign Language (ASL).
All of the characters in The Golden Legacy use ASL. Patrick BRANNELLY stars as George, who is always looking for a get-rich-quick scheme to help him escape his boring job and his debts. One day he meets Aeneas (Al MAROTTA), an elderly man who is on a quest to find a centuries-old hidden treasure of pirate’s gold. The two pair up and their search takes them all over Boston and the surrounding area. Their hunt ends at Martha’s Vineyard, the island where a thriving community of ASL users lived for nearly 300 years.
The focus on the language and culture of ASL users makes this the perfect film to open the 9 th Deaf/Sign Language Film and Television Festival. From this year onwards, the Festival will be taking a new direction, with the focus on celebrating Sign Language and Deaf culture.
In the past, entry to the Festival has been defined simply by the word “Deaf”, or, more often “deaf”. Many of the films and videos shown have been made by hearing film-makers, with only a nod in the direction of D/deaf people. Sometimes, they were even based on a medical model of deafness.
“The time for that is over”, says the British Deaf Association’s BSL Strategist Dawn MARSHALL, who has an important role in organising this year’s Festival. “The Festival must be seen as part of the BDA’s drive to take back ownership of our own language, British Sign Language (BSL) –to bring it back, literally, into the hands of Deaf people. That is Deaf with a capital “D” – those who use Sign Language as their first language.”
“This new direction is an exciting challenge for all of us”, says Franck CHALLENGER, Chief Executive of Wolverhampton’s Light House, which has hosted the Festival since 1998. “To have a Film and Television Festival that focuses mainly on Sign Language will make us unique, probably in the world.”
“The aim is not to exclude anyone who has been involved in the past”, says Dawn MARSHALL. “We want to celebrate Sign Language – not just BSL, but the many brilliant and varied Sign languages from around the world – and show that they have something to say to everyone. Deaf people have been put off in the past by the way we were sometimes represented by hearing film-makers. This Festival in the future will make Sign Language and Deaf culture a starting-point for Deaf people to reach out to the rest of the world.”
Over the next few weeks, there will be more exciting news about the programme for this ground-breaking Festival. Deaf film-makers from Britain and elsewhere will be joining Arthur LUHN to show their films and to chart plans for Sign Language film-making for the 21 st century. It is a Festival all Deaf film-makers, and anyone with an interest in Deaf media, culture and Sign Language will want to attend.
The 9 th Deaf/Sign Language Film and Television Festival will take place at the Light House, Wolverhampton, from Friday 26 till Sunday 28 November 2004.
For more information please visit: http://www.bda.org.uk
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