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The Audio Description Project

Audio Description Training and Education Resources

This page is divided into the following sections:

Audio Describer/Narrator Training

There are very limited opportunities to get trained as an audio describer and fewer as an audio narrator.  Training is often held in conjunction with conferences.  Here we list the opportunities that we know about, and we solicit information from anyone who is offering training opportunities for audio describers anywhere in the world!  Our "flagship" training program is the ADP's Audio Description Institute, but the following programs are listed in the order of next-scheduled training after any upcoming ACB/ADP class.  Last Update:  May 19, 2023.

Audio Description Training Retreats in NC

AD Training Retreats

For the foreseeable future, all classes will be conducted virtually.  Over a dozen such classes have been held since July 2020 via ZOOM.  We limit our class size to six or eight students (depending on which class) to ensure adequate time for each participant.

The next 3-Day Fundamentals of Audio Description course will take place Thursday, June 22nd - Saturday, June 24th. It is sold out, except for a few observer positions.

The next Advanced AD: Writing for the Screen will begin on Saturday, October 7, and continue for 4 consecutive Saturdays. It is also sold out!

Our classes always sell out and fill up very quickly, and it is first-come, first-served.  If you wish to be on the mailing list for announcements or have questions, email [email protected].

Visit the Audio Description Training Retreats website and/or contact us for more information (including a registration form) at [email protected].

Listen to a podcast which includes a discussion of how the company came into being and opportunities for blind consumers to help create and record audio description; or read this article on the owner of ADTR, Colleen Connor.

Note:  Training Retreats are not sponsored by the ACB or the Audio Description Project.

Audio Description Institute (ADI)

Audio Description Institute Logo ADP Logo ACB Audio Description Logo

ADI is typically held annually in the first and third quarters of the year.  The class is taught by Dr. Joel Snyder.

The last class was February 20-24, 2023, 1 - 5 pm each afternoon, held virtually.  See the ADI Announcement for more information.  The next class will be August 14-18, again held virtually. The referenced announcement will be very similar for the upcoming class.

FOR REFERENCE:  The following information is generic and applies to all of the ADI training programs:

Topics:

1) audio description history and theory
2) the "Four Fundamentals of Audio Description" ©
3) active seeing/visual literacy-developing skills in concentration and observation
4) the art of "editing" what you see
5) vivid language: "The Visual Made Verbal"™
6) "Speak the speech, I pray you"--using the spoken word to make meaning

And new:

- Audio Description in the U.S. and around the world
- The Mechanics of Audio Description
- Audio Description Writing Software
- Audio Description Producers
- How to Get Work as a Describer

ADI Graduate Displays Certificate

NOTE!  The ADI is taught by the director of the Audio Description Project, Dr. Joel Snyder, who has taught audio description all over the world and obtained his doctorate degree in the subject.  In July 2014 he published a book based on his work with audio description:  The Visual Made Verbal, available for under $20 by clicking the link.  The book is given to each workshop participant.

B-Creative Audio Describer Training

Bonnie Barlow

LEARN HOW TO BECOME AN AUDIO DESCRIPTION PROVIDER.   

Join either a small class or take individual lessons over six sessions, conducted in 90-minute sessions per week over four weeks.  Times and dates can vary to work around your plans. 

Pointer READ or PRINT Bonnie's One-Page Brochure

B-CREATIVE AUDIO AND VIDEO DESCRIPTION TRAINING:  By Bonnie Barlow - With 30 years of professional experience in all types of Audio Description, Bonnie offers online training following specific paths of interest to students either one-on-one or small groups of 2 to 4 students. 

Contact Bonnie directly:  [email protected] 720-440-3893.

A ROADMAP TO FINDING REAL WORK IN THE WORLD OF AUDIO DESCRIPTION

Basics, TV, Films, Theatre, Education, Writing

YOU MAY START HERE:
Basics of Audio Description:

  • Best practices, examples of movies, videos, streamed content, conferences, quality assurance, etc.
  • Explore and determine your niche and goals. 
  • How to find description work.
  • How to find resources to improve your description and adapt to new situations.
  • Voice-over for audio description application.

OR TAKE THIS PATH IF YOU ALREADY HAVE PERFORMED SOME AD:
Writing and performing and providing quality assurance of Audio Description:

  • How to construct your description for various formats: Broadcast Television, Streamed Media, Films, Virtual Events, Educational Videos,  Other areas may include Art and Museum Exhibits, Immersive Experiences, Materials for Conferences, etc., according to students' interests.
  • Filmed and/or Streamed Dance and Plays.
  • Quality Assurance of Audio Description:  Learn how to assess quality and ensure a project receives the input from appropriate sources for a superior final product.
  • Building a professional portfolio.  Practical help creating demos and forming resumes for AD work.

THIS PATH WILL TAKE YOU TO DESCRIBING THEATRE PRODUCTIONS

  • Theatrical Audio Description:  Describing live performances - Concentration on plays for and theatrical venues including how to provide onsite and remote Audio Description for live and virtual performances.
  • Consulting with theatres on the necessities for starting an AD program, equipment, audience development.

One on one coaching – $300 –(four 90-minute sessions per week over 4 weeks): Teaching, assigning homework,  giving feedback.  Building a professional portfolio.  Practical help creating demos and forming resumes for AD work.  Mentoring post class.

Groups of 2 to 4 - $275 each –  (four 90-minute sessions per week over 4 weeks): Teaching, assigning homework,  giving feedback.  Building a professional portfolio.  Practical help creating demos and forming resumes for AD work.  Mentoring post class.

Note:  This training is not sponsored by the ACB or the Audio Description Project.

Audio Describer Training in Raleigh/Durham/RTP Area of NC

Arts Access AD Training

Arts Access Inc. of Raleigh, NC, holds audio describer training annually and will conduct special classes for groups, including traveling to their location, if requested.  Participants will learn:

  • The Basics of Audio Description:  Guidelines for communicating visual details effectively and in the moment
  • Who Uses Audio Description?:  Understanding Blind and low vision culture, disability language and etiquette
  • AD in Different Settings:  How AD works in visual art, performing arts, film, and online events
  • Practice Sessions:  Practice your new skills with experienced describers and Blind listeners
  • Case Studies:  Hear from previous participants in Arts Access AD Training who took the skill back to their organizations and communities to start new programs

The last class was June 13-16, 2022, via Zoom, with tuition starting at $450.  They are tentatively looking at the next class for early June, 2023.  Scholarships are sometimes available if needed for NC residents.  FOR REFERENCE, visit the Arts Access Audio Describer Training description, or email Arts Access, or call 919-833-9919.  Arts Access has been providing audio description since the early 1990s.

Note:  This training program is not sponsored by the ACB or the Audio Description Project.

Access Virginia

Access Virginia Logo

Access Virginia in Newport News periodically provides training for audio describers. 

The last class was February 4-6, 2022 at Access Virginia, Newport News, VA.  FOR REFERENCE ONLY, here is the class announcement. 

Access VA Flyer
(Printable copy of brochure above)

You can contact them at [email protected].

Note:  This training program is not sponsored by the ACB or the Audio Description Project.

Roy Samulson Head-and-Shoulders PhotoNuances of Audio Description Narration

One-on-one coaching and workouts with blind professional advisors.  Focus is on film and television.

Blind and sighted talents who have experience in performance, or being directed, are welcomed.

Email [email protected] for more details.

Please note that Roy also hosts a podcast (TheADNA.org "Know Your Narrator" and "Beyond the Narrator" Interviews).  A summary of those podcasts, focusing on voice talents in AD, is available on Amazon as a Kindle book:  The ADNA Presents: Volume I: Know Your Narrator

Note:  This training session is not sponsored by the ACB or the Audio Description Project.

Inclusive Media: Real-time Closed Captioning and Audio Description/Described Video
A Course at Ryerson University in Canada

Learn how to use the latest live closed captioning (CC) and audio description/described video (AD/DV) techniques and technologies to create inclusive and accessible broadcast content for a variety of audiences. Through hands-on training and theoretical learning, explore CC and AD/DV software tools, script writing and re-speaking techniques, and relevant industry regulations and legislation. Industry experts will help you develop both fundamental and advanced skills for this growing field.

View the Course Description.

Note:  This training session is not sponsored by the ACB or the Audio Description Project.

Audio Description Training Materials

The following are AD Training materials that we know about.  Authors are encouraged to submit others to the webmaster for inclusion here.

Educational Description

Here we list pointers to information about audio description in education, both for training and for acquisition of the end product.  DCMP refers to the Described and Captioned Media Program.

Best Practices for the Digital Environment

Academic Articles

The History of Audio Description - Seminal Document Now Available

We are pleased to make available a copy of the May 1975 Master's thesis on audio description by Gregory Frazier, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman: An All-Audio Adaptation of the Teleplay for the Blind and Visually Handicapped.

Joel Snyder discusses the document in his book, The Visual Made Verbal: A Comprehensive Training Manual and Guide to the History and Applications of Audio Description, published by the American Council of the Blind in 2014. In the book, Dr. Snyder notes that:

"On the U.S.'s west coast: Gregory Frazier, a professor at San Francisco State University, formally developed the concepts behind audio description and general guidelines for its use. In its 1996 obituary of Gregory T. Frazier, the New York Times called Frazier 'a San Francisco visionary who hit on the idea of providing simultaneous electronic audio descriptions for the blind so they could enjoy more than the dialogue of movies, television and theater performances.'

"In the early 1970s, Frazier was relaxing at his home with a friend who happened to be blind. The evening's entertainment? High Noon with Gary Cooper, playing on television. The NY Times article relates that 'At the friend's request, Frazier, speaking rapidly between the lines of dialogue, provided terse descriptions of the scenes and actions. The friend was so appreciative that by the time Gary Cooper had shot Frank Miller dead, ripped the star off his own chest and thrown it to the ground before climbing into a carriage and driving off with Grace Kelly, Mr. Frazier … was a changed man.'

"Frazier realized that the concise descriptions he provided for his friend extemporaneously could be thought-through, edited, recorded and played through FM radio receivers at movies - or carried over secondary audio channels on television. Frazier, a graduate of San Francisco State University, returned to college to obtain a Master's degree in broadcast journalism, developing a thesis -- 'television for the blind' -- that explored the use of description to enhance the 1974 television production of The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.

"In 1991, Mr. Frazier founded the non-profit corporation AudioVision SF to provide description for the performing arts in San Francisco-area venues. AudioVision SF still exists, providing description on a regular basis for theater performances throughout the Bay Area. In 2010, Audio Vision SF and Gregory Frazier posthumously received the Barry Levine Memorial Lifetime Achievement Award in Audio Description, presented by the American Council of the Blind's Audio Description Project."

Other Academic Articles


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