Diary of a Deaf Filmmaker, Month 4: Working with a hearing (god forbid) producer

Posted on October 20, 2014 by



Something has become very apparent to me this month, and that is the importance of communication. So many things are down to how well you communicate.

For this film, we’re working with a number of people with different communication methods. It’s very easy to lose track of who can hear and who can sign. Many times it’s been best to just sign & speak and hope that someone, somewhere understood at least a fraction of what I was trying to say.

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I’ve also noted that in the pre production phase, there’s been an awful lot of dreaded phone calls…

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…but luckily for me, I’m working with a hearing producer!

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I say “luckily” because sometimes you just NEED to do things via the phone. You would have thought that in this day and age things would be different but texts,emails and instant messengers just don’t always cut it. Sometimes, you need to kick it old school…

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Not that old school….

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People can often ignore a text message here or an email there, so if you want things done quickly, a phone call is usually more productive.

It’s definitely quicker to have a lengthy conversation via the phone, as waiting for simple answers via email can feel like getting blood out of a stone…

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There is of course Skype and other video call applications, but they’re not always as reliable as a simple phone call and those moments when the screen freezes are never very professional looking, are they?

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But what about written word? Well, for some reason, writing can get you into all sorts of trouble. It’s not a very clear way of communicating your feelings behind things. People have a way of misinterpreting emails and texts etc. One piece of punctuation in the wrong place and before you can type “WTF?!”, you’ve started world war three.

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And so the telephone has been a necessary evil for me this month, but it’s not really fair is it? It makes me wonder how much of an impact this disadvantage is for Deaf filmakers, and how well I would do without my hearing producer….?

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I suppose for me, the ideal solution would be to teleport and have face to face conversations with everyone, whenever I please…but that kind of technology probably won’t exist for a while…

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So in conclusion, communication is key to getting things done and GOOD communication is key to getting it done RIGHT.

Check back soon for the next instalment and to see if iTeleports been invented yet!

TTFN Folks!

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Teresa is a freelance film maker, photographer and full time cynic. At school, she was voted “Most likely to end up in a lunatic asylum”, a fate which has thus far been avoided. Her pet hates are telephones, intercoms and all living things.

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Posted in: Deaf filmmakers diary, teresa garratty