Video Description: Janine Butler is a light-skinned woman with long brown hair and brown eyes. She is wearing a dark long-sleeve shirt. She is standing in front of a beige background. Throughout each video, subtitles generally appear as black text in the space next to her near her face and upper body. She signs in each video while facing the camera and occasionally looks at the subtitles, points to the subtitles, and gestures around or places her hands underneath the subtitles.
CHAPTER 0: INTRODUCTION VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Visualizing Captions and Subtitles:
The Embodiment of
Accessible Multimodal Communication
Hello! I’m Janine Butler.
I am integrating open subtitles
into the space around me
to create visual access to my embodiment,
to how I express myself.
These integral subtitles
make American Sign Language
accessible in English.
This integration is
the heart of my book.
Captions and subtitles
embody how we communicate
with each other
through multiple modes
and languages,
including bodies, voices, and signs.
In my book I ask you to
join me in
visualizing captions and subtitles
as the embodiment
of accessible multimodal
communication.
We can analyze and design
different captions and subtitles,
including:
open captions for spoken English,
open subtitles that translate
different languages to English,
and other visual text
embedded permanently into a video.
We can create closed captions
[with sound descriptions in brackets]
that you can turn on and off.
Through captions and subtitles,
we can embody accessible multimodal communication.
We can place captions and subtitles
at the center of our video composition processes.
CHAPTER 1 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book, I show how
we can analyze and design
captioned and subtitled videos
through my embodied multimodal approach.
My approach builds on several themes, including,
embodiment and
embodied rhetorics,
and space.
Embodiment includes our experience
of being in the world
and interacting with each other.
Our embodied rhetorics
include how we make meaning through our bodies.
Now, let’s think about space.
My concept of space is influenced
by who I am
as a Deaf multimodal
composition scholar.
Like members of Deaf culture,
I experience and interact
with the world
through multiple modes
of communication,
including visuals and movement.
Creators can learn from
Deaf embodiments and
embodied rhetorics
to design space for captions and subtitles,
and we do that in this book.
Written text can interact with
other modes and
we can show the
value of captions and subtitles
in accessible multimodal communication.
CHAPTER 2 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In this book,
I present my analysis
of different programs
and videos that incorporate
captions and subtitles.
These examples show creators
strategies that
we can use to
caption and subtitle
our videos.
In one portion of my book,
I analyze how multilingual programs
integrate subtitles
to create access across languages.
I use the example of
Heroes Reborn,
a science fiction miniseries.
One main character is Miko,
who speaks Japanese.
Her scenes are subtitled in English.
The subtitles for Japanese scenes
are placed
meaningfully
near faces and body language.
They draw viewers to the characters’
emotions and the action on screen.
Here’s an example.
In one scene,
Miko walks through a space
calling out, Hello? Hello?
The subtitles appear here at one side.
And then appear here at the other side.
That guides viewers’ eyes in each direction of her search.
The integral subtitles
maintain our connection
with the person on screen.
As creators,
we can thoughtfully
integrate subtitles around the screen.
We can make our embodiments,
our multimodal messages,
accessible.
We can connect through words on screen.
CHAPTER 3 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book,
I emphasize how we can
learn from Deaf
embodiments
and embodied rhetorics
to create captions and subtitles
in multilingual and
multimodal spaces.
In one portion of my book,
I focus on Gallaudet: The Film.
This short film meaningfully
integrates words on screen
to guide viewers through
Deaf experiences and values
at Gallaudet University.
I analyze scenes in the film
to show how the integral design
of words on screen
immerses us into this world.
One key scene is a classroom
scene with an instructor and students.
The instructor begins with
signing a discussion question
that students then discuss in ASL.
As they share their responses,
large white subtitles
appear word by word
next to each signer.
And some words appear
in yellow for emphasis.
Each individual’s words
remain by their side
as the camera rotates
around the room.
That design intensifies
our access to their
multilingual and
multimodal conversation.
Creators can likewise
integrate words on screen
and interact with these words
to make our multilingual
and multimodal
conversations accessible.
CHAPTER 4 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book, I analyze
different programs
that use different
captioning and subtitling
approaches to embody
different communication practices.
Using these approaches
can show the value
of various experiences
within the same space.
One portion of my book
focuses on a documentary
called
Born this Way Presents:
Deaf Out Loud.
This documentary spotlights
the experiences of
three families of D/deaf,
hard-of-hearing,
and hearing individuals.
This documentary uses
a mix of closed captions
and open subtitles
to embody how these
individuals communicate.
Individuals who speak
are shown on camera
with closed captions
if you turn on the closed captions
to read what they speak.
When individuals
sign without speaking,
open subtitles appear on screen
—sometimes near the bottom
and sometimes near
individuals’ faces
and upper bodies.
This mix of different styles
shows the value of
different communication
practices and the value of
communication access.
Creators can incorporate
a mix of captions and subtitles
in the same space
to embody
accessible multimodal
communication.
CHAPTER 5 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book,
I analyze programs that
include captions and subtitles
at the bottom of the screen
and other approaches.
These programs show creators
how we can use different
approaches to make
communication accessible.
One portion of my book
studies the final season
of the television show,
New Amsterdam.
I analyze how two characters
in this hospital show
learn to communicate
with each other.
The characters are Max,
who is hearing,
and Elizabeth,
who is Deaf.
After Elizabeth starts
working at the hospital,
Max starts to learn ASL
and the two develop
strategies for communicating
with each other across
languages and modes.
Their strategies include
them signing slowly
with open subtitles
that appear at the bottom
of the screen for
audiences who don’t know ASL.
Sometimes Max speaks
when he doesn’t know
how to sign words,
and his spoken English appears
in closed captions for those
with the closed captions turned on.
Other times,
Max and Elizabeth
write text messages
on their phones and
show their phones to each other.
In these scenes,
the text message also appears
on screen
between their bodies.
That way, we read the
message and
see their reactions
at the same time.
We access that
connection
at the same time.
The program shows how
creators can use a mix of
captions, subtitles,
and visual text
to make communication accessible across
languages and modes.
We can place captions
within the space between
bodies to
strengthen our connections.
CHAPTER 6 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book,
I also study programs and videos
in which silent communication
becomes accessible through
captions, subtitles, and written text.
These videos show us
how we can make
communication and silence
even more accessible
through words on screen.
One example that
I explore is
Only Murders in the Building.
Several episodes include
a Deaf character named Theo
and these episodes show
audiences how Theo
experiences the world.
Several scenes with Theo
include traditional
open subtitles
at the bottom of the screen.
In one scene,
Theo reads the other characters’ lips
and no sound is played.
In this moment,
audiences need to read
the subtitles to know
what the other characters say—
just like Theo.
Similar scenes include
subtitles when characters
sign without speaking.
The subtitles make ASL
accessible to audiences
who do not sign,
including hearing audiences.
In one scene,
Theo is writing a message
by hand, and his
handwritten words
appear across the screen.
Audiences can read his words
and see the action
on screen at the same time.
These examples show
creators how we can use
captions, subtitles, and visual text
to share our experiences
of sound and silence
with audiences with
all hearing levels.
We can make silence
accessible and connect
across senses
through the design of words on screen.
CHAPTER 7 VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book,
I also explore conversations
about captions and subtitles,
including in online videos
and online spaces.
I emphasize how we can
design space for
captions and subtitles
in our conversations.
We can continue to
work together to contribute
to more meaningful
incorporation
of captions and subtitles
in videos.
Online video creators
should be aware that
social media and
video creation
programs may give us
specific options about
how and where
we can embed
visual text in our videos.
That is a positive benefit.
We can embed words near faces.
We can place colorful
text near bodies.
But we should NOT
just add any color
or any style.
We need to
meaningfully consider
where and how
to place words on screen.
We need to carefully
consider the best ways
to make our messages
accessible.
We can contribute to
more accessible
online spaces,
such as by advocating for
captions and subtitles in online videos.
Through this process,
we can make captions and subtitles
central in our conversations.
CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSION VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In my book,
captions and subtitles become
the embodiment of
accessible multimodal
communication.
They can become central
in video analysis and
design processes.
In my video,
the subtitles are integral
to my message and
make my message
accessible across
languages and modes.
Different creators may
choose various captioning
and subtitling
approaches for
different contexts.
These practices embody
the many ways in which
we can connect through
captions and subtitles,
including across languages.
Now,
I ask my audiences to
build on this book
and make captions and subtitles
essential features of
our videos and conversations.
Please share the value of
captions and subtitles
and access
with those around you
and design space for
captions and subtitles
in your video analysis
and design processes.
Together, we can continue
visualizing captions and subtitles
as the embodiment
of accessible multimodal communication.
Thank you!