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Pages:
8 pages/≈2200 words
Sources:
7 Sources
Style:
APA
Subject:
Communications & Media
Type:
Essay
Language:
English (U.S.)
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MS Word
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Topic:

The Evolution of Audio Description

Essay Instructions:

This paper will critically engage one of the core questions, ideas, concepts or practices explored in this class. IT SHOULD BE ANALYTIC AND REFLECTIVE, AND NOT SIMPLY DESCRIPTIVE. The paper should exhibit original research and include sources that go beyond the class readings.

The two main foci of this class are (a) the study of sound and aurality as a social, technological and aesthetic practice, and (b) the relationship between these aural practices and related or associated visual media. With this in mind, this paper should engage some aspect of either of these questions. Ideally, your paper will draw on some problem, issue or insight from class that has sparked your attention. To help you along this path I offer some general questions and ideas. These are only suggested topics, so feel free to develop one on your own or in conjunction with me. If you'd like my help developing a topic, please see me in person during office hours.

Instructions for Research Proposal and Annotated Bibliography

Your proposal should provide a brief outline of the topic your paper will be exploring. It should clearly identify and explain the primary research question animating your investigation, as well as provide a justification for why this question is relevant within the context of this course. The annotated bibliography should have 2 scholarly sources, none of which are assigned as course readings (you can use course readings and/or nonscholarly as sources for your final paper, but NOT for the proposal). Each bibliographic entry should provide (1) a properly formatted bibliographic entry, (2) a brief summary of the source, and (2) a brief description of how it is appropriate to your chosen research topic.

** Please note that the 2 scholarly sources requirement is for the proposal ONLY. Your final paper will require AT LEAST 5 more sources.**

Suggested Research Topics

1) Explore the history of a particular form of creative aural practice and explore its connection to related visual practices. For e.g. - phonography or DJ-ing as a cultural form - acoustic architecture - sound poetry - the development of multi-channel audio installations - sound design for film, video, gaming, theater, television, etc.

2) Explore the work and ideas of a particular sound artist whose work intersects with a visual media practice (e.g., someone who does sound design for video games, films, etc.). Make sure to discuss and contextualize their work historically and theoretically. What makes them a significant artist to consider?

3) What are some intersections between sound (or visual) art as a "high" cultural practice and related or similar applications in the realm of popular culture? For example, how might you relate the radiophonic work of John Cage to that of Scanner? Are there grounds to compare the Dadaist collage art of John Heartfield and the music of Negativland? Can we compare the music videos of Director X to experimental film or videomakers?

4) Compare the sound practice of a given communication medium in two or more cultural, social or historical contexts. What do the differences say about changing social or cultural attitudes towards the intersection of sound and vision? For e.g., - How does the approach/treatment/practice of sound in Indian cinema differ from American (or Chinese, Italian, or French, etc.) cinema? - How does sound of contemporary theater differ from the theater of Shakespeare's time?

5) You may develop your own topic on the intersection of sound and visual media. Should you choose to do so, you are encouraged to check with me beforehand during my weekly office hours to get feedback on whether your topic is appropriate for this course.

Essay Sample Content Preview:

The Evolution of Audio Description
Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
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The Evolution of Audio Description
The concept of audio description arose from the need to avail the same audio-visual experiences to visually impaired persons, such as theatre shows, TV shows, and films. Moreover, other environments such as the museum, gallery exhibitions, and sporting events also sought to accommodate the particular category (Zabrocka, 2018). Greening and Rolph define audio description (AD) as the addition of a descriptive narrative to complement critical visual elements in audio-visual media (Dнaz-Cintas et al., 2007). The AD is strategically incorporated between natural pauses to prevent corruption of the original audio. Zabrocka (2018) records that the other soundtrack is often fitted between dialogues to enable the visually impaired persons to acquire details that the sighted audience readily perceives by sight. The AD includes features such as the character’s facial expression, gestures, on-stage action, time of the day, and the background scenery. As a result, these aspects do not necessitate verbal depictions for the sighted audience, but they are indispensable for the visually impaired to comprehend the programs. Greening & Rolph identify the AD’s primary purpose as the description of the images that are key to conveying the storyline so that the visually impaired persons not only experience the whole picture and the full story but also enjoy the presentations wholesomely (Dнaz-Cintas et al., 2007). This paper tracks the means and the process of actualizing the audio description concept.
The journey to the development of the AD began in the US. According to Snyder (2005), the concept was the subject of the thesis of a master’s student, Gregory Frazier, in San Francisco in the 1970s. However, the idea perhaps only represents the explicit and systematic description of the process. A decade earlier, an employee at the blind education proposed an explanation to facilitate a practical film experience for blind persons. Chet Avery conceived the idea after hearing of a program for captioning films for deaf people at the institution (Snyder, 2005). However, the relevant organizations overlooked Avery’s advocacy, which emphasized the employment of blind persons rather than investing in the proposed project. Avery’s endeavors eventually came to fruition after a theater sought its counseling on accessibility issues. The AD concept finally invaded the entertainment industries across the continents, with the firms striving to pioneer the accommodation of visually impaired audiences. Zabrocka (2018) records that the research on AD has diffused from pioneering nations such as the US, Great Britain, and Spain to other world countries. There are also so many firsts that accompany the development of technology. Thus, tracking the growth of AD should not remain distracted by the claims of the first conception or first improvement of the technology.
The adoption of the technology has varied across the regions, with the developed countries anticipated to be more inclined to embrace the technology than the developing countries. Jessic...
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