From 2009 all feature films financed by Screen Australia will be required to have caption costs included in their budgets. Currently, there are an estimated 4 million Australians who are vision and hearing impaired, and unable to enjoy the cinema due to limited access. A recent panel discussion presented by Screen Australia unravelled the mysteries of captioning, tapping into why making films accessible makes artistic and commercial sense. Sarah Tracton, award winning filmmaker and access advocate presented on the panel. She said, ‘Through this exciting initiative, filmmakers have the power to tap into new audiences, and ensure the cinema experience is equitable to all. As the film industry seeks to find new ways of attracting greater audiences in the face of competing emerging technologies, heightening accessibility through captioning and audio description is a way of filling unsold seats.” Representatives from Media Access Australia, Roadshow Entertainment, Atlab Operations and Vision Australia also contributed to the panel discussion.
