Deaf News Briefs: Matlin directs episode; “Tuba Thieves,” Matlin walks out
Here are two Deaf News briefs.
Matlin directs TV episode featuring Deaf actors
The first is that Marlee Matlin has directed an episode on FOX’s “Accused” TV series. The episode is titled, “Ava’s Story.”
Matlin posted on her Instagram that the episode will air tonight (January 24) on Fox and then be available on Hulu the next day.
Matlin shared a teaser video that shows deaf actors Stephanie Nogueras and Joshua Castille in major roles. Lauren Ridloff will also appear in the episode.
Salon.com explained that the episode “features a Deaf surrogate named Ava (Stephanie Nogueras), who breaks the law to protect the infant she births for an affluent couple when they discover the child is also Deaf.”
Matlin wrote that “I felt so privileged to direct my actors, Deaf and hearing!”
Check it out on Fox tonight or on Hulu tomorrow.
——--
[Sponsored video from Convo: www.convorelay.com]
—------
[Advertisement from Disaster Distress Helpline: After a disaster, you may be at risk for emotional distress. Warning signs can include feeling isolated, anxious, having trouble sleeping and more. If you or someone you know is Deaf or hard of hearing, the Disaster Distress Helpline offers a direct videophone option. This free service for ASL users is answered 24/7 by trained crisis workers fluent in ASL and can be accessed using any videophone-enabled device and dialing 1-800-985-5990 or at disasterdistress.samhsa.gov.]
—------
“The Tuba Thieves” with Deaf actors screening at Sundance
The second news brief is about two news coming out of the Sundance Film Festival in Utah.
The first is that there is a new film called “The Tuba Thieves” that is created by a deaf filmmaker named Alison O’Daniel. It is about a spate of robberies of tubas in Southern California and its impact on several characters. It has Deaf actress Nyeisha “Nyke" Prince playing a major role of a drummer and a pregnant woman. Deaf actors Russell Harvard, Warren “Wawa” Snipe, and Jared DeBusk are also in it. Wawa posted on his Facebook that his role is Nyke’s father.
The film will also have flashbacks to a 1979 punk show at San Francisco’s Deaf Club and Prince’s performance in front of Gallaudet University students in 1984. The film is only showing at Sundance — both in person and available online for a limited time — but we can expect it to be bought by a studio for wide release.
Matlin and fellow judges walk out due to faulty captioning device
The second Sundance news is that Marlee Matlin, who is one of the judges in Sundance’s U.S. Dramatic Competition segment, walked out with two other jurors from a screening of a film because of a captioning device that was provided to Matlin did not work. The jurors said they already made a request for all screenings to include open captions, but that didn’t happen, and when the captioning device malfunctioned, the jurors walked out. People.com reported that the captioning device was repaired and that the jurors will be watching the film before the festival ends on Sunday. The issue has sparked a larger conversation about accessibility in films, specifically with open captions.
That’s all the Deaf News briefs for today.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnx7-51ABf6/
https://www.metacritic.com/tv/accused-2023/season-1/episode-2-avas-story
https://creative-capital.org/artists/alison-odaniel/
https://festival.sundance.org/program/film/638a190fd406b26d22f2cfca