Current technologies
- Captioned movie technologies
- How captioned movies are made
- Audio description technologies
- How audio described movies are made
Captioned movie technologies
CaptiView closed caption system
CaptiView (pictured) is the most common closed captioning device used in Australia and the USA. The unit consists of an Organic Light Emitting Diode display on a flexible neck which attaches or sits in the cup holder.
The screen displays captions as three lines of high contrast green text. The privacy visors surrounding the screen mean that the unit is more private and less likely to distract other patrons. Captiview can be used in any seat.
USL Closed Caption System
USL’s Closed Caption System(CCS) is a similar wireless device to CaptiView. The rectangular box is connected to a flexible 
arm which clamps on to your seat’s cup holder rather than sitting in it. The text is white on a black LED screen.
The device is designed with custom optics which displays the captions as a virtual image to assist viewers in focusing between the captions and the screen. The unit can be used in any seat in the cinema.
Datasat Access Disc system
Some accessible locations in Australia that are yet to convert to digital cinema use the older style Datasat Access Disc cinema access system (DAD). This is also used in New Zealand, the UK and parts of the USA and Europe. The system consists of a hard drive processor and the captions are supplied on a CD-ROM which is uploaded onto the hard drive.
The system reads the time code on the movie and displays the captions by matching the time code on the CD-ROM. The captions are projected onto the screen using a separate projector to the movie projector. A standard movie print is used.
Rear Window
Rear Window is a closed captioning system developed by WGBH’s National Center for Accessible Media. It works by transmitting the captions onto an LED screen located at the rear of the cinema. The captions are displayed in mirrored and then reflected by placing a Perspex screen in the drink cup holder in the seat.
This screen can be placed over the movie, replicating the look of open captions. The DAD system will also work with Rear Window as well as a compatible audio description service. Rear Window is popular in the USA and Canada.
Rear Window has recently been trialed at the IMAX Museum in Melbourne.
How captioned movies are made
Captions are pre-recorded for a movie by professional captioners using specialised software that creates timecodes for each caption. This allows the captions be to synchronised with the movie.
The captions are saved in a digital file and provided to a post-production house for addition to the movie before release. Post-production for movies often involves video and soundtrack editing and adding visual effects and sound effects.
For closed caption production for digital cinema, which is the method being implemented under the Cinema Access Implementation Plan, the caption file is built into the digital cinema package (DCP) for the movie. A DCP is a collection of digital files used to store all audio and video components of a movie. Along with storing the files for the movie itself, a DCP will also have files that assist cinemas in organising and managing playlists of the movie on different screens.
For open captions, the caption file is added to a separate CD-ROM that is played simultaneously to the movie. The system projects the captions onto the screen using a separate projector. A standard movie print is used.
Audio described movie technology
Audio described movies are supported by both the older style DAD or Dolby access systems, or the newer digital cinema packages (DCPs). Regardless of the system, audio description is heard via a personal receiver the patron has with them in the cinema.
Australian cinemas use either Williams Soundor the Fidelioaudio description receivers. Both systems are wireless, and Fidelio allows patrons to use their own ear buds or headphones that connect to a 3.5mm jack. Fidelio in Australian cinemas can also be used as an assistive listening device by accessing and augmenting the standard soundtrack, although both audio description and the augmented soundtrack cannot be used at the same time.
How audio described movies are made
Audio description for movies requires a professional describer to write a new script describing the visual elements of the movie. This same describer or a voiceover artist trained in audio description delivery will then rehearse the script in time with the movie before recording it. The recording of audio description, like captioning, is done in the post-production phase of movie making and done in a soundproof booth.
Audio description for digital cinema, which is the method being implemented under the Cinema Access Implementation Plan, is finalised by building the audio description into the digital cinema package for the movie, similar to the final production phase for closed captions.
For audio description used with a standard movie print, the audio description is burnt onto a CD-ROM that is transmitted simultaneously to the movie.
