This is an ADLAB PRO video.
ADLAB PRO is a project funded by the European Union.
This video is made available to you
on a creative commons licence.
-Hello. I’m Iwona Mazur from Adam Mickiewicz University
in Poznan, Poland. In this ADLAB PRO video
I will talk about culture in AD.
This is Unit 6 "Screen AD: Culture"
in Module 2 "Screen AD".
In films culture is usually present in the form of cultural references,
also called culture-specific items or culturemes,
and in the form of intertextual references.
Cultural references can be divided into:
geographical, for example, the Eiffel Tower,
ethnographic, such as tapas,
and socio-political, for instance, the Reichstag.
If reference is made to another work of art,
such as a film, a book or a painting,
we talk about intertextuality.
For example, in the film "Inglourious Basterds",
Colonel Landa smokes a calabash,
which is a reference to Sherlock Holmes.
So in AD,
this references could be either made explicit, for example:
“Landa smokes a Sherlock Holmes-style calabash”.
Or it could be implied:
“Landa smokes a big, saxophone-shaped pipe”.
In this case, persons with sight loss would have
the intellectual pleasure of working out the allusion themselves.
However, the reference could be lost on some people.
Before describing,
first decide through which channel the reference is made.
If it is aural,
for example something alluded to in the dialogues,
you may assume that the information will be available
to persons with sight loss.
If, however, the reference is in the visual layer of the film,
and especially if it is relevant for plot development,
you should render it in your description.
Let’s say, in a film you have a shot of Buckingham Palace.
First , you can just name the building: “Buckingham Palace”.
You can also have the name and a gloss:
the official London residence of the Queen,
Buckingham Palace.
You can provide a general description “A grand building”.
Or you can just describe the building
or both describe and name it.
Your choice of strategy will depend on how much time you have,
how important a given reference is in the film,
and also on the assumed knowledge of your audience.
This may be related to where your viewers come from
and the distance between them and the culture in question.
If you are describing the palace with the British viewer in mind,
then most likely just naming the building will be enough.
If, however, the description is meant
for a viewer from a different culture,
then a more elaborate description may be required.
When describing culture
also think how transcultural a given element is.
In the age of globalization, more and more cultural items,
especially from the Anglo-Saxon world,
become recognizable in other cultures as well.
If you want to find out more, I recommend reading
the chapter on Intertextuality in the ADLAB guidelines
and the article by Agnieszka Szarkowska and Anna Jankowska.
I hope you have learned some interesting things
about culture in AD from this video.
-The preparation of this presentation
was supported by ADLAB PRO. Audio Description:
A Laboratory for the Development of a New Professional Profile
financed by the European Union under the Erasmus+ Programme,
Key Action 2, Strategic Partnerships.
Project number:
2016-1-IT02-KA203-024311.
The information and views set out in this presentation
are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect
the official opinion of the European Union.
Neither the European Union institutions and bodies
nor any person acting on their behalf
may be held responsible for the use
which may be made of the information contained therein.
This was an ADLAB PRO video.
ADLAB PRO partners are: University of Trieste,
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona,
University of Antwerp, Adam Mickiewicz University,
RTV Slovenia, Utopian Voices,
Soundfocus and Royal National Institute of Blind People.
ADLAB PRO was founded by the European Union.
This video was made available to you
on a Creative Commons licence.