By Nkhensani Mthombeni
- The movie day reached 247 learners in Grade 4 to 7, at Yingisani, Letaba and Nthabiseng special schools in Limpopo.
- Organisers say deaf and disabled people work in film as directors and producers, and want more learners to follow them.
247 learners with disabilities from three Limpopo special schools watched a movie built just for them.
The Bridge of Hope programme hosted a movie day, screening Cinderella with subtitles, audio description and adapted visuals so deaf, autistic and physically disabled learners could follow it. In total, 247 learners from Grade 4 to 7 took part, 74 from Yingisani Special School for the Deaf, 78 from Letaba Special School and 95 from Nthabiseng Special School.
At Nthabiseng, autistic learners followed the film using audio and visuals. Teacher Duduzile Mathebula said the learners were happy, and answered questions about the story correctly, showing they had understood it.
The programme is a partnership between Mzansi Golden Economy, Chen Women Empowerment and Roswika Multimedia Productions.
Victor Phiri, from Chen Women Empowerment, said the goal is including deaf, physically disabled and autistic people in film and multimedia, where they are often left out.
“We did not only want them to follow and understand the movie, but we also wanted them to know that they too can produce movies. We have filmmakers that are deaf, videographers, make up artists and producers living with disability, so we want them to be inspired and not to limit themselves,” he said.
Geoffrey Letsoalo, a disability coordinator at Greater Tzaneen Municipality, attended. He says people with disabilities still face a gap in inclusion, in film, TV, and most other sectors.
Precious Ndala, from Bolobothaba Film School, who is deaf, told the learners to dream bigger and never be scared to chase their goals. She says South Africa is making progress, pointing to South African Sign Language becoming SA’s 12th official language in July 2023, but believes the film and TV industry still has far to go to include Deaf people.
September is Deaf Awareness Month in South Africa.
Pictured above: Learners watch Cinderella.
Image source: Supplied
