Jobs for the Blind in the film industry

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I'm throwing this one out to the community:

We have a student at our school is functionally blind. She needs a guide dog but can see a little bit. She can read a computer but she has to be about 1" from the screen.

She's smart and very dedicated. But... well, she's blind.

What facets of film production would recommend?

Also, does anybody know of any blind people that are successful in the industry?
 
Sound. Definitely sound, in my opinion. I have found that those who have lost their vision, usually enhance other senses. Huge asset.
 
Doc Bernard said:
Sound. Definitely sound, in my opinion. I have found that those who have lost their vision, usually enhance other senses. Huge asset.
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True, and worth a shot. But that might be too easy. It's sort of like giving the boom pole to the tallest guy in the room.

Writer. You don't have to see to write. Stories come from the imagination.

What about script supervisor? If she can read braille, or can get a script with a large font, that might be a good one. Odds are she will pick up inflections in performance others might not.

Producer? The logistics of filmmaking don't require you to see well. It's about planning, team-building and communication.

Editor. With assistance, she can edit. Sometimes the rhythm of a scene is more about what we hear than what we see. Just have her work with someone to make the visual part flows well.

Composer. Do I need to explain that one?

Sight is a sense. The lack of it does not stop the rest of your brain from working. Aside from being a DP, or doing things that specifically require a certain visual acuity, she can do almost anything. She has an interest in film, so she must see something, even if it is mostly with her mind's eye.
 
This job may be phased out in the switch to digital but film loader?.. They transfer motion picture film from the manufacturer's light-tight canisters to the camera magazines for attachment to the camera by the 2nd AC. After exposure during filming, the loader then removes the film from the magazines and places it back into the light-tight cans for transport to the laboratory. This job is done "blind" anyway, under a light sealed tent to prevent the film from getting exposed to light.
 
Well, here's a question that I should have asked right off the bat:

What does she WANT to do?

Don't get me wrong. I appreciate the fact that you are trying to be pro-active in getting some suggestions. I just know that people with disabilities seem to have the same desire to follow their dreams as everyone else does. What is her dream? I'm not sure I would want someone making determinations about my potential based on one facet of who I am. I doubt being blind defines her. It's just a part of who she is.

Kind of like being bald and cynical is just a part of who I am. :smile:
 
Agreed with Jim. She should balls out pursue what she wants. She might wind up pioneering that aspect for other blind people.

If she is not sure, I would also suggest writing. Not for nothing, but not having as much sight as others, might give her some pretty unique visuals to put on paper.

Another question: how does she experience movies now? Does she sit close and see them? Or primarily through audio?
 
Sound mixer, maybe, but definitely not boom operator. You need to be able to see to keep the boom where it belongs. But as a mixer, as long as she can see the meters... but I doubt a functionally blind person is going to have an easy time as a one-person sound outfit. Wiring lavalieres might prove difficult if one can't really see how well they're hidden and such.
 
Jim Brennan said:
What does she WANT to do?
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The million dollar question. Has anyone sat down with and actually asked her what she wants to do?

If she's smart and dedicated, that could be a problem if it turns into stubbornness. Kinda like the people who are tone deaf trying to seriously compete on American Idol or the 5'4" kid trying to be a center on the high school basketball team. But if she's honest with herself, smart and dedicated can take her really really really far.

Sit down with her and ask her where she wants to go, and if she doesn't know, try and figure out what about film interests her.
 
Jim Brennan said:
Kind of like being bald and cynical is just a part of who I am. :smile:
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What, are you bald?!?!





LOL!! That's it, Jim. My opinion of you has dropped SO much. Bald people cannot be film-makers.....ever. Bwaa-haa-haa! Just indulging in the evil, sarcastic side of me.
 
I was running sound for a band, and one of the band member's friends was a pro sound engineer who stopped by to help. This guy was was functionally blind, but he was able to see a computer screen on a macbook when it was zoomed in on the mouse, and he was able to feel his way around the knobs on the analog mixing console. He was a great sound engineer too, really got a great sound there.
 
Writer, producer, sound, much of what's involved in those. I have grave doubts about editor, though. Much does hang on the sound cadence, but there's a great deal of visual detail involved.
 
David Jimerson said:
Writer, producer, sound, much of what's involved in those. I have grave doubts about editor, though. Much does hang on the sound cadence, but there's a great deal of visual detail involved.
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True, and it could get complicated. That's why I suggested working with someone. I could not tell you how many times I close my eyes when I polish an edit. I understand that it is the marriage of the visual and the auditory that makes it work, but sometimes we get so wrapped up in watching for match cuts we lose a more visceral connection.

She can come help me edit. :beer:
 
Director. Difficult, but it could be awesome.

The obvious question has already been stated (what does she want?). The reason I say director is because the visual ideas of a blind person might be great.

Think of all the music we'd be missing out on if somebody told Beethoven not to make music. Granted, he wasn't deaf until after he acquired most of his skill... but whatever.


Keep us updated about what she is doing. I'm interested and optimistic.
 
Actually she hasn't decided, she's just a general student at this point.

She's actually a good editor. Slower than most, but then there are other students that are slower than her...
 
This subject REALLY winds me up. It's so close to the Life of Brian, that people need a reality check.

If people have a disability, then they've got to be realistic. It's perfectly possible for somebody who is deaf to be a musician - Evelyn Glennie being the one everyone cites, but her talent is special. She plays an instrument that is tactile, she can feel what it produces, she can feel the response though the floor of what others are doing - visually she gets the feeds that assist. However, there are some circumstances where her considerable talent wouldn't help. A blind editor sitting in front of a monitor? Have somebody explain what is on the screen? Would any of us employ them? I had the same arguement with an ex-student of mine in a wheelchair at college. She wanted to be a stage manager. She could only move her hands, and needed a person to help her at all times. She could see and speak fine, but she could not pick up a pair of headphone and put them on herself, or lift anything.

She had the attitude that the DDA meant she should be allowed to be one. She went to a university, and qualified. Did anyone employ her? Of course not! Part of the job is the responsibility of being the person responsible for safety. When the scenery is falling on the actor, can they help? Nope! How about all the other routine tasks, Nope! How about the stairs to get to the stage - ah, that one is easy - MAKE the venue install ramps and lifts in the precious limited space!

I employ someone with one leg - as a Lighting Designer. He can climb ladders, and do everything I need. If he couldn't, he wouldn't get the job.

So disabled people need to get a reality check. There are plenty of jobs they cannot do, but far more they can. A blind editor is a problem, so is a deaf sound mixer, or a rigger with a fear of heights, or a runner in a wheelchair.

Of course, they could get any of these jobs if the Disability Discrimination Act is shouted loud and clear - but there are few enough jobs in our industry without accepting unsuitable people for the wrong reasons.

I know a uni where a blind bloke was driving the Van around the campus, because driving was a part of the course. He couldn't drive on the road, so they had somebody sitting next to him, in first gear, going left, left, right, stop!

Disabled people don't worry me in the least, just those with unreasonable expectations. If a person with disabilities in one area has strengths in others, there's no problem - so deaf people might have few problems with visuals, blind people might be great mixers and balancers. Horses for courses.

Everyone, as in Monty Python, has the 'right' to do anything - but will it pay the bills?
 
Who needs a reality check? Nobody said she should be a camera operator. Editor is a stretch, but the idea is that maybe she could become especially good at very specific editing tasks. Seems like you've had a few run-ins with overconfident disabled people, but that doesn't mean that "disabled people need to get a reality check" or that any of us indicate the need for a reality check either.
 
Whoa... chill out. First, this is the US, not Britain, so we have different laws here regarding disabilities. Second, no one said this kid was over confident or anything. She likes film and is exploring her options. That hardly counts as needing a "reality check".

Take a deep breath and step away from the keyboard... :)
 
j said:
I'm throwing this one out to the community:

We have a student at our school is functionally blind. She needs a guide dog but can see a little bit. She can read a computer but she has to be about 1" from the screen.

She's smart and very dedicated. But... well, she's blind.

What facets of film production would recommend?

Also, does anybody know of any blind people that are successful in the industry?
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Yo, Paulears, re-read this post. You see anywhere where it says she felt that people were obligated to give her any special treatment or a specific job? This is from someone looking in to options for her on her behalf. I respect that. He is trying to give this student viable options.

You went headfirst into the deep end of the pool here. But LOL (maybe not so much LOL, but dude!!!!!!!!!), revealed a little about yourself in the process.

I am thinking, the only person here needing a "reality check", frankly, is you.
 
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