Awake. Michael Achtman and Çağlar Kimyoncu on accessible filmmaking.

Awake. Michael Achtman and Çağlar Kimyoncu on accessible filmmaking.

Using the film “Awake” as an example, we will discuss how to make the filmmaking process accessible to Deaf and disabled actors, directors, DOPs – and other film practitioners. Michael Achtman and Çağlar Kimyoncu worked together on the film, which featured blind actresses Margo Cargill and Alex Bulmer. They will share their experiences around accessibility in the film industry and their own experiences of creating access on a film set.

The film is shown in the subtitled and audio described version. Unfortunately filmArche is not fully accessible. We are happy to offer assistance to anyone who’d like, please send an e-mail to caspar.schleicher@hotmail.de.

Wednesday, 15.11.2017, 7 pm
filmArche, Lahnstraße 25
Admission free, donations welcome

ABOUT THE FILM
Awake (22 mins.) Anna, a woman who’s chronically ill, is visited by Doreen, a door-to-door proselytizer who makes herself at home and stays the day, slowly defrosting her non-welcome. Together they walk in the park, bake a cake and watch an Ingmar Bergman film. Both women are blind, played by blind actors Alex Bulmer and Margo Cargill in this existential comedy.

https://awakethefilm.net

BIOGS
Michael Achtman is a London-based filmmaker, writer and dramaturg whose work explores inclusive practice and distribution. Since 2003, he has collaborated with Deaf and disabled artists in theatre, live art and digital arts projects. His latest short film, Awake, starring two blind actors, won the Jury Award at Superfest International Disability Film Festival and the Festival Director’s prize at Look & Roll (Basel), and continues to screen at film festivals internationally. He also creates experimental video/music work and still photography.
Working with Graeae Theatre Company, Michael pioneered the concept of Creative Enabler, a support worker for Deaf and disabled artists that has become a template for the arts practitioners. His work also includes audio description for cinema and performing arts. He is an associate artist at filmpro, a London-based digital arts agency.

https://machtman.com/

Çağlar Kimyoncu is a London-based digital and video artist as well as curator and arts consultant. His projects have ranged from experimental art films to large scale installations, screenings/projections and photography. His work is often informed by a concern with the pressure to conform to ‘norms’, which continue to prevail even in apparently liberal and tolerant societies.
Research, collaboration and improvisation form the core of Caglar’s practice, with the aim of being able to understand a subject matter within its context and creating an artistic response without losing authenticity. He is always interested in exploring the use of (relevant) technology as a creative and access tool. He is committed to exploring and adapting art forms to create an inclusive experience for a varied audience.
Caglar recently completed a British-Council funded residency at PSBK in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, where he started his new project, What Makes You Who You Are. He is a filmpro associate artist

https://caglark.com/