History Through Deaf Eyes will take a look at deaf culture from the 19th century to the present. The 90 minute production for PBS will include short films.
Reviews
Simply A Masterpiece
I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.
This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.
There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.
I have had a gripe with PBS DVDs for some time. Almost all of them lack captioning--and my deaf daughter cannot enjoy them. Fortunately, this one about deaf culture IS captioned...but why not all their DVDs since this IS public television?! As for the show "Through Deaf Eyes", it's a terrific documentary. Part of it is because there really is very little in the way of documentaries about the deaf community--therefore it HAS to be good! Part of it is because it gives voice to these otherwise ignored people. And, part of it is just because the film was well made--with lots of interesting aspects that should appeal both to hearing and deaf folks. Among the many topics covered were the history of sign language and auralism (the strict use of lip reading and voicing for the deaf--at the exclusion of sign language), the history of the TTY, controversies in the deaf community, the protests at Galludet University, cochlear implants (pro and con)*, choices of schools and many other important and interesting topics. Well worth your time and exceptionally well made.*In one short film within this documentary, a deaf man tries a cochlear implant and just hears loud and overwhelming static. That was my daughter's experience with the implant--so it is not successful for everyone.
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