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Using audio description
Are you a young person who is blind or has low vision? Do you access TV, films, streaming platforms, theatre or galleries at school, at home, or out with friends and family?
Then grab your popcorn or Choc-top and explore how much more fun it is with Audio Description (or ‘AD’ for short)!
The Challenge: Become an expert Audio Description (AD) User by experiencing as much as you can…
With AD, you don’t need to see to understand what is happening because all the important visual information is spoken aloud.
AD is a really important tool of access. Learning how to make the most of it will really help you at school, at home, and out with friends and family. Audio-visual content plays a pivotal role in education, culture and society, and audio description is the tool that makes that content accessible and meaningful.
Fun Fact: Sighted people can also find AD really helpful (not only does it enable them to do two things at once, but it also helps them to see things they haven’t noticed), so sharing it with them can improve the experience for everyone!
To help you challenge yourself to become an expert AD User, we have created a special game called ‘AD Bingo’. This will show you where you can find AD and help you keep track of all the different ways you have used AD. And the best bit, if you register, you can get it for free!
AD can be a bit overwhelming at first, you have suddenly been given access to new kinds of information you have previously missed out on, so it does take some getting used to. By gradually achieving each square of the bingo card, it will motivate you to keep going until AD becomes your norm.
Just download or request a braille copy of this year’s Bingo card, stick it to your fridge, and keep track every time you enjoy something with AD. Plus, each player gets a special Audio Description keyring!
And if you’re new to AD, or are finding it a bit of a challenge, we’d love to hear how many times you used it before you fell in love with AD (and what about AD won you over)!
And if you find a piece of Audio Description you absolutely love, you can win prizes by telling us why!
To find out more, email Polly at [email protected].
How to play
Each of the 12 squares on this year’s BADIE-AU Bingo tool has a different type of audio-described experience. The aim is to try out as many of the 12 as you can and become an expert AD user!
Stick the Bingo card to your fridge and each time you try a new experience use a sticker or colourful marker to ‘check off’ that box. Then move on to the next.
The first 5 people to send us a photo of their completed BADIE-AU Bingo card will win a $50 gift card of their choice!
And if you find a piece of audio description you absolutely love, send us a review telling us why and you’ll be in with a chance to win a $100 gift card of your choice!
Download your Bingo card here right now or you can apply for a Braille version.
Tip: You can make your card tactile by applying puffy paint or Wikki Stix to the grid lines.
Send photos of your completed card, reviews of audio description (max 300 words), or any questions to [email protected].
Closing date: January 31st 2024
Tips for finding audio described content
Anything with audio description should have this logo:
To help you speed through your Bingo card, here are some places you can access audio-described content:
- Broadcast TV: Vision Australia has produced this helpful guide to accessing AD on your TV
- Streaming channels like Netflix, Stan and Amazon have audio-described content
- Vision Australia describes lots of live audio description. See what’s on near you.
- Many cinemas have audio-described screenings.
- Lots of DVDs have an audio description track. Look for the AD logo on the back of the case.