Subtitles are not enough: One World marks International Week of Deaf People by putting accessibility centre stage

"Accessibility cannot be ticked off with a single captioned film or one interpreted discussion. You have to think about the entire audience experience, from whether someone in the auditorium can actually see the interpreter to the most important thing of all: whether we have asked the community what they are genuinely interested in. That is exactly where the organisation Deaf Friendly helps us," says Lenka Lovicarová, Executive Director of the One World Festival, who has championed accessibility for many years.

Those affected are the ones who decide the programme

In practice, that means one thing: we do not sit behind a desk guessing what audiences would "surely appreciate". We work closely with experts from Deaf Friendly to carefully select films that portray Deaf characters authentically and without unnecessary clichés. Deaf audiences themselves vote on which films should be followed by discussions interpreted into Czech Sign Language (ČZJ). And the principle of "nothing about us without us" also applies to communication. The dedicated Facebook page Jeden svět pro neslyšící (One World for Deaf Audiences) is not managed by the festival's PR team. Instead, all video invitations are created and edited exclusively by Deaf creators themselves.

Accessibility also extends throughout the entire festival experience. All films in the main Prague programme are screened with Czech subtitles, while selected titles also include SDH subtitles (subtitles for Deaf and hard of hearing audiences). Festival opening and closing ceremonies, as well as selected discussions, are interpreted into Czech Sign Language and accompanied by real-time Czech captioning (CART). In addition, reserved seating with the best possible view of the interpreters is always available for Deaf attendees.

A linguistic Matrix on stage

This year's edition showed just how far accessibility can be taken. While all Czech and international films in the main competition are routinely screened with Czech subtitles, and selected screenings also feature SDH subtitles, the documentary Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore turned the stage into a remarkable linguistic performance. The post-screening discussion about the first Deaf Academy Award winner was interpreted simultaneously into spoken Czech, English, American Sign Language (ASL) and Czech Sign Language. Those in the audience experienced first-hand that communication is possible with absolutely anyone when the will is there.

And the impact speaks for itself. The discussion following the film Deaf, featuring Anna Pangrácová and Martina Kučová and moderated by Radka Nováková and Lucie Štádlerová, received the Abakus Foundation Audience Award for Best Discussion of the Festival.

When the whole office signs

To ensure accessibility does not remain just a public-facing commitment, the festival team also works to break down barriers internally. Members of the One World team regularly attend Czech Sign Language courses. As a result, accessibility has stopped being just another buzzword in a project application and has become a natural part of the way the festival operates.

We do not simply want to provide interpretation services, we want to become more accessible ourselves. That is why members of the festival team regularly take lessons with Deaf tutor Pepa Valdman from the Institute of Czech Sign Language and Deaf Culture – Pevnost, and learn to sign. Thanks to this, accessibility continues to become an integral part of the festival's everyday life.

For us, International Week of the Deaf, whose theme this year is the Declaration of the Human Rights of Deaf People, is not merely a date in the calendar. It is a celebration of the Deaf community, of visual language, and a reminder that access to culture is not a privilege but a fundamental human right.

Photo: Lukáš Bíba, Karolína Fialová