In December 2023 we hosted our annual Advisory Board Meeting online, an opportunity to update our board on what we’ve been up to as well as seek advice on ways forward.
Our Advisory Board includes incredibly talented and influential representatives from several fields including audio production and postproduction (Howard Bargroff, Anna Bertmark, Emma Butt, Judi Lee-Headman, Nina Hartstone), audio technology (Jason Power, Jerry Gilbert), screenwriting (Lisa Holdsworth), directing (Mandi Lynn), broadcasting (Matt Cleary, Dr Matthew Paradis, Gary Westmoreland), as well as representatives of end users and charities (Sonali Rai, Warren Wilson).
The meeting started with a short presentation from the EAD team, taking the board through our different research questions and what we’ve been doing in order to answer them. This section included updates on Krisztián’s work on the design of a listening test to investigate possible connections between sound design and cinematography, as well as the work carried out by Mariana and Gavin on the EAD creation for the short films Spines (Inman 2023) and Visible Mending (Moore 2023), as well as updating them on a number of productions currently in the pipeline. Michael and Gavin also provided information on ongoing psychoacoustic tests that will be used to create new rendering tools for accessible soundtracks produced over loudspeakers.
We also benefited greatly from the opportunity to discuss challenges in the field of film and television accessibility, including the importance for EAD to engage with a variety of genres. We also had a really insightful conversation on the opportunities and challenges of the use of AI in the field of audio and accessibility and its implementation to EAD, including ethical considerations. We also reflected on the importance of creating opportunities for audio students and recent graduates to enter the field – something that is embedded in our project through a number of internships supported through project funds.
Huge thanks to our advisory board for their continuous support!
Mariana
