Closed Captions for Daffodils

1 March 2019

Daffodils, a bittersweet love story told with beautiful re-imaginings of iconic New Zealand songs will be able to be enjoyed in cinemas by the hearing impaired alongside their hearing friends.

In a first for a New Zealand film, Daffodils distributor, Transmission Films, have included closed captions on all digital prints.

Closed captions are a text version of the spoken words in a movie, and description of any auditory cues such as ringing doorbells or explosive sound effects. In some cinemas, captions are projected onto the main cinema screen in special screenings for the hearing impaired, while in others the captions can be viewed via a personal device that attaches to the seat’s cupholder.

This announcement is well timed as we celebrate World Hearing Day this Sunday March 03 and Silent March which commences today and includes a month-long series of events organised by the Foundation for the Deaf.

While primarily for those who have impaired hearing, closed captions are also used by patrons whose first language is not English.

“Transmission are thrilled that Daffodils will be accessible to more of the New Zealand public with closed captioning being offered at multiple cinemas across the country - our gratitude to our amazing funding body, the New Zealand Film Commission, for making this possible,” said Mark Chamberlain, General Manager of Transmission Films New Zealand.

Daffodils will open in 101 cinemas nationwide on 21 March, following a world premiere at Wellington’s Embassy Theatre on Valentine’s Day. Stars Rose McIver, George Mason and Kimbra joined cast, crew, guests and members of the public to walk the yellow carpet at the sold-out event.

Written by Rochelle Bright, directed by David Stubbs and produced by Richard Fletcher and Stubbs, Daffodils is a heart-aching drama of a quintessential New Zealand marriage, told with iconic New Zealand music. Leaving her dying father’s bedside, singer Maisie rushes to perform at an indie music gig in town. But as she sings the opening song, it’s hard for her to ignore the heartfelt story she’s just been told – the story of how her dad met and fell in love with her mother, and how it all devastatingly fell apart. As the night goes on, we see the love story of Eric and Rose through Maisie’s eyes. From the time they meet in Hamilton in 1966 to their separation in the 1980s, we follow the bittersweet nuances of a couple’s life, expressed with contemporary re-imaginings of iconic hit songs of New Zealand artists including Crowded House, Bic Runga and Dave Dobbyn.

Daffodils opens in New Zealand cinemas on 21 March.

To receive weekly updates on which captioned films are screening in cinemas around New Zealand, sign up for the Captioned Movies New Zealand newsletter here, or visit theirFacebook Page.

ends

© Scoop Media