General Information /// Programme /// Speakers /// Registration
General information about the Access Maker Creative Lab
Subject:
Digital Possibilities for Accessibility in the Performing Arts
Date:
Monday, 30.01.2023 from 2 pm to Thursday, 02.02.2023 6 pm
Venue:
Academy of Cultural Education, 42857 Remscheid, Germany
Target group:
Technicians, directors, dramaturges and anyone interested in digital innovation (even without prior knowledge) Number of participants: max. 20 – 25 participants
Speakers
- Ben Glover, deaf video designer, creative captioner, Fellow of the Royal Shakespeare Company for his research in creative subtitling (UK).
- Nickie Miles-Wildin, theatre and radio play director, workshop leader, former artistic director of DaDaFest and associate director of Graeae Theatre Company (UK)
- David Ortmann, Team Leader Acting and Executive Director at the Staatstheater Augsburg
- Panthea, network of experts for innovative surtitle solutions, with software developed in-house, represented by David Maß, CEO Panthea Germany and Maria Wünsche, subtitling and surtitling expert
- Max Schweder, digitalist, musician, performer, producer and creative coder for the Koproduktionslabor Dortmund
Content:
DIGITAL POSSIBILITIES FOR ACCESSIBILITY – At the creative lab you can expect a wide repertoire of digital interfaces and possibilities for accessibility in the performing arts, creating individual and innovative access for a broad and diverse audience. Whether creative captioning, the use of software, smart glasses or virtual reality: our mixed-abled and experienced team of speakers will provide you through presentations, lectures and practical workshops with digital tools to make your productions accessible, diverse and attractive. It will be exciting for technicians as well as for directors, dramaturges and all those interested in digital innovation (even without prior knowledge).
The Academy for Cultural Education in Remscheid, located in the middle of nature, has very beautiful, spacious, accessible workshop rooms in which your collective creativity can fully unfold from a variety of perspectives in exchange with international speakers and colleagues.
The nationally and internationally renowned speakers have years of experience in the creative use of new technologies and are key players in shaping new developments in digitization and accessibility in the performing arts.
Language:
The seminar will be held in German and easy-to-understand English.
Simultaneous translation by professional interpreters is possible throughout if required, see “Accessibility”.
Accomodation:
Single or double room with shower. Full board.
Accessibility:
All meeting rooms are accessible.
The Academy has a limited number of single and double rooms with varying degrees of accessibility – please be sure to specify your exact accessibility needs when registering.
We will provide the following assistants if needed, please be sure to indicate the need when registering:
- Interpretation into German Sign Language (DGS)
- Simultaneous translation English-German
- On-site work assistance or mobility assistance
CONTRIBUTION incl. accommodation costs according to self-assessment
Category 1: 110 € + VVK (e.g. students, freelance artists)
Category 2: 150 € + VVK (e.g. employees of freelance ensembles)
Category 3: 190 € + VVK (e.g. employees of large cultural institutions)
Participation with own assistance is free of charge.
For Questions and further information:
Charlott Dahmen. e-mail: charlott@un-label.eu, bye phone: +49 (221) 788560-13.
Project website Access Maker
Programme
Monday/Lectures
- Embracing digital technology in theatre – how, why and when? – Nickie Miles-Wildin Nickie will take us through her process of embracing technology to open up her storytelling making her work creatively accessible to many more people. From creative captioning to emoticon voice overs.
- Digital Revolution in Theatre – Digital Ideas for Inclusion – Max Schweder
Digitalisation does not automatically mean accessibility! Nevertheless, there are digital tools and possibilities that make sense in the theatre context and can also be used for the purpose of inclusion. Max shares his own experiences of projects that have made theatre productions more accessible and what was really needed to achieve this.
Tuesday-Wednesday/Practical Workshops
- Designing Creative Captions – Ben Glover, Nickie Miles-Wildin
The workshop explores how captions can be integrated creatively in a show, what methods and tools designers use and which guidelines to follow. There will be examples of productions and practical exercises for participants. - Personalisable accessibility with panthea.live – David Maß, Maria Wünsche
This workshop will introduce the software [S] and the accessibility system panthea.live, which can be used to simultaneously play or display surtitles, audio surtitles, audio descriptions and videos in various sign languages during a performance on smartphones, tablets or smartglasses. In addition to content-related and technical background information, participants will also gain insight into an exemplary work process and can create surtitles or audio surtitles themselves. Depending on the participants’ field(s) of interest, the workshop will also offer space for exchange on technical, translation and/or organisational issues.
To ensure intensive work in small groups, the workshops by Ben Glover and Nickie Miles-Wildin as well as David Maß and Maria Wünsche will be offered in parallel – alternating so that participants can attend both workshops.
Thursday/Morning
The Flying Interpreter – Digital Accessibility in Virtual Reality (lecture) – David Ortmann
How can analogue, accessible offers be creatively transferred into the digital space? Using the VR production Judas, which exists in a version with sign language interpretation, we examine possibilities, pitfalls and perspectives for breaking down barriers in the virtual theatre space. What is possible in the digital world that is not possible in the real world? How can projects be realised not only for but also with the deaf community? And what next steps can we take? Part of the lecture is also the practical testing of the VR glasses with the interpreted 360-degree film.
Afternoon
Reflection and transfer to own practice (plenum) – Nickie Miles-Wildin
Speakers
Ben Glover
Ben Glover is a deaf video designer and creative captioner who uses interdisciplinary skills in both creative and technical fields producing innovative and often expressive creations typically informed by his background in theatre, film and computing. He is a recent Fellow of the Royal Shakespeare Company for his research on creative captioning.
His recent work includes video designs for: Best of Enemies (Noël Coward Theatre), Tubular Bells 50th Anniversary Concert Tour, NOISE (The Place), Little Bits of Ruined Beauty (Pentabus), The Lesson (Southwark Playhouse), The Paradis Files (Graeae Theatre), RED (Polka Theatre), Coventry City of Culture, Liverpool Arab Arts Festival, Pukkelpop and Burning Man Festival.
Nickie Miles-Wildin
Nickie Miles-Wildin Nickie Miles-Wildin has a wide and varied career: she is a theatre and radio play director and workshop leader. Her passion as a theatre maker is “Aesthetic of Access” and plays that address the prejudices against disabled people. She is the former artistic director of DaDaFest and Associate Director of the world-renowned theatre company Graeae. Both organisations are run by Deaf and disabled cultural practitioners and have been campaigning for equity in culture since 1981. Nickie is also co-founder of TwoCan Theatre in Gloucestershire. Her most recent theatre productions are Little Bits Of Ruined Beauty Leave The Light On For Me and for radio Love Across The Ages.
David Ortmann
David Ortmann has been part of the acting team management and lead director at the Staatstheater Augsburg since 2017. Whether on large or drama stages or in urban space (Tatort Augsburg), with audience participation (Wunschfilm) or everyday experts (Schuld und Bühne) – new forms of theatre and a close relationship with the audience accompany his work. He contributed the 360-degree monologue Event and the interactive virtual reality series Solo to the new digital section. In Augsburg, he is also actively involved in providing accessible services for audiences, such as regular audio descriptions and sign language interpreting. The STAATSTHEATER AUGSBURG is a four-part theatre and the third state theatre in Bavaria after Munich and Nuremberg. In recent years, the theatre has made a name for itself not only with its classical repertoire work but also with its social and artistic focal points, including the Climate Festival at last and the founding of its own digital section. André Bücker has been the state director since the 2017/18 season.
Panthea
Panthea is a network of experts dealing with different approaches to the performing arts. In addition to surtitles in various languages for numerous plays, Panthea also develops its own software, [S], as well as the mobile accessibility solution panthea.live. Panthea advises (music) theatres and festivals on the planning and implementation of flexible solutions or permanent installations and participates in international research projects, e.g. with the University of Antwerp and the City Theatre NTGent.
Speakers at the Creative Lab will be David Maß, CEO Panthea Germany and Maria Wünsche, subtitle and surtitle expert.
Max Schweder
Max Schweder is a digitalist, musician, performer and producer.
He works as a creative coder for Koproduktionslabor Dortmund and as a freelance digital artist, realising a variety of projects such as the ARD cultural production Einklang (ARD Mediathek – Einklang). As a member of Un-Label, he creates accessible stage productions and holds workshops in the field of creative accessibility and inclusion.
Max releases his music as a solo artist under the pseudonym Strange Attractor and together with Tobias Hartmann in the duo CYLVESTER. With CYLVESTER he also realises digital art projects such as ALL YOUR BASE. Max is, among other things, a fellowship alumni of the Akademie für Theater und Digitalität Dortmund. As an artistic research assistant at the Conservatoire Antwerp, he co-developed interactive performances such as EMPTY MIND.
Speakers: Maria Wünsche, Max Schweder, David Ortmann, Ben Glover, Nickie Miles-Wildin, David Maß
