Sundance's Dramatic Competition jurors walked out of the premiere for Magazine Dreams on Friday night after the closed captioning device used for the film malfunctioned.
Among those jurors were Oscar-winning actor Marlee Matlin, who is deaf, Jeremy O. Harris and Eliza Hittman.
Though the device was repaired a few hours later, the incident reprised discussions of accessibility at film festivals. While having the closed captioning device was a move toward a more equitable viewing experience for all, there remains a great deal of progress to be made.
In response to the incident, the jury distributed letters to filmmakers urging them to allow "open caption DCP" prints to screen.
The letter obtained by Variety reads:
"We have all travelled to Utah to celebrate independent film and those who devote their lives to making them."
"There's a thrill to sit in a room with others who love films and cheer for them together and Sundance has been an important place for each of us to do that over our varied careers."
"The U.S. independent cinema movement began as a way to make film accessible to everyone, not just those with the most privileges among us."
"As a jury our ability to celebrate the work that all of you have put into making these films has been disrupted by the fact that they are not accessible to all three of us."
Many on social media applauded the jurors for collectively exiting the premiere due to its failure to provide adequate access for all viewers.
\u201cWell done, jurors.\n\n#Sundance2023 #marleematlin @sundancefest #closedcaptioning @MarleeMatlin\u201d— David Phillips (@David Phillips) 1674407213
\u201cOK so @sundancefest having @MarleeMatlin (Deaf/HOH actress) as a juror is a huge statement of inclusion. Finding out one of the films, \u201cMagazine Dreams\u201d had no captions is ridiculous. Inclusion has to mean accessibility. Glad the other jurors walked out, that\u2019s allyship \ud83d\udc9b\u201d— Missing Perspectives (@Missing Perspectives) 1674349328
\u201c"several filmmakers have declined the request to provide open captions onscreen, citing the costs and time associated with making another print"\n\nNowadays, all movies come on encrypted hard drives, not reels. It costs nothing to turn on the captions.\nhttps://t.co/kPEPhZh481\u201d— Paul (@Paul) 1674354381
\u201c\ud83d\ude44\ud83d\ude44\ud83d\ude44 I\u2019ve worked at significantly smaller festivals that have required captions in order to play at the festival. There\u2019s no reason why Sundance can\u2019t do the same. Good on the jury for walking out\u201d— Bri\u2019anna\ud83c\udf7f (@Bri\u2019anna\ud83c\udf7f) 1674341415
\u201cIt\u2019s infuriating that to be included we have to rational the cost (aka it\u2019s not that expensive). @HilariScarl said it best \u201cit\u2019s a part of your delivery responsibility\u201d PERIOD. Bravo to @MarleeMatlin for walking out!\u201d— Trisha M (@Trisha M) 1674386174
\u201cScoop: the #Sundance2023 jury walked out of \u2018Magazine Dreams\u2019 last night because the movie failed to provide adequate captioning for juror Marlee Matlin. Moving forward, Sundance should mandate all movies playing in competition have open captions. https://t.co/tWKTGiwD6v\u201d— Ramin Setoodeh (@Ramin Setoodeh) 1674342178
Several also pointed out Matlin has been fighting this very issue for years.
\u201cNever forget Marlee Matlin advocated for years to require streaming services to provide closed captioning, and it only became law 9 years ago https://t.co/UaO3DOGyDD\u201d— Lauren \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@Lauren \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1674411739
\u201cactually devastating (and infuriating) to read this quote from an interview with Marlee Matlin when she was announced as a Sundance juror \u2639\ufe0f\ud83d\ude24 https://t.co/tqqaCrVGdL\u201d— andree-uhhh...?? (@andree-uhhh...??) 1674339100
Sundance has been called-in by other Deaf people for years about this issue. This isn't the first time it was requested that films submitted to Sundance had a setting that allows captions to be turned at the film festival's theaters. Still, in 2023? Dang.
— ✨🌊 ADRIENNE ✨🌊✨ (@AquafarE) January 21, 2023
Sundance CEO Joana Vincente issued the following statement:
"Our goal is to make all experiences (in person and online) as accessible as possible for all participants."
"Our accessibility efforts are, admittedly, always evolving and feedback helps drive it forward for the community as a whole."
Vincent also shared the jurors will be viewing Magazine Dreams in the near future.
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