How to film sign language videos that actually work

With so many of us catching football fever of late, it has been great to see FIFA producing sign language versions of World Cup highlight videos. That’s right, a major sporting organisation is publishing accessible sporting highlights videos as part of its regular content packages. And while it’s fantastic seeing more people embrace and celebrate sign language, often the message can get missed if care is not given to how the story is told. So The D*List team felt like this might be a good time to remind us all how to produce NZSL content that authentically connects with audiences.

Focus on the whole person

One thing to be aware of if you’re not fluent in sign language is that any sign language is about more than just the hands. I have noticed that videos featuring sign language often focus solely on the hands of the person signing, excluding the entire upper body and the face. Or they might cut from a close-up of the hands to a mid-shot, then back to the hands again. This may be an attempt to replicate effects and cuts used in videos featuring spoken languages where the speaker’s body or face will be shown from many different angles while the voice continues uninterrupted. While this makes the video more visually dynamic for viewers, the effect does not always work for sign languages. In fact, it actually makes me feel like my eyes are being thrown around in a jar!

With sign languages, facial expressions and the upper body play a huge part in the grammar and tone. Without seeing the face, a lot of information and context is lost to the viewer. It’s a bit like listening to a robotic monotone!

Think big when it comes to camera framing for sign languages

When filming sign language, it’s important to have the physical set-up done in a way that captures sign language in the best way possible. One of the basic and most effective ways of filming sign language is to film in landscape orientation. You need to ensure that there is plenty of room around the person’s upper body for signs that extend into the space around the person.

One example is the word “big” in NZSL. When signing “big” emphatically, the signer will extend their arms out to either side, and losing this is a bit like audio randomly becoming distorted or cut off. If filming vertically for apps or websites that are not friendly to landscape videos, it is important to make sure that there is enough space in the frame around the subject’s arms and shoulders for any signs that may extend past the frame. A good tip is to get the person to move back or forwards with arms stretched out on both sides until their arms and fingertips are fully in frame – this can apply to both vertical and landscape videos. And if you do want to zoom in a bit, you could always do this when editing the video - once you know what the footage looks like.

Be aware of the context when making cuts

It is also crucial that Deaf people are involved in the editing process so that cuts in the footage don’t cut off the signer in mid-sentence. I once helped out with a video that was to be released to the general public, where the editors had used the voice of the interpreter as a cue for making their cuts, rather than using the context of what was actually being signed. The edits and colour grading had already been done and the end result was a beautifully made video that looked fantastic on screen. However, I was immediately struck by how strange some of the cuts between sentences were when watching the person signing.

Using cues from the interpreter’s voice to trim the footage had resulted in the audio track being wildly out of sync with the Deaf person’s signing. This was due to the difference in grammar between NZSL and English, as well as the natural lag interpreters will have when providing a translation. At times, the video would cut in the middle of what the Deaf person was signing, then cut to the end of a different sentence - quite confusing! In this case, it puts Deaf viewers at a disadvantage compared to hearing viewers, who may not know sign language as they would simply listen to the voiceover. To fix this, the production company went back and used the visual footage as cues for editing, and replaced the original audio track with a voiceover that matched the signing. The result was a video that worked for both hearing and Deaf viewers.

Include Deaf people in every step of the process

To avoid issues such as these from arising, at least one person involved in the production and post production processes needs to be fluent in sign language so that they can provide input to guide the camera operators and editors. Hopefully, the inclusion of sign language is more than just tokenistic and is aimed at a Deaf audience. The viewing experience should be one that benefits both hearing and Deaf people by allowing both parties to watch the content in their respective languages. It also allows the Deaf person who has been filmed dignity in expressing their language without being edited in a way that makes what they are signing come across as poorly signed or awkward. 

When in doubt, collaborate!

By working collaboratively and pooling expertise and knowledge from both Deaf and hearing people, content can be made accessible for everyone. I can only speak on my own behalf, but as a Deaf viewer, I really love seeing people who sign represented on screen.