TV BSL In-vision Interpreting– Case Studies

We interviewed four of the students to see how they’ve found the workshops.

Jay is from Birmingham and has no experience of In-vision.

Joanne is from Walsall and has no experience of In-vision on TV but has always wanted to have a go.

Matthew is from Wiltshire and has worked for a company that did translations from English to BSL, but has no direct experience of In-vision.

Melly is from London and this is her first experience of In-vision.

Q - Did the workshop live up to your expectations?

JOANNE

"Yes - it’s given me an insight into what In-vision is. It’s a nice environment where we’ve been able to support each other."

JAY

“I knew I would be working with a script, I knew I’d have to practice, that there would be an autocue. I felt quite confident, but when I went in & stood in front of the lighting, cameras etc, even though I knew what was going to be there, I found it was a totally different experience.”

Interviewer: In what way?

“The autocue was there, the TV was there. When you’re home watching someone on TV doing it, you think “Oh, I’m better than them, I can do that” but when you’re actually in the studio, it’s different to when you’re sitting at home in the chair. That was a big impact on me – I didn’t realise.”

Q - What skills do you think you've learnt?

JOANNE

"Generally knowing how to be an In-vision signer - I’ve realised it’s something I can do. I’m a bit disappointed that there’s no qualification at the end of it because I think a lot of people would want to get on the course just to get a qualification.”

MATTHEW

“People always said that I should be involved in media work like presenting or In-vision signing. I’ve realised presenting wasn’t for me, but as an In-vision signer you can actually take on someone else. I’ve realised what mistakes I’ve made and how I should correct them like how to adapt & take on that person, but I do want further training.”

JAY

“I guess without this workshop I’d be put on the spot if I went for an interview. The workshop has helped me a great deal. It’s given me the experience I expected. I know what’s there in the media world, I know how to prepare myself & maybe if people ask me things in interviews, I may be able to answer the questions. Had I not been on this workshop, I may not have known the answers.”

Q - What did you enjoy the most?

MATTHEW

“I’ve enjoyed all of it – thinking about what an In-vision signer is, watching myself, then having feedback & realising what I need to change.”

MELLY

“Pro-forma’s, NF, role shifting – I didn’t know what they were before; so I’ve realised I need to go on a linguistics course. Looking at placement, role shifts I have learnt a bit, but I’d like to learn some more. Doing the In-vision signing – I’d like some more experience.”

Q - What did you find the most difficult?

JOANNE

“That’s a good question. I think looking at the script, the English and having to discuss what it means. Also, realising that you had to be prepared and you have to bring along sources like dictionaries. I think the linguistics training was useful.”

JAY

“The difficult part was to sign without making mistakes and not to be able to carry on and hide them. To have a script in front of you, being prepared, thinking of how to change that into BSL so it’s actually culturally equivalent, how you would produce it, how the audience would perceive it, & whether they would understand it. You had to think about the audience and I found that quite challenging, but I was happy to do that.”

Q - What are your next steps career wise?

JOANNE

“I definitely want to become an In-vision signer. Before I came on the course, I didn’t know if I was the right person to be an In-vision signer or whether to be a presenter, but now I’ve realised that In-vision signing is better for me.”

MATTHEW

“I want to be involved more in In-vision signing. The group has just been talking about whether we want to be a presenter or an In-vision signer & I feel that I am better as the latter. At the moment, I have no qualifications, so I’m now thinking about getting as many qualifications as I can. Today, as you know, in the 21st century, everyone’s asking for qualifications, so I’ll be registering with different companies, taking on different characters, thinking about what works, what’s difficult etc.”

Q - What advice can you give others in the deaf community wanting to get into In-vision interpreting?

MATTHEW

“Go for it. If you’re thinking about it, just try it. They might realise that once they’re there, that it might not be for them, they might not enjoy being in front of the camera. But if anyone is interested, they will need to have training, get some qualifications, look at their linguistics and BSL. Some people think “Oh, I can sign, I can do that if anyone tells me, I can stand there and sign” but you don’t realise until you actually come on these courses.”

JAY

“If anyone wants to be involved, I would see if they were suitable - there may be some Deaf people who are monolingual and don’t have very good English, but I’d probably encourage them to come along.”