FAQs
Everything You Need To Know About DV.
What is Described Video?
Described Video (DV) and Audio Description are services that make television shows, feature films and other media accessible to people who are blind or vision impaired. It provides a voiceover description of a program's key visual elements, with narration during the natural pauses in the program dialogue. DV describes actions, setting and details that are not reflected in the dialogue to provide context for people with vision disabilities. Described Video is to the vision impaired what closed captioning is to the deaf.
What parts of a program do you describe?
We describe the important visual elements that a blind or vision-impaired person normally misses. Actions, costumes, facial expressions, settings and scene changes are just some of the things that when described provide the context to engage this audience with the story. Through description, our skilled writers and narrators provide meaningful images for the mind's eye of blind and vision-impaired people.
How does a viewer watch Described Video on television?
Most TVs have a Secondary Audio Program (SAP) or Multi-channel Television Sound (MTS) available through menu options described in owners' manuals. Alternately, if the viewer uses a digital converter box or satellite receiver, they might access Described Video (DV) through audio settings or other features offered by their local service provider.
Simply active the SAP/MTS feature, and if Described Video is part of the selected program, it will be heard.
Which shows are described?
Most broadcasters provide Described Video. Local television schedules will indicate the DV shows that are available in your area.
How is a program described?
Our highly trained writers watch the program and write a script that describes the visual elements to indicate where and when a scene is set, who is there and what is happening. They carefully time the occurrences and durations of the descriptions so that they fit within pauses in the dialogue. After a script is completed, it is recorded as narration, and mixed with the original program audio to create a full Described Video (DV) track.
Our technical experts can either lay the DV track back to a spare audio track on your broadcast-ready master, or provide it for your use in your own post-production laybacks.
How long does it take to describe a program?
The time and cost will vary with each program. The normal turn-around time is three to seven days, depending on the length of the program. But at Descriptive Video Works, we will work with you to accommodate your turn-around needs and meet your deadlines.
Do you charge rush fees?
No, we do not charge extra for a rush job. We come from broadcasting and production backgrounds, and although we ask to have as much time as possible, we understand that sometimes these things are out of your control. Please contact us with your scheduling requirements and we will make sure that your project is completed on time. Even when we have tight deadlines, our work is always of the highest caliber.
How do you decide on the voice?
We carefully review your program and make the best selection from our professional voiceover team. We have a wide range of female and male professional narrators with experience in radio, TV, fim and stage to ensure that the voice we use compliments your program and provides an engaging viewing experience.
What do you require to DV a program?
To create the DV script, we require the final version of the program, preferably with all titles and graphics. We can also work from a final picture-lock version if your deadlines are tight. Once we have recorded the DV narration, we mix it with the final stereo mix (LTRT) of the program. Then we can either lay back the final DV mix to your master tape, or we can digital-deliver an audio file for you to use in your own post-production laybacks.
We work with all standard broadcast formats and digital files, including Quicktime, FCP, AVID, .mov, .aiff, .wav, DVD, HDCam, Digital Betacam, Betacam SP, Betacam SX, and others.
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