What does a audio describer do?
You describe what is on screen or on stage for blind and partially sighted audiences, in the gaps between the dialogue, and the gaps are about three seconds long.
Also called: audio description writer, AD describer, access describer.
A day looks like
- 1You watch something six times and write about ninety words for a two-minute scene.
- 2You measure the gap, in seconds, and cut the description to fit it rather than talking over the drama.
- 3You decide what matters: the expression, the object, or the fact that somebody else has entered the room.
- 4You describe rather than interpret — 'she looks away' rather than 'she is upset'.
Hardest part
You cannot say everything and the gap will not get longer. Choosing the one detail that lets somebody follow the story, in three seconds, is the entire craft — and the temptation is always to explain rather than describe.
Best part
A blind audience member laughing at exactly the right moment, because you got the timing and the word right.
How you actually become a audio describer
- At schoolStrong writing, a clear voice and a genuine interest in access.
- TrainingAudio description training courses; broadcasters and theatres run their own standards.
- How longMonths of training, and a long time to get good at compression.
- Your first jobFreelance describer on short-form or theatre work.
Frequently asked questions
- What is audio description?
- A spoken track describing visual information — actions, expressions, scene changes, on-screen text — fitted into gaps in the dialogue, so that blind and partially sighted audiences can follow what is happening.
- Why not just describe everything?
- Because there is no room, and because covering the soundtrack removes something the audience already has. Good description is a series of choices about which single detail makes the next moment comprehensible.
- Why describe rather than interpret?
- Because interpretation takes the audience's own reading away from them. Saying 'she looks away' lets a listener conclude what a sighted viewer would; saying 'she is heartbroken' decides it for them.
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