Sign Sync: BSL Animation Workshop

We had a great time with participants for Derby SignFest at our Sign Sync Animation Workshop here at QUAD on 14th of September. Participants were invited to learn some basic sign language (BSL), including finger spelling and greetings, to create 2D stop motion digital animations. 

The afternoon was great fun and participants shared a wide variety of experiences with sign language and deaf culture, with support by artist Pierce Starre, who himself is a child of deaf adults (CODA). The animations created we diverse in their approaches and use of BSL. 

The workshop was part of the wider Derby SignFest activities, which delivered a fantastic programme for hearing and deaf audiences across the city and we at QUAD are immensely proud to be part of this celebration. QUAD has is driven to improve our accessibility with dead audiences and now have daily subtitled film screenings, as well as staff trained in basic BSL. 

QUAD Digital Participation Curator John Whall said “It was such a great experience to be a part of. The animations, using the same starting point, we so different and expressive. I’m really keen to learn from this activity on how we can engage with deaf audiences in future”.