DESCRIPTIVE VIDEO WORKS - Key Persons
Totally blind almost since birth, Brandon refers to himself primarily as an accessibility consultant, but he is also a blogger, podcaster, streamer, youtuber, voice actor, and most recently, audio description narrator. He has assisted in making AAA titles like The Last of Us Part 2 fully accessible to blind players everywhere. Brandon is on the front lines of blind accessibility in gaming and is confident this is only the beginning.
Job Titles:
- International Operations Manager
As a speaker of English, French, Brazilian Portuguese, and Spanish, Chana has extensive experience in localization, having managed dubbing and subtitling of film, TV, and streaming content for major Hollywood studios and service providers. As a woman, immigrant, and person with multi-racial and ethnic identities, Chana is passionate about equality of access to information, education, culture and entertainment.
Job Titles:
- Advisory Council
- Fellow from Brooklyn
A 2018-2019 Data & Society Fellow from Brooklyn, Chancey is a writer, organizer, and advocate that aims to advance public understanding and best practices in accessible technology.
Job Titles:
- Client Services Assistant
As a vocal and tireless advocate for people who are blind and visually-impaired, Diane founded Descriptive Video Works in 2003 with the objectives of breaking new ground and removing old barriers to make television, film and other visual media accessible to blind and visually-impaired viewers. Today, her company is recognized as the gold standard of quality in audio description and is known internationally.
Job Titles:
- Advisory Council
- Consultant
Dr. Amy Kavanagh is a disability consultant, activist and campaigner who uses social media to share her lived experience navigating the world as a blind Londoner alongside her Guide Dog. Amy is committed to celebrating disability, mobility aids and encouraging others to learn about the social model of disability.
Empish J. Thomas, a member of Descriptive Video Works' advisory council and Disability Consultant writes about her first experience with Audio Description, and what having AD means to her experience with media now. My first foray with an audio described movie was a VHS cassette tape. Remember those? The talking… Continue Reading Audio Description Enhances My Life and Provides Equal Access
Juan Alcazar is a legally blind filmmaker and content creator. In 2017 he began his disability journey on YouTube after openly discussing his sight loss on his channel. He is now an advocate for accessibility and hopes to spread the word about disability and blindness through the medium of film and video.
Job Titles:
- Technical Services Manager
Kent is a dedicated and innovative professional with a long-standing commitment to the success of DVW, and a graduate from the Post Production Recording Arts program at The Art Institute. Armed with a passion for sound and a drive for excellence, he joined DVW in 2004, marking the start of a remarkable career spanning nearly two decades. Kent has continually pushed the boundaries of technical excellence and creativity in the field of audio production and audio description.
Kimberly is a writer and communications expert who has written for Lonely Planet, Disney, ABCmouse.com, Nickelodeon, and Darling Magazine. Her education includes a MA in Creative Writing from the University of London, a BFA from the University of British Columbia, and a certificate in Contextual Theology from St. Mellitus College in London, UK.
Job Titles:
- Creative Services Manager
Laura began recording and mixing for DVW after working for a busy post-production studio in Toronto for 8 years, fresh out of the Radio and Television Arts program at Ryerson University, and is fully immersed in how the different parts of DVW work together to ensure the best possible experience for our audiences.
Melissa fell in love with the art of audio description when an eye injury led her to binging audio described Netflix. Before joining DVW, Melissa managed a coworking space and an organic home delivery service.
Job Titles:
- Project Manager
- Descriptive Video Works' Project Manager
Descriptive Video Works' project manager Nate Schwartz had a unique perspective of the recent Beijing Olympics and Paralympics Winter Games. Nate worked behind the scenes, helping to organize our live describer team and managing details around events and ceremonies, but he had another very different perspective - as the brother …
Job Titles:
- Workflow Manager, Quality & Inclusion
Nefertiti Matos Olivares is a blind bilingual Latina who is deeply committed to ensuring that culture is a shared space for all. As a professional voice talent who specializes in Audio Description Narration with an extensive background in Assistive Technology and museum accessibility, Nefertiti fervently advocates for disability inclusion and passionate about creating culturally competent audio description.
Job Titles:
- Client Services Assistant / Advisory Council
Ramya Amuthan is the Cohost and Producer at Accessible Media Inc's daily Entertainment and Lifestyle show, Kelly and Ramya. Her work involves meeting fascinating people, hearing their stories, and facilitating conversations that bring out the messages people want to tell. Consulting on accessibility and inclusion is something near and dear to Ramya; she brings in her lived experiences, ongoing learnings, and openness to collaboration to many spaces, including digital platforms, in-person events, description creation, artistic expressions, physical activities, and whatever else comes her way.
Prior to joining Descriptive Video Works, Rhys spent twelve years with Technicolor working in London, Los Angeles and Vancouver. He joined DVW for the opportunity to work alongside such a passionate group of technicians and artists, and is dedicated to bringing accessibility to media.
Blinded at a young age, Ross Minor is an accessibility advocate and consultant with a specialty in digital media and video games. He has a Youtube channel where he posts about accessibility and a Twitch where he shows the world how accessibility enriches his gaming experience.
Job Titles:
- Advisory Council
- Founder and Executive Director of Blind Beginnings
Shawn Marsolais is the Founder and Executive Director of Blind Beginnings and a registered clinical counsellor. Growing up with a visual impairment, she was personally impacted by the limited support that was available to families raising children who are blind or partially sighted. Shawn is passionate about supporting children who are blind or partially sighted to reach their full potential.
As an Audio Description Narrator, Thomas has appeared on projects for Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, PBS, and more. He provides consultations for independent filmmakers, film festivals, co-facilitates workshops, and serves as moderator or panelist for discussions on audio description and content accessibility, and his podcast, Reid My Mind Radio, tells the stories of those impacted by all degrees of blindness and disability in general.