Last time I discussed moviegoing as a deaf patron, I rattled off the basics about the current state of affairs. Today, there are quite a few options compared with twenty years ago, but there are still some of the same problems: limited show times, limited venues, and a limited number of films prepared for captioned showings, in whatever format.

On the legal front, the move to change this state of affairs has gone through the courts, in places such as Oregon, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. The lawsuit in New Jersey, filed by the state Attorney General against movie companies such as Regal, resulted in a mixed verdict– in the first instance, the companies settled by installing RWC, while in the case against Regal, Regal decided to implement DTS-CSS technology.

In all these cases, the danger is that theater owners will subscribe solely to one technology– usually RWC, while most Deaf people I know prefer captioning, either through OC or DTS. This is what happened in the D.C. settlement, with AMC and Loew’s Theatres. Luckily, in New Jersey, the settlements included both RWC and DTS. Future challenges depend on the circumstances of each individual case and the vagaries of the court system, including the disposition of the judges involved.

While lawsuits have occurred and I’m sure will continue as people challenge the theater owners to provide equal access, that’s the stick part of solving the problem. Too many times nothing is done until a lawsuit– then BAM! The lawyers scurry out and the process drags on. But sometimes it helps to work within the system for a while, using the carrot part of the approach.

But the carrot depends on YOU. This doesn’t mean you have to (nor should you!) attend each and every movie that’s ever captioned. As consumers, we retain the right just like anyone else to decide which films to attend. But until captioning is a given, we will continue to have to advocate. One way to do this is to write a letter (you can e-mail, but an old-fashioned letter is generally better) to theater managers and corporate brass. Even better, direct a letter to one, and cc to the rest. Don’t just fire off a missive to complain either; sometimes a little honey goes a long way too. If there’s something you liked, or if a theater chain has just started offering captioned movies in your area, WRITE. Tell them how happy you are they are offering captioned movies, that you are looking forward to attending, and that you hope that the times and offerings will expand as soon as possible.

Being an advocate doesn’t mean spending a lot of time or energy, but it does mean taking the time every once in a while to pick up your pen or sit down at the keyboard and bang out a letter. It doesn’t have to be long either; just a way to either suggest a change, make a complaint, or give a positive review. For example, I noticed that Regal here in the Los Angeles area started offering OC showings at their theater in Marina Del Rey, which is a lot closer to me than the old locales at Burbank and Anaheim. But after a few weeks, I noticed they hadn’t been showing anything for a couple of weeks. I sent off a polite e-mail saying that I enjoyed attending movies at that particular theater, that I looked every week for the new movies that would be playing, and I was hoping that they had not decided to stop offering captioned films.

Within a day, I received a response from a regional manager, assuring me that they would continue to offer captioned movies. Since then, they’ve had a movie every week, and usually for a week at a time, at different times, almost akin to how RWC movies are offered. A far cry from just a one-time showing of a film!

That doesn’t mean I don’t complain, though; when I went to see a movie with fellow blogger and friend Tayler Mayer, we looked forward to seeing a first-run film a short walk from our respective homes. Unfortunately, the DTS equipment wasn’t working that day for whatever reason, and we ended up leaving, our time spent for nothing. As Tayler noted, he wasn’t happy; but while he talked with the manager about our general frustrations (there were other deaf people there too, for the same movie), I simply stood there in the middle of the lobby, pager at the ready, and fired off a complaint letter to the regional manager in charge of captioning. Within 48 hours, I had letters from another general manager apologizing for the matter. Now, up and down the chain from the actual theater’s manager to the bureaucrats, everyone was aware that A) there WERE deaf viewers, B) we wanted captioning provided and C) they had better damn well make sure it all works next time!

The ticket sales person and the ticket taker aren’t going to care if you’re deaf or not; but the manager and his or her superiors certainly will. People aren’t mind readers though, so although sometimes it’s a pain to have to go out and educate and advocate, we need to make sure we’re visible at every stage of the game.

So even though working our way through the courts is great, it’s exciting, and it may force long-term changes, it’s also up to us to work in tandem with our lawyers and legal advocates. While they carry a legal stick, we offer the carrot of our patronage. In places like DC, there are plenty of theaters and captioning options to choose from, but this is not the case everywhere. Even where there’s a fairly broad selection, it’s a pain if the movie you want to see is in Silver Spring, but you live in Fairfax, or if the flick you’re dying to check out is in Burbank, but you live in El Segundo. Hearing folks can just walk down the street to the local bijou– we often have to drive or take public transportation. So write to theaters, ask them to bring captioned films to your local theater. Once they do, write and thank them, and keep encouraging them. If there are problems, write, call, or e-mail and let them know.

Mmm… now I’m in the mood to watch something. Wonder if there’s any popcorn left in the cupboard?