Classic TV Movie “…And Your Name Is Jonah”

Bernard Bragg coached deaf nine-year-old Jeffrey Bravin in the title role

At the ACC ASL Lab, ASL students are required watching the movie “…And Your Name Is Jonah” for their deaf culture report.  I saw the students weeping after watching the movie. That is where I work at.  I strongly recommend anyone who doesn’t know about the deaf culture to watch this movie.  I admit that I do not watch this movie because it was not provided the closed captioning.

Release Date: January 28, 1979

Cast: James Woods, Sally Struthers, Titos Vandis, Penny Santon

Director: Richard Michaels

Writer: Michael Bortman

Studio: CBS-TV Production

Genre: Drama

Runtime: 1:34:58

Synopsis: Jonah (Jeffrey Bravin) is a lonely deaf child who has been misdiagnosed as retarded.  Jonah’s mother (Sally Struthers) and father (James Woods) struggle to establish communication from their withdrawn son.  As the specialists shake their heads and cluck their tongues, Jonah’s parents finally manage to teach the child sign language, thereby opening up his world both intellectually and emotionally.  And Your Name is Jonah is proof enough that Sally Struthers once had potential for greatness, and confirmation that James Woods was on the right artistic track as early as 1979.

Modern-Day Silent Film “Universal Signs”

Official Site: http://hnhinc.com/us/

DVD Release Date: September 21, 2009

Cast: Anthony Natale, Sabrina Lloyd, Lupe Ontiveros, Margot Kidder, Robert Picardo, Aimee Garcia, Robert DeMayo

Director: Ann Calamia

Producers: Ann Calamia, Catherine Miller, Lupe Ontiveros

Screenwriter: Ann Calamia

Studio: Universal Signs Productions LLC

Genre: Drama

Language: American Sign Language, Captioned for the hearing

Synopsis: After the death of his fiancée’s daughter while in his care, a deaf man shuts himself off from the world. Haunted by memories, it is only through new friendship that he can learn to forgive, love, and reconnect.

Short Thriller Detective Film “The Blue Box”

Official Site: www.remfilms.com

DVD Release Date: 2008

Cast: Christina Hamilton, Kevin Pickett, Katie Leclerc, D. Lance Pickett, Sam Harris, Rachel Terry

Director: D. Lance Pickett

Producers: D. Lance Pickett, Cindy Andersen

Screenwriters: Sean Benson, D. Lance Pickett

Studio: REM FILMS LLC.

Genre: Thriller

Language: American Sign Language, Captioned for the hearing

MPAA Rating: PC-13

Runtime: 21 min

Synopsis: Lisa (Christina Hamilton) finds herself being charged with the murder of her husband (Sam Harris). The problem: Lisa doesn’t remember becoming a widow. A detective (Lance Pickett),, doctor (Kevin Pickett), and an interpreter (Katie Leclerc) attempt to help Lisa restore her memory of her husband’s death and the Blue Box, which may contain the key to proving her innocence. The suspense of her journey of recollection may endanger her life.

Four Deaf Yorkshiremen and the Missing Wife

Cast: John Smith, Ilan Dwek, Matthew Kirby, Jonathan Reid

Director: Charlie Swinbourne

Producer: Charlie Swinbourne

Screenwriter: Charlie Swinbourne

Studio: Remark Production

Genre: Comedy

Language: British Sign Language, with English subtitles

MPAA Rating: Not Rated

Synopsis: This is the brand-new sequel to the first “Four Deaf Yorkshiremen” film – and this time it’s not their families these four grumpy deaf men are arguing over, but the women they’ve loved and lost!

The stories include a first kiss behind a deaf club that goes horribly wrong, a honeymoon that turns to tragedy, and a wedding rudely interrupted…

Movie Night: The Deaf Family @ Austin Community College

Movie Night: The Deaf Family

Austin Community College
Eastview Campus (EVC)
3401 Webberville Rd.
Austin, Texas 78702

Auditorium: Room 8500 (Bldg. 8000)
Date: Friday, Sept. 19, 2008
Time: 7:00pm

Email: aslterp@austincc.edu
Voice: 512.223.3205

Hosted by ASL Friends United (ASL & Interpreting Student Organization), Austin Community College

Free Event is Proudly Sponsored by HOVRS, Purple

Cast: Megg Rose, Andrew Rubin, Sean Berdy, Bejo Goodridge

Director: Chad W. Taylor

Producer: Chad W. Taylor, Wayne Betts, Jr.

Screenwriter: DJ Kurs

Studio: Mösdeux

Genre: Comedy

Language: American Sign Language, with English subtitles

MPAA Rating: PG

Synopsis: Anything that could go wrong inside “The Deaf Family” will go wrong! This light-hearted family sitcom about a dysfunctional deaf family going through trials and tribulations as each characters experiments with something new, only to realize that by being deaf and accepting one’s identity as a deaf person, they will be accepted by everyone (including hearing people).

Here is the official trailer for the upcoming movie, “The Deaf Family.”

Film entitled: Four Deaf Yorkshiremen

I enjoyed watching this film because it is very funny. The film is about deaf men who challenge each other to tell their worst stories. I never thought of the ending, and I laughed out loud at the ending. I like the ending. The plot is excellent. This short film is 10 minutes long.

I bought the special edition DVD “Four Deaf Yorkshiremen” includes extra features, and I also got the two glossy photos of the “Four Deaf Yorkshiremen.”

You can buy the DVD, and see “Four Deaf Yorkshiremen” in full quality, just contact Charlie Swinbourne at director.charlie@googlemail.com for more information! The DVD sale is raising money for the second film “The Return of the Four Deaf Yorkshiremen.”

I’m looking forward to watch the second film.

Cast: John Smith, Ilan Dwek, Matthew Kirby, Jonathan Reid

Director: Charlie Swinbourne

Producer: Charlie Swinbourne

Screenwriter: Charlie Swinbourne

Studio: Remark Production

Genre: Comedy

Language: British Sign Language, with English subtitles

MPAA Rating: Not Rated

Synopsis: How hard was growing up deaf? In this short film, four old deaf men try to tell the worst story about their childhood – and there’s ten pounds on the table for the ‘winner!’

The film was inspired by the classic “Four Yorkshiremen” sketch made famous by Monty Python, but with a new script for a deaf cast.

Coming Out as a Deaf Person

This film is hilarious because in the first 30 seconds it looks like he’s about to come out as gay.  The parallels between being Deaf and being gay are so similar.  There are many parents don’t want to accept that their child is gay and there are many parents who do not want to accept that their child is Deaf.  This short film is 6 1/2 minutes long.  The plot is brilliant.

Cast: David Hay, Debbie Norman, Ilan Dwek

Director: Louis Neethling

Producer: Alison Lynch

Screenwriter: Charlie Swinbourne

Studio: AC2.com Productions Ltd

Genre: Comedy

Language: British Sign Language and English, with English subtitles

MPAA Rating: Not Rated

Synopsis: Quirky comedy about deaf identity – a deaf teenager reveals a personal secret to his hearing mother. Why does he have ‘dirty’ magazines and videos hidden in his room? What will his father say when he finds out? The unexpected revelations question whether family life will ever be the same again.

Source: Mutt and Jeff Pictures