From:	kate nelson 
Sent:	Friday, 4 December 2009 11:39 AM
To:	disabdis
Cc:	rachael ellis; tony.nicholas@gmail.com
Subject:	Application Exemption under DDA Section 55

Dear Human Rights Commission

Re: Application Exemption under DDA Section 55:
Cinema Captioning and Audio Description

Deaf Australia (NSW) objects to the application exemption by Hoyts,
Greater Union, Village and Reading Cinemas.

We see no reason why they cannot continue with the work they propose
without an exemption. This work has been discussed in many
negotiations over the years and it is time they acted on it without
needing an exemption. If the community is aware of their work and if
they stick to their timetable then they will be understanding of any
issues that come up. The community needs a committtment from the group
of cinemas. We feel that the cinemas do not take seriously the
deaf/hearing impaired consumer group and they do not value as as
consumers and use the issues with demand as an excuse for this. The
constant issues with quality control that we have seen our members
face imply a lack of regard for the deaf/hearing impaired consumer
group.

We note that there are things missing in their proposal that have been
brought up in discussions over the years such as extra venues to be
with captions and audio descriptiosn and also the provision of audio
descriptions themselves. There is no mention of this in their
proposal.

We also note that at Point 4 of the submission - review, this is not
needed as we are already well aware of what will be uncovered in the
review. The issues have already been raised previously and need to be
mentioned in their proposal. Changes to session times, lack of
appropriate marketing and promotion, specific locations to be made
accessible as already requested in previous complaints, and new
buildings to be build accessible without having to retro fit
everything. These items need to be mentioned in the review at point 4
as needing to be addressed specifically.


Kate Nelson
Board Member
Deaf Australia (NSW)