Pathway to a wider audience: How can content be more accessible?

The recent animated movie "KPop Demon Hunters" has been sweeping the hearts of many viewers, but how can those with visual impairments also enjoy the movie?

Ahn Sung-jin tells us how the efforts of transitioning non-verbal elements of content to verbal components can help.

"Jinwoo, dressed in a gat and traditional attire, stands with a stern expression. A tiger rubs its face against Jinwoo's arm."

This is a scene from the renowned Netflix film "KPop Demon Hunters."

The Korean Community Media Foundation provided a screening of this popular movie with attached audio descriptions.

"One of our major goals is to create no discrimination between disabled and non disabled audiences in media, so we work on screening accessible movies."

For most of us, watching a movie means sitting back and soaking in the visuals.

But we might be taking this for granted.

Veteran Seo Sooyeon redefines how stories are told and experienced.

She started the Korea Content Accessibility Research Center, and for 23 years, she's been working on expressing non-verbal elements of content into spoken aspects.

"To be honest, this was all very unfamiliar to me because no one had done it before. I had never thought that people with visual impairments couldn't watch TV, but I realized there are movements, actions, and nuances that they miss entirely."

Her work involves adding descriptions of subtle expressions and action sequences in between the spoken lines, creating a fuller cinematic experience for the visually impaired.

"The point of view shifts from the empty bowl to the shop owner."

The owner is adding fish cakes on the skewers."

For Seo, effective audio descriptions aren't about matching visuals word-for-word, but rather producing context, clarity, and flow.

But she says what's often more important yet neglected is the language used that creates further division.

"There shouldn't be hard lines drawn between people with and without disabilities because anyone can become visually impaired. So we often frame accessibility as something only for people with disabilities, but it really starts with understanding others."

The push for accessible content is gaining ground, but there's still a long way to go.

With efforts from people like Seo, moments that can be lost in darkness can enhance a powerful scene for everyone.

Ahn Sung-jin, Arirang News.