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British Deaf Association – premiere lost film footage. Groundbreaking Documentary at GFT

Power in Our Hands

Glasgow Film Theatre on Tuesday 22nd March, 20166pm

Power in Our Hands is a landmark documentary containing newly digitised archive footage, available to the public for the first time, exploring the secret history and heritage of the Deaf community in the UK.

The film is screening at Glasgow Film Theatre on Tuesday 22nd March, 6pm as part of Visible Cinema, GFT’s monthly Film Club for deaf and hard of hearing audiences. Following the screening, representatives from the British Deaf Association will take part in a special Q&A session with the audience, allowing further discussion of issues raised by the film and the experiences of Deaf people in the UK – both past and present.

GFT are also delighted to be hosting a free secondary school screening of Power in Our Hands for deaf and hard of hearing pupils and their families on Tuesday 22 March, 10.15am.

The Idea for the Film 

The idea for the film began in 2004 when, in an exciting twist of fate, a group of builders accidentally stumbled across the long-lost film from the BDA, dating back to the 1930s. The new digitised footage was then carefully compiled into an uplifting 70 minute documentary.

Combining social history and archive film with contemporary interviews, and released in the 125th anniversary year of the British Deaf Association (BDA), Power in Our Hands explores the recognition of British Sign Language (BSL) and Deaf rights in the UK.

It is essential viewing for a number of audiences, including those interested in political activism and social and civil rights developments; audiences of archive film and Deaf people, their family members and friends.

At the heart of the Deaf world is British Sign Language (BSL), the first language of many Deaf people. The Deaf community does not see deafness as a disability; instead positioning itself as a significant cultural and linguistic group with a rich and exciting history stretching back hundreds of years and with the word ‘Deaf’ (with a capitalised ‘D’) an expression of cultural identity.

Rather than focusing on medical definitions of hearing loss, Power in Our Hands presents Deaf people as an active and resilient community that has long campaigned for its language to be recognised. From the social scenes of the 1930s, to the 2000 march supporting BSL recognition, this documentary will give people a glimpse into Deaf culture that is mostly hidden from the hearing world.    

Dr Terry Riley OBE, Chair of the British Deaf Association said:

‘To see this old film footage is an emotional occasion for me. For many years, I never really knew or saw my language on screen. So to be able to sit down and see BSL on a par with any other language is a wonderful thing. To watch a bygone era – one I thought was lost forever to the world is just magical. Clips like the old missionaries, with fingers dancing up and down like lightening and Deaf people really enjoying life, dancing in the street – what joyous years they were. This film will give the Deaf community a feeling of history and sense of pride knowing BSL has been around for hundreds of years.’

www.bda.org.uk/

www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre

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