07/22/2026
The ACB, Audio Description, and the ADP logos
July 22, 2026
REGISTER NOW AT: https://form-renderer-app.donorperfect.io/give/american-council-of-the-blind/2026-ad-institute
Limited slots available!
(Note: You’ll be asked to create a login for the ACB database and continue to register for the Institute.)
The American Council of the Blind's
Audio Description Project
announces its twenty-eighth
AUDIO DESCRIPTION INSTITUTE
September 14-18, 2026
(Monday through Friday)
1:00 pm - 5:00 pm Eastern each day
- ALL VIRTUAL -
Audio Description (AD) makes visual images accessible for people who are blind or have low vision. Using words that are succinct, vivid, and imaginative, media describers convey the visual image from television and film that is not fully accessible to a significant segment of the population (more than 32 million Americans experience significant vision loss).
The implementation of the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act has spawned a virtual cottage industry for the development of description for broadcast television.
BE A PART OF IT!
Who Should Attend
Anyone interested in:
- working as freelance description writers for broadcast television
- working as a describer in a
local performing arts program
- working as a describer for
museum exhibitions
and
- experienced audio describers desiring an updated refresher course.
NOTE: freelance writers for broadcast television projects can often be based anywhere in the world--computer equipment capable of accommodating high-speed downloads is a must.
Topics Include--
1) audio description history and theory
2) the "Four Fundamentals of Audio Description" ©
3) active seeing/visual literacy-developing skills in concentration and observation
4) the art of "editing" what you see
5) vivid language: "The Visual Made Verbal"™
6) "Speak the speech, I pray you"--using the spoken word to make meaning
Program
- Five afternoons of intensive, interactive training
- Each registrant will receive a PDF copy of Dr. Joel Snyder's ACB-published The Visual Made Verbal: A Comprehensive Training Manual and Guide to the History and Applications of Audio Description.
The interactive sessions (limited use of lecture, questions/discussion throughout, generous use of media, and individual and group writing exercises) are designed to provide immediate feedback and "give and take," allowing for adaptation according to a sense of participants' grasp of the material. In addition, experienced users of description are a part of the Institute's faculty, providing an important perspective throughout the sessions.
This Institute will begin at 1:00 pm Eastern on Monday, September 14, 2026 and conclude
at 5:00 pm on Friday, September 18, 2026.
(detailed agenda below).
Participation is strictly limited. The Institute will issue ACB-sponsored certificates to all successful participants confirming completion of
this professional description training
program.
Institute Director/Staff
Joel Snyder, Ph.D.-- One of the first audio describers, Dr. Snyder began describing theater events and media in 1981; he is the President of
Audio Description Associates, LLC with clients world-wide (see www.audiodescribe.com for more information) and the Founding Director Emeritus of ACB's Audio Description Project (https://adp.acb.org) an initiative he founded with ACB in 2009. For six years, he led a staff that produced description for nationally broadcast films and network series including "Sesame Street" broadcasts and DVDs. Snyder has worked with description and trained describers in more than 40 states and in over 60 countries, most recently as a Fulbright Specialist in Greece, Malta, and Ukraine.
Faculty
Joyce Adams—Joyce has been producing/writing AD scripts for media and museum tours since 2002. She supervised AD script writers for the Described Media program at the National Captioning Institute, is the author of audio described tours for National Park Service visitor centers throughout the U.S. and regularly pens description for promotional videos produced by Microsoft. Most recently, Joyce wrote the audio description scripts for several episodes of FROM, dubbed by some viewers as "the creepiest show on TV." Both Ms. Adams and Dr. Snyder serve on the ACVREP Subject Matter Expert Committee developing a certification program
for audio describers.
Elisa Jansen—Elisa is a graduate of the ADP Audio Description Institute. She has written audio description for network and Internet broadcast, such as NBC, CBS, Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix—and for the classic film, Citizen Kane. Her work on promotional content includes Walmart, Kimberly-Clark, and thousands of Microsoft videos. Elisa has provided audio description for museum tours and exhibits, including the Smithsonian, the Nevada State Museum in Las Vegas, and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum.
In addition, audio description consumer consultants (audio description enthusiasts who are blind or have low vision) will offer their perspectives:
Susan Glass--Susan Glass is a free lance writer and poet whose chapbook The Wild Language of Deer, was recently released by Slate Roof Press. A retired English professor from San Jose State University and West Valley Community College, Susan taught English Composition, American Multicultural Literature, Creative Writing, and interdisciplinary courses with a Disability Studies emphasis. An active member of the American Council of the Blind since 2013, she advocates passionately for audio description, especially in live venues such as theaters, museums, and parks. She loves hiking with her guide dog Omni and riding her horse Travis.
Tristan Snyder--Tristan Snyder is a totally blind, multi- award-winning voice-actor and proud member of SAG-AFTRA. He has been in the entertainment industry for over twenty years. He was the chief engineer for Audio Eyes, (an audio description production company.) He currently runs a small audio production company, Ear2Ear Sound, where he and his team create audio description for television, film, educational media and illustrated books. He has narrated, edited and mixed thousands of hours of audio description for network television, streaming services, cinema, DVD’s, and independent films. He advocates for and practices the hiring and inclusion of blind and visually impaired talent in the audio production industry.
Institute registration is $575.
(registration is limited)
Registration will close at 5:00 pm EDT on Tuesday, September 8, 2026 and the invitation to attend the Institute will be emailed later that week. Your invitation to attend the Institute (along with the ZOOM link to the sessions) will be sent to the email address provided on the form.
NOTE: Two full scholarships are available; priority will be given to people with disabilities. To be considered for a scholarship, please send an email outlining how and why you are a strong candidate and include your reason for needing financial assistance at this time. Please send an email requesting consideration to:
[email protected]
by August 28, 2026. The scholarship awardees will be notified by September 4, 2026.
HERE'S WHAT PREVIOUS ADI PARTICIPANTS
HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THE
AUDIO DESCRIPTION INSTITUTE:
“Having completed your AD course, I would like to compliment you on the excellent contents and wonderful delivery of the program.
“The days ended at 23.00 hrs my time but I did not lose concentration, not even for one minute, and felt energized throughout. Your pleasant speaking voice and the variation of topics, examples and perspectives made it a course I will always remember.
“I would also like to add that I appreciate your generosity and patience. Your generosity regarding your extensive sharing of knowledge, documents, links, and personal experiences in the field of AD. Your patience was commendable when you dealt with so many questions during the wrap-up of the course as many pertained to topics you had dealt with proficiently in earlier modules. I could not agree more with your views on objectivity and when to refer to race.
“I found you through a contact at the European Blind Union and I am delighted I was able to be a participant last week. I delivered an online workshop to the executive women of the EBU last year. All participants from 10 countries were blind and such resilient people. I discovered then that blind or partially sighted people in business settings develop skills that enable them to meet higher standards than sighted people regarding their preparation, choice of words, the timing of their response and the ability to listen between the lines. They need to be more strategic in meetings, build a strong identity and reputation for their knowledge and skills, and master different ways to increase their influence and charisma. I came to the realization then that sighted people in business would benefit greatly if they were to enhance their listening skills and apply approaches that influential blind executives have learned to master.
“A similar realization came to me during your AD course. Being a good audio describer does not only serve to increase valuable accessibility for those who cannot see performances, video clips and movies; the qualities we require for effective audio description are the skills that would make people far better communicators even when not performing audio description.
“I am looking forward to putting all my new knowledge into practice. I did not ask questions during the final session as there were so many hands lined up, but I knew there would have been an opportunity to do so had I had any unanswered questions.
“I would also like to thank Tristan and Susan for their amazing contributions. Tristan’s presentation was excellent. Also thanks to Elisa and Joyce for all their valuable input during the group sessions. I will send them a separate note.
“With best wishes to you for continued remarkable success!”
“Thank you for a great week in the Audio Description training. I learned so much, was very inspired and I’m ready to be a part of this incredibly creative and dedicated group!
“I’m looking forward to diving into your book. I’ve had my eye on it for awhile and am very happy to now have it on my computer.”
“Thanks so much for a great class! I really learned a lot.”
“Thank you for a wonderful week! I really learned so much and had a great time. I will definitely stay in touch.”
“A terrific week - thank you! And thank you for your book and resources; I have read them all and they have already made a terrific impact.
“With Boise State University's upcoming production of Macbeth, we are going to be the first theater company in Boise (and we think in Idaho) to provide live AD.
“I am connected to the Idaho Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired who will be our consultants - for years they have wanted to bring live AD to Boise cultural events; I have the energy and in partnership we will get it done.
“Macbeth will be a learning experience for everyone involved but we are all very excited and will do our best.”
“Again - THANK YOU!! I have subscribed to the ADI project and look forward to staying in touch.”
“I just wanted to write a quick note to say thank you for such an inspiring and fun week with ADI. I feel very passionate about the subject and look forward to building a portfolio of work as well as seeing where inclusive design can become a part of my own artistic practice.
“Thanks again for your generosity.”
“Thank you again for an eye-opening and incredibly educational experience last week. Learning about AD was wonderful and now that I have a solid foundation to start, I'll be diving in further. Hopefully our paths will cross again...until next time...”
REGISTER NOW AT: https://form-renderer-app.donorperfect.io/give/american-council-of-the-blind/2026-ad-institute
(Note: You’ll be asked to create a login for the ACB database and continue to register for the Institute.)
The agenda for the September 2026 VIRTUAL Audio Description Institute can be found below.
For questions or additional information, contact
JOEL SNYDER, PhD
Founding Director Emeritus,
Audio Description Project of the
American Council of the Blind
[email protected]
For more information about audio description, please visit:
https://adp.acb.org
President, Audio Description Associates, LLC
"The Visual Made Verbal" ™
™ ADA logo--an eye within an ear
6502 Westmoreland Avenue, Takoma Park, MD 20912
[email protected] -- 301 920-0218
www.audiodescribe.com
AGENDA
September 2026 ACB-Audio Description Project
VIRTUAL AUDIO DESCRIPTION INSTITUTE
September 14-18, 2026
each day - 1:00 pm-5:00 pm Eastern
DAY I - Monday, September 14, 2026
1:00 pm-3:00 pm: Opening Workshop
- The visually impaired user
- Audio description history and theory
- Overview of fundamentals of audio description
Concentration/observation
Editing what you see
Language
Vocal skills: speech and oral interpretation fundamentals
- Q and A throughout -
3:00 pm - 3:15 pm: break
3:15 pm-5:00 pm: Opening Workshop (continued)
- Viewing / analysis of audio described excerpts
Day 2 - Tuesday, September 15, 2026
1:00 pm-2:00 pm:
Opening Workshop (conclusion)
2:00 pm-3:00 pm:
- Special session on Voicing AD with
Tris Snyder
3:00 pm - 3:15 pm: break
3:15 pm-5:00 pm:
- Viewing / analysis of audio described excerpts
Day 3 - Wednesday, September 16, 2026
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm:
- Audio Description practicum—Individual description sessions with selected video scenes
3:00 pm - 3:15 pm: break
3:15 pm - 5:00 pm:
- Audio Description practicum—Individual description sessions with selected video scenes
Day 4 - Thursday, September 17, 2026
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm:
- Audio Description practicum—Individual description sessions with selected video scenes
3:00 pm - 3:15 pm: break
3:15 pm - 5:00 pm:
- Audio Description practicum—Individual description sessions with selected video scenes
Day 5 - Friday, September 18, 2026
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm:
- Audio Description practicum—Individual description sessions with selected video scenes
3:00 pm - 3:15 pm: break
3:15 pm - 5:00 pm:
- Audio Description in the U.S. and around the world
- The Mechanics of Audio Description
- Audio Description Writing Software
- Audio Description Producers
- How to Get Work as a Describer
- Review / Discussion
Graduation!
Audio Description provides access to the visual elements – action, costumes, settings, gestures, facial expressions and other visually engaging images – of television/film, museum exhibitions, theater and a variety of events. All people can appreciate the added detail and vivid highlights made ...
