JP SAXE - IF THE WORLD WAS ENDING (ASL VIDEO) FT. JULIA MICHAELS

Making this video was an unbelievable learning experience. We wanted to make a video that really worked for the deaf community - something that they would be proud of, as a representation of ASL communication. To achieve this goal, we decided to partner with LC Interpreting Services, who helped us come up with a plan of execution. With LCIS’s help, we assembled a team of four: two actors (Diana Abayeva and Adam Pagan), an ASL Coach (John McGinty), and an ASL interpreter (Greyson Van Pelt). During pre production we learned a lot about ASL and how it’s communicated. The initial concept for the video included more cuts and angles, but we learned that being able to see everything the speaker is doing is critical to ASL. It’s not just hands. We also learned that there are many different ASL interpretations of an english word/concept. John McGinty was our ASL expert on set. He was a magician, and was able to translate JP and Julia’s lyrics so that it was ASL that many generations could understand, not just one. Sometimes in the video, you’ll see Diana and Adam make different signs, but they are still saying the same thing. It’s similar to having an accent, or expressing tone. Communicating with Adam and Diana using Greyson as an interpreter was a joy. They did an amazing job and gave every take their all. If there’s one thing making this video taught me, it’s that ASL is awesome. It is incredibly beautiful in both its aesthetics and its purpose: to connect with one another.