MindsEye’s own Magan Harms recently lent her Audio Describing talents to the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Games! Most of Magan’s work focused on the sled hockey events, but she also provided descriptions for the biathlon, cross-country skiing, wheelchair curling, as well as alpine skiing.
Skilled at describing live events such as theater, describing for the Paralympic Games was a fresh challenge for Magan. As she explains, “It was very different from what I’m used to. I’m not used to having on-the-fly instructions spoken into my ear and jumping from sport to sport. I’m used to making my own decisions and using my own judgment about what to say or not say– so that was quite an adjustment.”
There were a few Paralympic moments that stood out to Magan. The biggest was watching Oksana Masters become the most decorated U.S. Winter Paralympian of all time by winning seven – yes, seven! – medals at the games bringing her personal total medal count to 14 (17 if you count her three Summer Paralympic meals). “Every time she talked to her mom after winning a medal, it was like the first time they’d spoken in months. It was very touching,” said Magan.
Magan also enjoyed watching St. Louis’ own Josh Pauls represent the U.S. in sled hockey and an incredibly sweet moment when blind alpine skier Carina Edlinger gave her guide dog, Riley, his very own medal after he helped her win gold in the women’s cross-country skiing sprint event.
At the end of the day, Magan is excited that more and more broadcasts are including Audio Description and she’s grateful to be a part of it. “I think it’s definitely a step forward for accessibility. It was very educational for me and I got to learn a lot about the studio process.”
Audio description for the Paralympic Games was provided by Descriptive Video Works for NBC and USA Network.
Post author: Adam Clark, MindsEye Administrative Assistant