Instructions to Hearing Persons Desiring a Deaf Man

This short animated film is based on a poem of the same name by Deaf poet Raymond Luczak. Both the film and the original poem explore Deafness as a culture, perceptions of difference, and the sexual frustration that results from obstructed communication. Without any sort of spoken word, the film's only use of language is in American Sign Language, left untranslated. In the medium of animation, the narrative of the poem is overpowered by the grittiness of the film's texture. Different media (such as paint, digital animation, and tea leaves) reflect changing perspectives and the complexity of Deaf-Hearing interactions. The project aims to draw parallels between the visual languages of Sign and animation while simultaneously reconsidering the current substandard role of disability in film and media.