LATEST NEWS
APRIL 2013
Our biggest news this month is Broadcast Text International acquiring 100% of IMS shares, and we’re delighted to be part of the BTI family.
In production we created SDH subtitles for Much Ado About Nothing, set for release next month by Kaleidoscope Entertainment. We’ve substituted “bonjour” for “hello” in our office this month, creating English HOH subtitles for French comedy Populaire (Momentum) and providing our re-versioning service for Peccadillo Pictures, working on the English subtitles for French drama Our Children, out in UK cinemas 10th May.
Our translation department has been very busy this month providing voiceover translation for training videos, translation subtitling for marketing campaigns and localisation of feature films. Well done to our team for pulling together in this busy and exciting month!
MARCH 2013
March saw the release of The Spirit of '45, a documentary film by Ken Loach, subtitled and audio described to BFI specifications by IMS. We also provided English subtitles for the hard-of-hearing and audio description for Dans La Maison (In the House) - French thriller starring Kristin Scott Thomas - released by Momentum Pictures 29th March.
In our translation subtitling department we have been busy localising four videos related to sport integrity for SportAccord. The interviews are aimed at raising awareness of the growing match-fixing scourge that threatens the sports world and are the pillars of an E-learning programme developed by SportAccord. We provided translation subtitles in French, German, Spanish, Arabic and Russian, enabling this programme to reach a wider audience. For further information on SportAccord, please visit http://www.sportaccord.com/en.
FEBRUARY 2013
Among the feature films in production this month, we provided audio description and subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing for Safe Haven, romantic drama released by Momentum Pictures. We also created English subtitles for the DVD release of Hooligan; a documentary exploring the culture of football violence.
In other news we provided audio description for a short video on mental wellbeing by the Business Disability Forum - What Are You Keeping Under Your Hat? We also provided ESL subtitles for an Emmy Nominated comedy, but we’re keeping that under our hat for now as this year’s nominees are still top secret!
Our translation department has been busy too, with more minutes of German subtitles than ever for broadcasters ORF, Greek translation and voiceover for Knorr chef videos and multi-language translation subtitling for an iPad app produced by Contagious.
JANUARY 2013
IMS saw in the New Year with plenty of audio describing and HOH subtitling including work on the features Robot & Frank and Safe Haven, both to be released in March 2013 by Momentum Pictures.
As well as subtitling for cinema, we also provided SDH US English captioning for the documentary The Bachelor King, with David Attenborough narrating the story of one penguin on his quest to find a mate and start a family. Find out more
Among our translation subtitling projects we provided English and German translation subtitles for Glocal Films for part of their documentary series Ein Blick (for further info check out the project blog).
DECEMBER 2012
This month we provided an English voiceover track for Disney’s Minnie & You DIY blog. We also worked on Farsi>English subtitles for About Elly, an Iranian drama by Asghar Farhadi, in time for it’s UK DVD release by Axiom Films. Trailer here: http://vimeo.com/56085787
NOVEMBER 2012
Billy Connolly with a moustache to beat all other Movember contenders stars in Dustin Hoffman’s directorial Debut, Quartet. We have been busy making the film accessible in time for its release in January - subtitled and audio described so nobody will miss out on this operatic comedy with a star-studded cast.
OCTOBER 2012
October has seen some exciting projects for IMS. One of our proudest has been subtitling and audio describing Frankenweenie, the latest of Tim Burton’s creations. We also provided subtitles for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing and audio description for Ginger & Rosa, a British drama from Sally Potter starring Elle Fanning and Christina Hendricks.
SEPTEMBER 2012
This month we have provided subtitles and audio description for two exciting releases: Lawless and Hope Springs.
Lawless, Nick Cave’s second Western screenwriting credit, tells the tale of a band of bootlegging brothers in West Virginia who are blighted by both the (crooked) law and rival gangs. An epic drama starring Shia LaBeouf and Tom Hardy. Cinematic release: 7th September.
In Hope Springs, Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones play a middle-aged couple on a marriage counselling retreat. Will they rekindle their passion and compassion for each other? Cinematic release: 14th September.
IMS recommends Your Local Cinema http://www.yourlocalcinema.com for information on audio described and subtitled screenings of these features.
AUGUST 2012
We are currently creating subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing as well as audio description for the feature film Ginger & Rosa – a drama about two teenage girls finding their way in the 1960s - starring Elle Fanning, Christina Hendricks and Annette Bening. Cinematic release: 19th October 2012.
JUNE 2012
We subtitled and audio described Fast Girls. It’s a story that’s definitely not about the Olympics but is about a team of female athletes preparing for the 2011 World Championships in London. Compared favourably with Chariots of Fire by Guardian reviewer Peter Bradshaw and feted as the feel-good hit of the summer.
We are also currently working on translation subtitles in Italian for Women and Children. We have already provided French subtitles for this indie feature film, which went on to win Best Feature at the European Independent Film Festival in Paris, and is now set to be shown at this year’s Salento Festival 2012.
MAY 2012
We provided subtitles and audio description for Ken Loach’s Angels’ Share. Interestingly, we created both English as a Second Language and Deaf & Hard-of-hearing subtitles, as it was (somewhat controversially) thought that viewers at Cannes would be unable to understand the strong Glaswegian dialect.
We also subtitled and audio described Disney’s Beauty and the Beast 3D. The second telling of the tale as old as time has enjoyed great box office success, grossing over $200 million.
On 1 August 2011 IMS is moved onwards and upwards to our new headquarters on the 10th floor of the iconic Centre Point building. Our new address is
10th Floor, Centre Point
103 New Oxford Street
London WC1A 1DD
Tel: + 44 (0)207 440 5400
Fax: + 44 (0)207 440 5410
IMS TO PROVIDE ACCESS SERVICES FOR FREMANTLEMEDIA ENTERPRISES’ DVD TITLES
Independent Media Support (IMS) has today announced that it is to provide subtitling services for a raft of FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) DVD titles.
IMS will supply English subtitles for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers (SDH) for a number of FME’s television series that are being released on DVD, including Hitler’s Bodyguard and children’s programming such as Seven Little Monsters and Backyardigans. This will allow hearing-impaired adults and children to enjoy their favourite shows.
IMS was chosen because of its expertise and understanding in media access services, and has a proven track record of delivery with previous clients including Momentum Pictures, GMTV and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Pete Kalhan, Snr VP, Home Entertainment and Archives, FME, commented, “Making our products accessible to the deaf and hard of hearing community is essential and we’ve brought IMS on board to help us make that happen.”
James Gardner, Sales Director at IMS, says: “Access services for the home entertainment market are an area of constant growth. It’s great to be working with FME on these titles; it really demonstrates our expertise in this field.”
IMS has over 15 years’ experience in providing a range of access and translation services for all media. Since the 1990s, the company has enjoyed long-standing relationships with broadcasters such as Sky and Disney. New services are being developed and added all the time; most recently audio description for DCinema and multi-lingual Flash video players.
IMS DELIVERS SUBTITLES FOR MOMENTUM PICTURES' FIRST BLU-RAY DISC
Independent Media Support (IMS), the UK’s largest independent provider of access services, has produced the subtitles for Momentum Pictures’ Blu-ray release, Never Back Down.
In February 2008, Blu-ray finally became the victor in a battle lasting two years that saw the global entertainment industry divided into two camps: HD-DVD and Blu-ray. Always at the cutting edge of new technologies, IMS rose to the challenge of adapting to this new format by updating its systems and software to deliver English hard-of-hearing subtitles for the Blu-ray release of Never Back Down.
James Gardner, Operations Director at IMS, says: “We’ve enjoyed a relationship with Momentum Pictures for a while, traditionally providing English hard-of-hearing subtitles and audio description tracks for their theatrical and DVD releases. This Blu-ray title is a milestone for both our companies and served to prove IMS’s expertise in what is still a very new technology.”
Ken McMahon, Senior Vice President of Home Entertainment at Momentum Pictures, says: “Never Back Down represents our first Blu-ray release. It’s both a title and a format we’re very proud of. IMS have been a regular supporter with theatrical and DVD releases in the past and they were the perfect choice for our Blu-ray technical requirements.”
Deaf and partially sighted organisations have lobbied for a greater range of entertainment from broadcast and production industries for some time. In response to this growing demand, IMS offers a full range of subtitling and access services to all broadcasting sectors and content providers.
IMS subtitled more than 1.7 million minutes of broadcast material in 2007 for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences in the UK. Most recently, they announced the first phase in their international expansion, opening IMS Scandinavia to capitalise on the needs of local languages, part of their ongoing strategy for growth in 2008 and beyond.
IMS ANNOUNCES MEDIA AGNOSTIC SERVICE OFFERING AT IBC 2008
Independent Media Support Group Limited (IMS) is set to launch the company’s first media agnostic content development portfolio at this year’s IBC. The new service will ensure that content provided from any source can be encoded to play across any platform, from an IPod download through to a digital cinema presentation.
The new platform will offer clients a complete end-to-end solution for media access services, deliverable in any format. This will include full media encoding, media player customisation and the ability to provide multi-language open captions or selectable closed captions across a variety of formats including HD, cinema, web TV and mobile.
Following months of investment by the technical development team in its systems and software, IMS has received several enquiries for the new service and is currently working on its first commission to provide multi-language subtitles for IPOD of a new drama feature film to be distributed internationally via a tailored website.
Jeff Malina, Technology Director at IMS, says: “As technology has progressed, our clients and their customers require access to content across any platform. For IMS, this is the next step in delivering a truly integrated service which meets the requirements of a new generation of broadcasters and content providers.
We’ll be at IBC and very keen to talk to anyone with content that they want to distribute through multi-media formats” .
IMS has over 15 years experience in providing a range of access and translation services for total media. Since the 1990s, the company has also enjoyed long-standing relationships with broadcasters such as Sky Television and Disney.
IMS PROVIDES OVER 1200 HOURS OF SUBTITLING ACROSS EUROPE
Independent Media Support (IMS) has been chosen by SwissTXT, the Swiss national broadcaster’s Teletext company, to provide over 1200 hours of subtitling for the deaf & hard of hearing for the three public broadcasters SF, TSR and TSI.
The SwissTXT deal sees IMS providing subtitles in German, Italian and French for pre-recorded episodes of series such as Grey’s Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. IMS has won the commission following the recent publication in Switzerland of legal recommendations for an increase in the amount of subtitling for deaf audiences to 30% in 2008, with further increases thereafter.
James Gardner, Operations Director at IMS, says: “This deal consolidates IMS’s position as one of the leading providers of subtitling services in the UK and Europe. We are continuing to broaden our growth in Europe and our work with SwissTXT enables us to bring greater accessibility to the deaf and hard of hearing in Europe’s three main languages.”
All video material is transferred digitally to IMS’s London office where individual subtitlers trained in particular styles for the relevant languages can format the content. Under a special arrangement, some of the files are also sent to channels in Italy, France and Germany.
IMS subtitled more than 1.7 million minutes of broadcast material in 2007 for deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences in the UK. Most recently, they announced the first phase in their expansion with the opening of IMS Scandinavia. The new office will capitalise on growing demand and needs of local languages, part of IMS’s ongoing strategy for growth in 2008 and beyond.
IMS has over 15 years experience in providing a range of access and translation services for total media. Since the 1990s, the company has enjoyed long-standing relationships with broadcasters such as Sky and Disney. New services are being developed and added all the time; most recently Audio Description for DCinema and multi-lingual flash video players.
IMS offers Europe the last word in multiplatform subtitling at MIPTV, April 2008
UK SUBTITLE, translation and audio description provider, Independent Media Support (IMS) is expanding to offer a ready-made solution for multiplatform media across Europe. It says this will be the first all-in-one support service for audio description and subtitling services from traditional broadcast through to IPTV web and mobile content.
The new service has been introduced to meet the demands of broadcasters wishing to re-use subtitles ordered for traditional TV on accompanying online services. IMS currently provides subtitles and audio description for online content including Flash video-based websites for a range of IPTV platforms. The company also recently developed multilingual captions for a range of programmes for mobile and IPTV broadband delivery for The Disney Channel in Scandinavia.
Jeff Malina, technology director of IMS, said: “As broadcasting content moves into a multiplatform market, media re-purposing for broadband and mobile delivery will become integral to the industry. IMS is technically equipped to create all types of media delivery format, and this latest initiative is an extension to our existing well-proven production and technical workflows.”
In January, IMS opened a new office in Scandinavia, which coincided with a collaboration with Dubberman, the Nordic dubbing and sound production company. The opening of IMS Scandinavia means IMS can provide a complete package of services for the region.
News item extract courtesy of MIPTV News, 9th April 2008.
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Independent Media Support Group Limited | Client
Enquiries: + 44 (0)207 440 5400 | Email: reachus@ims-media.com