Keywords Studios has welcomed Descriptive Video Works (DVW) to the Keywords family, after the acquisition of the company from its founder, Diane Johnson, a highly respected executive in the broadcasting industry in North America.
Founded in 2003 and based in Vancouver, Canada, Descriptive Video Works’ highly specialised and skilled team provides audio description services for broadcast and over the top (OTT) streamed programming, feature films, documentaries and live action series and is an approved Netflix Post-Production Partner (NP3) for English Audio Description Services.
The acquisition further strengthens the extensive range of high-quality Audio Services that Keywords Studios offers its clients around the globe.
Andrew Day, CEO of Keywords Studios, commented: “In 2018, Keywords and Descriptive Video Works collaborated on a transcreation project in which a major video game franchise was made ready for OTT streaming in an interactive format and we were really impressed by both the team’s capabilities and how well we worked together.
“We are delighted to welcome Diane and the talented DVW team to the Keywords family. We are looking forward to supporting the accessibility needs of the film, TV and video-games industry as these markets continue to develop.
“Our voice-over studios around the world will be looking at ways in which they can work with Diane and her team to bring audio description production to European, South American and Asian markets.
“The acquisition of DVW also provides Keywords with its first studio in Vancouver, British Columbia, a city with very active involvement in film, television and video games and we hope to grow our presence there accordingly.”
Audio description is narrated, voice based descriptions of what is appearing on screen and is primarily for the benefit of visually impaired audiences and Descriptive Video Works is committed to empowering people who are blind and partially sighted by providing access to all forms of visual media through video description.
It has produced audio description for leading programmes such as Downton Abbey, Dragon’s Den, Master Chef Canada, Seinfeld, Versailles, and Anne with an E, as well as producing live audio description of the Olympics and Paralympics for NBC and CBC.
Diane Johnson, CEO of Descriptive Video Works, said: “I’m very pleased to join the Keywords Studios family and I truly hope that by joining forces with Keywords and taking advantage of their international reach and market-leading position, we’ll be able to offer accessible solutions for the blind and visual impaired audience to a much broader client base.”
Link: https://www.keywordsstudios.com/keywords-studios-acquires-descriptive-video-works/
