--- Forwarded Message from "Michael Bush" <[log in to unmask]> --- >From: "Michael Bush" <[log in to unmask]> >To: "Language Learning and Technology International Information Forum" <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: RE: #5428.5 Popular DVD movies are only French and Spanish (!) >Date: Tue, 18 Jan 2000 00:40:58 -0700 >In-reply-to: <[log in to unmask]> >Importance: Normal ------------------ Ken Carpenter: > I think, naively perhaps, that the actual process of cutting DVDs could > be done by the media department of many of your colleges. Perhaps, with > funding from Annenberg or some other foundation, the big media companies > might allow a college to make versions of the films with many tracks. > Perhaps the grantee could sublet the process to a media company. This is not a cheap process, although it is getting cheaper. We recently completed what we think is the first DVD of a feature movie prepared especially for language learning, a DVD of the classic Italian film, C'eravamo tanto amati. We put 6 different sub-title tracks in English and Italian, as well as a menu structure so the disc is easily accessible from a standard home player. I am at present finishing a teacher's guide that will contain barcodes of the script of the entire film. All of this is not a trivial process, but it is indeed doable. The key question is of course is "Can the process be made to pay for itself through sales?" Cheers, Mike Michael Bush Associate Professor of French and Instructional Psychology and Technology [log in to unmask] http://moliere.byu.edu/digital/ -----Original Message----- From: Language Learning and Technology International Information Forum [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of LLTI-Editor Sent: Monday, January 17, 2000 11:09 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: #5428.5 Popular DVD movies are only French and Spanish (!) --- Forwarded Message from "Ken Carpenter" <[log in to unmask]> --- >From: "Ken Carpenter" <[log in to unmask]> >To: "Language Learning and Technology International Information Forum" <[log in to unmask]> >References: <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: Re: Re: #5428.2 Popular DVD movies are only French and Spanish (!) >Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2000 20:37:21 -0500 ------------------ Thanks to those who responded. Perhaps there is a good and feasible educational opportunity but not a profitable market to put numerous tracks on great film DVDs. What I am hearing makes me think that all the audio and subtitle tracks exist but the market may be a bit slim. Is there someone on our list who has the ability and the wish to prepare a grant proposal to bring the resources together. I think, naively perhaps, that the actual process of cutting DVDs could be done by the media department of many of your colleges. Perhaps, with funding from Annenberg or some other foundation, the big media companies might allow a college to make versions of the films with many tracks. Perhaps the grantee could sublet the process to a media company. Perhaps something like PBS could make and distribute such disks at a reasonable price. If one of you should decide to prepare such a grant, I believe people on the list would offer suggestions. The thought occured to me so I am passing it on. Ken Carpenter ----- Original Message ----- From: LLTI-Editor <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Thursday, January 13, 2000 5:04 PM Subject: Re: #5428.2 Popular DVD movies are only French and Spanish (!) > --- Forwarded Message from "Cindy S. Tracy" <[log in to unmask]> --- > > >Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2000 08:32:26 -0500 (EST) > >To: Language Learning and Technology International Information Forum <[log in to unmask]> > >From: "Cindy S. Tracy" <[log in to unmask]> > >Subject: Re: #5428 Popular DVD movies are only French and Spanish > > ------------------ > > > > But only French and Spanish are common as additional sound and audio > >tracks. I wonder if the decision to limit the number of tracks was made > >because someone thought the interest in such a feature is limited. Would > >there be enough interest? Could we communicate that there would be to the > >decision makers? > > > >Ken Carpenter > > > I have asked about this in order to sell DVDs in other language tracks and > the reason I was given is that the Spanish and French audio tracks are > readily available on videos formatted for TVs and VCRs in the U.S. Market > (the French ones being converted in Canada for North America) and the other > languages are on videos that are on different systems. There are original > foreign language DVDs available in Italian, German, Japanese, Chinese, etc. > but not American movies. I assumed that since DVDs are coded for different > regions it has to do with the video conversion to DVD format. > \\\|/// > (ô ô) > +---oOO-----(_)-----------------+ > | | > | Cindy Shapiro Tracy | > | President | > | World of Reading, Ltd. | > | P.O. Box 13092 | > | Atlanta, GA 30324-0092 | > | | > | Toll Free (800) 729-3703 | > | Phone (404) 233-4042 | > | Fax (404) 237-5511 | > | E-Mail [log in to unmask] | > | http://www.wor.com | > | | > |"Discover a foreign language | > | and rediscover your own!" | > | | > | Monolingualism can be cured! | > | | > +-----------------oOO-----------+ > |__||__| > || || > ooO Ooo >