‘This is our moment:’ Best picture winner ‘CODA’ seen as step forward for deaf actors

TORONTO – When director Sian Heder’s family drama “CODA” won the best picture Oscar on Sunday night, it marked multiple firsts: the first time said award has ever gone to a streaming service, and the first for a film with a largely deaf cast.

Edmonton-based deaf actor, playwright and accessibility advocate Chris Dodd says Monday he hopes it soon leads to more firsts for deaf performers and artists, in particular, noting “this is our moment” in an interview via email.

He says seeing the film pick up three Oscars was “truly phenomenal,” largely because this is a rare instance where deaf characters are in the forefront, and more than a stereotype.

“It really allows the audience to see and appreciate nuances of this deaf family, their language, their humour and struggles,” Dodd says of the Apple TV Plus film.

Actor Troy Kotsur became the first deaf man to win an Oscar for acting, and only the second deaf person after his “CODA” co-star Marlee Matlin won in 1987 for “Children of a Lesser God.” Meanwhile, Heder also picked up a win for best adapted screenplay.

The film tells the story of a teenage child of deaf adults — hence the title “CODA,” an acronym — who longs to leave her small town and become a singer, but feels pressure to help her deaf family run a floundering fishing business.

Dodd notes that another best picture nominee ⁠— 2019’s “Sound of Metal” — featured hearing actor Paul Raci in the role of a deaf character.

Even though Raci is a child of deaf adults himself and is fluent in American Sign Language, Dodd says the role should have gone to a deaf actor. He credited Hollywood with making some progress with the casting on “CODA.”

“Doing a film like ‘CODA’ with hearing actors would be unthinkable,” he says.

“Not only do we need deaf actors, we also need more recognition for deaf filmmakers and more opportunities for other deaf artists, including writers, to be in charge.

“The stark truth is that despite all the wins for representation for deaf actors, almost all mainstream projects featuring these actors are written and created by hearing people.”

While Heder is hearing, deaf collaborators involved include Ann Tomasetti and Alexandria Wailes, the production’s directors of Artistic Sign Language.

Other recent projects to feature deaf characters and actors include 2020’s “A Quiet Place Part II,” 2021’s “Eternals,” an almost entirely silent episode of Hulu/Disney Plus’s “Only Murders in the Building,” and Toronto producer Geoff McLean’s documentary short “Audible,” which chronicled the lives of students at Maryland High School for the Deaf and was also nominated at this year’s Oscars.

Dodd says the community has been waiting 35 years for another Oscar moment — ever since Matlin won — but believes “there’s been a tremendous surge in recognition of deaf actors within the past 10 years.”

“Here in Canada, we have a wonderful and dedicated community of deaf actors and we have many allies in mainstream theatres who are actively pushing for diversity and inclusion on their stages.

“We’re at a place now where deaf actors in roles are almost commonplace and that’s exactly where we have been fighting to be.”

Supportive avenues include Regina’s Deaf Crows Collective and Seeing Voices Montreal, and theatre festivals including Sound Off, of which Dodd is founder and artistic director.

A sixth season of Sound Off kicks off Wednesday, and will feature live performances and events, along with online programming. This year will highlight Quebec performers, with the mainstage show “Myth of the Rare Hand” to be presented in Quebec Sign Language. Live interpretations in ASL and English will also be available, along with English captions.

Dodd says it’s especially vital for deaf youth to see deaf role models so that they will be inspired to tell their own stories.

“The next goalpost is having a deaf-written and deaf-led film win an Oscar,” he says. “And with today’s talent, that’s a very reachable goal.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2022.