Winkshops by Wink

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Two CEU workshop opportunities

Friday 6pm - 9pm

Layers! Applying Animation to ASL Construct

American Sign Language linguistic studies have looked to other fields of study to enhance our understanding of various attributes within ASL. Our field has employed this use of interdisciplinary studies to help ASL interpreters hone their knowledge and to broaden their outlook of the language so that they can incorporate various tools into their product. Wink has studied the field of cartoon animation and computer generated images to find application for sign language interpreters. The process that animators go through to create their work of art is strikingly similar to how ASL images can be created and depicted.

Additionally, the practice that animators employ to enhance their skills can be applied to deliberate practice for interpreters. Animators often spend hours studying how objects work, move, look, and are expressed in order to deliver life-like attributes to them within a breathless canvas and medium. If interpreters study these same techniques, they can produce work that sees the message through the lens of an animator rather than the filter of spoken English, exemplifying the adage “show, don’t tell.” Interpreters can thereby open their horizons to produce visually equivalent messages.

One of the greatest hurdles for interpreters is building and animating depiction. Following the concepts of animation, we find that they build objects in layers. This process allows animators to build the object section by section to give it a more 3D appeal and to simplify and organize the construction process. If interpreters realize they have the ability to build the depiction with layers, they often find brilliant and innovative ways to produce the object, and the process becomes much more manageable.

An interpreter can draw from these animation principles to create an image that can be used in required actions and, most importantly, the ability to organize their thoughts. By applying these techniques found in the animation text book “Animation, The Whole Story.” (Beckerman, 2012) augmented with examples from film, ASL performers, and interpreting material, this workshop can provide the interpreters with useful application and deliberate practice.

IRID is an approved RID CMP sponsor for continuing education activities. This PS Program is offered for 0.3 CEUs at the "little to none" prior knowledge content level.

Saturday 9am-3pm

How to show and not tell, a new interpreter practice tool: Parsing English With A Decision Tree

“…. innovation comes from people meeting up in the hallways or calling each other at 10:30 at night with a new idea or because they realized something that shoots holes in how we've been thinking about a problem. It's ad hoc meetings of six people called by someone who thinks he has figured out the coolest new thing ever and who wants to know what other people think of his idea.” (Steve Jobs, 2004)

Wink sought out to do just that with his comprehensive research and implementation of a different use of a parsing tool, the decision tree, which gives interpreters and students the deliberate practice they need to think critically about ASL and their choices when rendering the message from English to ASL.

Sign language interpreters have long sought message equivalency from English to ASL. The interpreter education landscape has historically focused on language acquisition, interpreting models, and other tools to assist second language users to become familiar with ASL grammar and provide techniques to deliver message equivalency (Cokely, 1984. Lee, 1992). Current methods of interpreting are sets of theoretical directions that leave the user to make unguided decisions which could create a, English-based signed message. Many models lead interpreters to process without explaining how to actually detach from the source language to achieve equivalency in the target language.

However, if presented with a flowchart of guided questions (decision tree), the learner will discover more effective and reproducible results in message comprehension and translation of the target language. This process is an adaptation of parsing: to separate out and compartmentalize the message in order to unpack, rearrange, understand, and practice English to ASL interpreting with distinctive features that utilize the interpreter’s abilities and knowledge of both languages. This workshop will instruct participants on how to parse written English texts using a decision tree which will guide participants in maximizing comprehension of the English text, detaching from the source text, and providing structured choices for the target text. This deliberate practice provides the key to creating an internal framework for processed interpretation. With continued use and internalization of the process, participants will produce live work with more awareness and intentional choices for creating a near-equivalent message.

IRID is an approved RID CMP sponsor for continuing education activities. This PS Program is offered for 0.5 CEUs at the "little to none" prior knowledge content level.

Prices presented on this webpage is for early bird, prices will go up to $45 and $65 at the door.

Full refund 15 days before workshop. Workshop presented entirely in ASL. Additional accommodation request should be emailed to Contact@WinkshopASL.com.

Address: DuPont Resource Center 2514 E DuPont Rd, Suite 210. Fort Wayne, Indiana