What happens before a Comic-Con International panel hits the stage?
For our upcoming panel “Unseen Heroes: The Art of Audio Description in Superhero Stories and Sci-Fi Worlds,” we wanted to do something different.
Instead of just showing up and winging it, we got together to talk, plan, and align our vision. That conversation turned into something worth sharing.
Listen to our full conversation here:
https://five.libsyn.com/show/episodes/view/37108170
Episode title: “How We Prepared for Comic-Con” – The ADNA Presents
This panel brings together three powerhouse professionals shaping audio description today:
Colleen Connor (AD Training Retreats) – on why great writing is foundational
Anna Capezzera (Deluxe) – on real-world production and adapting under pressure
Serina Gilbert (quality control specialist) – on consistency, perspective, and polish
In this episode, we talk about the behind-the-scenes choices:
- What we want the audience to take away
- How we each approach our roles
- Why this work is both creative and technical
- And how we’re hoping to open a few eyes (and ears) at Comic-Con
If you’re coming to San Diego Comic-Con, we’ll have more details mid-July. If not, this episode is your ticket behind the curtain. We’re so proud of what this panel represents-for storytelling, for accessibility, and for the audiences who deserve to be included.
Anna Capezzera is the Director of Accessibility at Deluxe, overseeing Audio Description and American Sign Language services. She began her career as an Audio Description writer, and with a background in screenwriting, has enjoyed bringing her love for shows and movies to making them more inclusive and enjoyable for all audiences. Anna has written hundreds of hours of AD, but some of her most Comic-Con aligned work has been on Jessica Jones, She-Hulk, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and the most recent Star Wars trilogy. From learning ASL to raising a service-puppy-in-training, Anna is passionate about accessibility and is grateful to get to work on such amazing projects with Deluxe’s terrific accessibility teams!
Colleen Connor (she / they) is the co-founder and Director of Audio Description Training Retreats (ADTR). As a blind professional with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Theatre and training from The London Dramatic Academy, Colleen brings a unique perspective to the field of Audio Description (AD). Their work encompasses museum exhibitions, quality control, voice performance, training others in AD roles, advocating for accessibility, and maintaining high quality curriculum standards especially for writers.
Passionate about amplifying underrepresented voices, Colleen and the ADTR team collaborate with like-minded entities such as Netflix, the BlackStar Film Festival, and Descriptive Video Works (DVW) to support opportunities for blind and other chronically marginalized talents. Colleen herself can be heard on several description tracks, and recently collaborated with Roy Samuelson to write the open AD for the AFB documentary “Possibilities” by BeachGlass Films. Colleen’s goal is to continue fostering a diverse, supportive, and professionally integrated AD community, while broadening academic and training options for description worldwide.
Serina Gilbert is an Audio Description Quality Control Specialist known for her sharp attention to detail, high standards, and deep commitment to accessibility. As a blind professional—and a self-proclaimed Audio Description Snob—Serina brings a unique and essential perspective to the audio description process, ensuring that blind and visually impaired audiences receive clear, meaningful, and immersive audio description. She is passionate about raising the bar in media accessibility and is proud to be one of the few blind professionals credited in major productions. Serina advocates for audio description to be treated as an integral part of content creation, not an afterthought.
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