Over the past five years, a grassroots mission quietly took shape in the audio description (AD) community: a behind-the-scenes collaboration between TheADNA.org and volunteers from the American Council of the Blind (ACB).
The goal? Track and flag entertainment titles that blind audiences wanted to experience with AD… and help ensure they eventually could.
With hundreds of titles submitted to TheADNA.org‘s wishlist page, one committed advocate cross-referenced entries against master AD title databases monthly, year after year. (thank you Fred!) The result? A steady, strategic effort that guided studios, streamers, and accessibility advocates toward tangible progress.
This wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t always visible. But it worked.
Today, the wishlist is noticeably shorter. Not because the need diminished, but because so many of those requested titles now include AD.
That’s impact. That’s access. That’s meaningful progress. And it’s worth pausing to honor what it did.
Behind the Scenes: The Unseen Dedication
Recently, one of our ACB collaborators shared that due to system changes and shifting workloads, regular wishlist checks are on pause for now. But the last time the list was run?
No new unmatched titles were found.
And that’s a milestone worth celebrating. It means the wishlist has been so thoroughly addressed that, at least for now, it’s doing exactly what it set out to do.
Let’s take a moment to recognize the values behind this quiet success:
- Connection – linking advocates, audience voices, and decision-makers across platforms.
- Excellence – in data stewardship, advocacy, and long-haul persistence.
- Inclusion – by listening directly to blind audiences and honoring the stories they want to experience.
If you’d like to know more about The ADNA, and its credit database and associated podcast with over 200 episodes of AD pros, visit theADNA.org. (And it itself is going through an overhaul soon. Can’t wait to share.)