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Database Accessibility

Films on Demand

Films on Demand provides either closed captioning or interactive transcripts for all videos on the platform. 

CLOSED CAPTIONS 

If this option is available, a CC button will appear in the video control panel. Click on this button to toggle captions on and off. You may also create a Films on Demand account and set your personal preferences to always show closed captioning. Films on Demand provides instructions for setting closed captioning as a default. While most Films on Demand videos contain closed captioning, not all do. You can use the Advanced Search feature and limit your search only to videos that provide captions.  

INTERACTIVE TRANSCRIPTS 

Interactive Transcripts are also available for many videos. Interactive transcripts allow you to view the full text of the video, search within the full text, or click on any word in the transcript to jump to that exact point in the video. Films on Demand provides an instructions and a video tutorial for using their interactive transcripts. If you prefer this format for videos, you can use the Advanced Search feature to limit your search to only videos that provide interactive transcripts.  

 

Summary (most significant issues for Films on Demand) 

Issues for keyboard users: 

  • Some content (including the primary site navigation and a variety of links and interactive elements) cannot be reached or operated via keyboard. 
  • Most interactive elements lack a sufficiently visible focus indicator, making it difficult or impossible for many keyboard-only users to effectively use them.
  • Focus order is also incorrect in some places, further increasing the difficulty of using the site with a keyboard. 

Issues for Screen Reader users: 

  • Many form inputs are not appropriately labeled.

  • Custom elements throughout the site do not correctly announce themselves or provide appropriate feedback to screen readers.

  • Structural information is not appropriately conveyed.

  • Some images have missing or inappropriate alternative text. 

Additional issues: 

  • Insufficient color contrast.

  • Color is used as the only means to distinguish some content.

  • No means to bypass repeated navigation.

  • Missing audio descriptions for videos.

Kanopy

Most films on Kanopy provide both closed captioning and interactive transcripts. Closed captioning can be toggled on and off using the CC button in the video player controls. Interactive transcripts can be opened by clicking the Transcript button immediately beneath the video player. The interactive transcripts highlight or underline the words as they are being spoken in the video. Please see Kanopy's explanation of their closed captioning and interactive transcript features for additional information. Kanopy offers a Caption Request Tool for any videos that do not currently have captioning, providing any user with the ability to request that a film be captioned, directly from the film page in question. Kanopy promises a rapid turnaround time for all caption requests. Patrons may also use the search filters on the results screen to limit their searches only to videos that already provide captioning. 

 

Summary (most significant issues for Kanopy Streaming Service)  

Issues for keyboard users: 

  • Some content cannot be reached or operated via keyboard. 

  • Many interactive elements lack a sufficiently visible focus indicator, making it difficult to effectively determine when one has reached the correct element. 

  • Focus order is incorrect in places, further increasing the difficulty of using the site with a keyboard. 

Issues for Screen Reader users: 

  • Custom elements do not correctly announce themselves or provide appropriate feedback to screen readers.  

  • Most images throughout the site have missing or incorrect alternative text.  

  • Some structural information, including headings and lists, is not appropriately conveyed to screen reader users, making it difficult to understand content organization.  

  • Some form inputs are not appropriately labeled, and form errors are not communicated appropriately, making inputs difficult or impossible to use. 

Additional issues: 

  • Incorrect Skip to Main links.

  • Insufficient color contrast.

  • Incorrect reading order.

  • Insufficient button labels.