Davo: Hello, my name is Davo Hardy. I am the director and writer of "A Silent Agreement". My sign name is 'Davo'.
Josh: My name is Josh [Sealy]. My sign name is 'Josh'. I play the character named 'Derek'; a profoundly deaf character who falls in love with his character [in the film].
Davo: I wrote and made the film based on my own experience with a stammer, growing up. What's that? A stutter; a speech problem.
I wanted to bring my story to the screen, showing how learning Auslan and getting involved in the deaf community built up my assertion and my confidence for public speaking. When I was making the film, I wanted to show how all this experience went into the story I was writing.
Once, a person told me "Davo, you can't be a film director if you have a speech impediment." I thought "What?! How will my speech problem stop me from making films?"
So, I wrote "A Silent Agreement", which says "Yes, I can do it."
This film was cathartic for me. I've been making films for about ten years, but this one was very important for me, personally.
Josh: Yes, I got involved in this project for two important reasons. First, Davo and I are good mates. I know this project was extremely important for him for many years. And I wanted to help make his project come to life.
Secondly, I had the feeling that, as a deaf person, I wanted to see if I can represent deaf people in film in a really strong way.
Because I've seen quite a few different movies and media representations of deaf people and it's a little bit... negative and distressing; they look dumb or incoherent because they're mostly hearing actors who take on the role of a deaf person. It's dreadful. It's just a waste. It's all gimmicky and unnatural. I wanted to fix that and show what deaf people are really like.
And, most importantly, I also wanted to say; working opportunities for deaf actors is very limited and we should encourage more deaf people to be the roles of deaf characters. Hopefully, everybody out there who is interested in making films will know that if they want to have a deaf character... hire a deaf actor. Please. It's important.
Davo: This film is the first of its type. Australia doesn't have films full of deaf culture, full of Auslan, before now.
I wanted to setup a good benchmark for Australian films to show disabilities. To show diversity. Characters who are established as healthy, who have imagination, interests, who are important characters unto themselves. Not just about being deaf or blind or other disabilities.
This film has deaf people in the crew and behind the camera. A lot of deaf characters in the film to show diversity is everywhere.
It was very important for us show a lot of diversity in the movie.
Because this film is Australia-specific with Auslan, we are very proud to be the first to have this setup and to make the movie this way.
Josh: That's right. I've watched this movie and it looks great, spectacular. It's well worth the watch. We appreciate the support. DVD release will be about... Christmas 2018. So, look for information on the "A Silent Agreement" Facebook page.
Davo: Soon, we'll be putting up the website and links to film promotions and sale details. Hopefully, you will see the film soon and thoroughly enjoy it. Thank you.
Josh: Thank you.
