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A new Virginia law that took effect July 1 requires most movie theaters in the state to offer open-captioned screenings. Open captions display a film's dialogue, speaker names, and sound descriptions directly on the screen, unlike closed captioning devices that individual viewers request and hold.
The law is applicable to companies that own, operate, or lease five or more locations in Virginia. For any film with at least seven showings per week running longer than one week, and for which open captioning is available in the digital cinema package, covered theaters must provide open-captioned screenings. Within the first two weeks of a film's release, a theater must schedule at least four open-captioned showings, including at least one during weekend and evening hours when attendance is typically highest. Smaller theater operations are generally required to provide open-captioned showings on request.
Before the law, theaters were required under the Americans with Disabilities Act to provide closed captioning devices on request. Virginia joins Maryland, Hawaii, Washington state, Washington, D.C., and New York City in requiring open captioning at movie theaters. Virginians who encounter theaters not complying with the law can file a complaint with the state Attorney General's office.
Read the new law here.
