BAFTAs praised for having American Sign Language being interpreted into British on stage

The BAFTA Awards have been praised for having for having a sign language interpreter on stage, with Troy Kostur appearing on stage to present an award.

Having been the first deaf actor to win a BAFTA for his role in Coda, Kostur proudly returned to London and presented the award for Best Supporting Actress.

Accompanied by a translator, the actor used American Sign Language (ASL), which his interpreter translated into British Sign Language (BSL) for audiences at home.

BBC

The moment has received praise from sign language users, who watched as Kerry Condon won the BAFTA for her role in The Banshees of Inisherin.

“Watching #BAFTA2023 and loving that they have #ASL AND #BSL for all to see”, wrote Emma Samms MBE, who is the founder of the Starlight Children’s Foundation which supports children with disabilities and illnesses.

While another said: "So cool to see the British sign interpreter alongside Troy Kotsur’s ASL!"

And someone else said: "ASL being translated into BSL. What a joy to see this on live prime time TV."

"The BAFTAs have an ASL to BSL translator. This is proper sick!" another viewer wrote.

The audience also joined in, waving their hands as a sign of applause rather clapping.

Twitter/Emma Samms MBE

Twitter

Kostur even made a few jokes, pointing to his microphone and signing: “What is this microphone doing here? I don’t need this.”

He also joked about the differences between British and American sign language, telling the crowd that he needed to be ‘careful’ about how he signed the number two in England, flipping off the audience of award winning actors.

The actor then thanked BAFTA, stating that winning the award last year was one of the ‘most incredible moments’ in his career and wished the nominees luck.

All the while being supported by his BSL translator.

Whilst the moment was truly groundbreaking, some have argued that the BAFTAS hasn’t gone far enough to include those with hearing impairments.

Twitter

In a lengthy tweet, one viewer argued that sign language should be used through the ceremony – not just when a deaf actor appeared on stage.

“I hate that BAFTA will have a sign language interpreter while the deaf presenter is on stage but won’t have an interpreter when every other presenter is on stage,” they wrote.

Adding: “If we want to normalise sign language and promote inclusivity then interpreters should be the standard…”