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Sam Beltran

The release of Spider-Man: Brand New Day in the Philippines was supposed to be a shared cinematic moment for fans who had waited months for the latest instalment in the superhero franchise.
But for some deaf viewers, the experience was defined less by the action on screen than by what was missing: subtitles or captions that would allow them to follow the dialogue.
That frustration, captured in a viral Facebook post, has pointed to a wider accessibility gap in the country, where advocates say deaf audiences are still too often excluded from cinemas, entertainment and public information.
In the post, a user named Cherry Ann described watching the film with her deaf friend and urged local movie distributors to consider adding subtitles to films.


“My friend is deaf, and we were so excited to watch the new Spider-Man movie … We thought that subtitles were going to be provided,” she wrote in the post, which was shared more than 11,000 times.
“It was painful to see that I could understand what was happening, while she was just staring at the screen, trying to figure out what was happening. Imagine sitting there for almost two hours when you cannot understand the dialogue and you don’t know why people are laughing or reacting inside the cinema,” she wrote.
“This isn’t a huge request, we are just asking for accessibility. Everyone deserves to enjoy movies, not just those who can hear.”
The scenario described in the viral post was not an isolated case.
“I saw my deaf friends who were excited to watch Spider-Man, but the movie had no subtitles. They were unhappy and found it difficult to understand the dialogue and important parts of the story,” said Chindee Cruz, a content creator and part-time deaf special education teacher. “They were very disappointed because they had been so excited to watch the movie, but without subtitles, they could not fully enjoy or understand it.”
Exclusion zone
Inaccessible screenings can also mean exclusion from shared social experiences, according to Hennie Parrocha, a graphic designer and Filipino Sign Language (FSL) advocate.
“I remember watching a movie with my family without subtitles. I could understand the characters’ facial expressions, actions and emotions but I couldn’t understand what they were saying or follow the story. I ended up having to ask my family what was happening,” Parrocha said. “If a movie doesn’t have subtitles, I usually choose not to watch it in theatres because I know I won’t fully understand or enjoy it.”
Deaf advocate Ahira Lotivio said many films were still produced without accessibility features such as FSL interpretation, captions or subtitles.
“For deaf audiences, this creates barriers because they may miss important dialogue, sound effects and emotional details that hearing audiences can easily access,” Lotivio said. “The situation highlights that accessibility should not be treated as an extra service but as a basic right for equal participation.”

The lack of accessible screenings is not new, according to advocates.
Deaf people were eager to understand what was happening in society “and wanted to enjoy the same entertainment that hearing people could access without barriers”, said Angelita Capanang, a Philippine Association of the Deaf board member.
The FSL interpreter for nearly 30 years recalled accompanying a deaf friend to watch the musical film Les Miserables in the 1990s, when media accessibility was an even greater concern. Because the film did not have subtitles or closed captions, her friend asked her to interpret the dialogue.
“It was extremely difficult because the theatre was dark and flashlights were not allowed inside. I did my best but naturally, much of the dialogue and music could not be conveyed effectively,” Capanang said.
Philippine Federation of the Deaf president Mariah Agbay called for a removal of such barriers and accessibility to be “systematically integrated” into public services, entertainment, education, and other sectors.
Limited implementation
Several laws have been adopted in the Philippines to support the inclusion of the deaf community in mainstream society.
The Filipino Sign Language Act was passed in 2018, declaring FSL the national sign language and requiring the use of interpreters in news and public affairs programmes as well as emergency announcements.
The Philippines also signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2007 and ratified it in 2008, while the 2016 Closed Captioning Act required television networks to provide closed captions for news and public affairs programmes.
But advocates said those measures remained limited in scope and implementation.
For one, Capanang said, the laws do not require movie producers and cinemas to provide closed captions or sign language interpretation.
Even when provided, not all captions are accurate or of high quality, according to Lotivio. “Some captions may be incomplete, delayed or unavailable. Stronger monitoring, enforcement and expansion of accessibility policies are needed to ensure deaf people can fully access media content,” she said.
Such gaps showed that the inclusion of persons with disabilities was often treated as a compliance issue rather than a human rights concern, Agbay said. “Policies may exist on paper, but they are not always supported by adequate funding, trained personnel, accessible communication, or meaningful consultation with persons with disabilities and their representative organisations.”

Advocates say accessibility should go beyond captions – because captions alone do not meet the needs of every deaf person.
“For many members of the deaf community, FSL is their first language, while written Filipino or English is their second. Providing both high-quality captions and FSL accessibility gives deaf people meaningful choices and ensures that information is presented in the language they understand best,” Agbay said.
Capanang said some deaf people had limited written vocabulary because they had not had the opportunity to attend school, making sign language their primary means of communication. She called for greater support to encourage cinemas and distributors to expand accessibility options, as well as stricter enforcement of accessibility laws.
The government, film industry and deaf organisations needed to collaborate to ensure no one is left behind, Agbay said. “By working together, [they] can create a media environment where everyone has equal access to information, culture and entertainment.”


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While several laws have been passed to help the deaf community, advocates say they remain limited in scope and implementation


While several laws have been passed to help the deaf community, advocates say they remain limited in scope and implementation.


Cinema

Education

Philippines’ subtitle-less ‘Spider-Man’ screening shows deaf inclusion is just lip service

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}While several laws have been passed to help the deaf community, advocates say they remain limited in scope and implementation

While several laws have been passed to help the deaf community, advocates say they remain limited in scope and implementation