Kids keep ear to the ground
MOTHER FATHER DEAF
with deaf parents
RTE One, 10.15pm
MOTHER Father Deaf explores the unique reality of hearing children born to deaf parents.
They are sometimes called CODA – Children Of Deaf Adults, or in sign language Mother Father Deaf.
This film, directed by Sundancenominated director Garry Keane, features the stories of three such households.
Laura O’grady grew up in a noisy house, with the radio up loud and no one to tell her and her siblings to keep it down.
Her parents deaf voices calling her in for dinner was a source of curiosity for the kids on the street.
She describes a happy childhood which became complicated in her teenage years, when a period of depression made communication with her parents a struggle and the responsibilities of being a CODA became difficult.
Shane O’reilly said he was “training” all his life for his career as an actor.
Interpreting for his deaf parents, he describes stepping in and out of “roles” and how performing sign ensured people would always watch him.
He describes his earliest experiences on stage and how it felt as a child to see his mum in the front row, knowing she couldn’t understand his performance.
The show also hears from Shane and Laura’s parents, who acknowledge their children had to grow up quicker than their peers and how frustrating it was to have to rely on them.
CODAS walk the line between deaf and hearing worlds and often never quite fit into either.
By dipping into their experience, Mother Father Deaf offers a previously unseen portrayal of contemporary reality for some Irish families.