Blindness Advocates on Why There Should Be Audio Description Oscars 

Paul Castle and Jaimee Kadish share a number of things in common, including a sharp sense of humor and a resiliency that inspires. Both are legally blind due to a rare disease called retinitis pigmentosa (RP) that causes loss of vision over time — Castle was diagnosed at 16, Kadish at 21. And both have brought awareness to the condition and provided valuable representation in different ways.

Castle is a writer and illustrator whose work include the children’s books “The Pengrooms,” about a pair of same-sex penguins. But he is also one half of the social media duo known as Matthew & Paul. The two have gone viral for the pranks Matthew plays on his blind husband — rearranging the furniture so Paul thinks he’s in the wrong apartment, swapping himself out with a mannequin and waiting to see how long until his husband notices. (The videos are always hilarious and usually end with Castle screaming “Matthew!” good-naturedly.) Castle has also raised awareness for the blind simply by speaking frankly about his life, such as having his guide dog Mr. Maple turned away at a restaurant.

Kadish created In-Sight Outreach, a non-profit organization that provides services and information to children experiencing vision lost or blindness. A chance encounter at a retreat led her to meet a producer on “Blink,” the NatGeo documentary about a family who learns three of their four children have RP and will eventually lose their sight. The family, led by their mother Edith Lemay and father Sébastien Pelletier, decide to travel the world for a year, experiencing all the great sights of the world while they can. Directed by “Navalny” Oscar winner Daniel Roher and Edmund Stenson, the film brought Kadish on board as a consultant and to help with the audio descriptions (AD.)

Upon learning Kadish is a fan of Matthew & Paul, Variety got the two together virtually to discuss how they came to their advocacy naturally and the stories they want to see…