SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2:

• VoicePrint kicks-off its schedule with a special month-long contest: Win A V-Pod. The V-Pod is an accessible high-tech piece of electronics worth $500. It can be used for audio and video, and comes courtesy of Premier Assistive Technology. For more information listen to VoicePrint during White Cane Week or visit our website. The contest closes at 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 2.

• 2:00 and 7:00 p.m. Interview. Is assistive technology only for people with disabilities? According to Dr. Steve Timmer, founder of Premier Assistive Technology, the answer is no. Also, find out how expanding technology is both opening doors for people with disabilities and allowing greater opportunities in the workplace. Following this interview: listen for details on how to be eligible to win a V-Pod.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 3 (White Cane Week begins)

• 5:00 p.m.: CCB news, information and its 2008 call to action. VoicePrint interviews Louise Gillis, Vice President of the Nova Scotia division of CCB, who answers the question: Is the white cane still relevant or a relic of an old stereotype? In the interview Gill also discusses the ongoing challenge of blind and vision-impaired Canadians to overcome the serious problem of isolation; and speaks about the upcoming National Blind Curling Championships (February 3 to 8) at the Ottawa Curling Club, featuring the Sydney CCB Club, Nova Scotia’s first blind curling team. (The NS team competes on February 6.) Also, VoicePrint interviews Elizabeth Sweeney, Accessibility Educator for the National Gallery of Canada, who speaks to The National Gallery’s tactile tours and classes running every weekday during White Cane Week 2008 (in Ottawa).
• 6:00 p.m.: Described Film -- Girl with a Pearl Earring
• Synopsis: Delft, Holland: 1665. Griet (Scarlett Johansson) becomes a maid in the household of Johannes Vermeer (Colin Firth). The young girl’s beauty and intuitive understanding of art lead the master painter to make her the subject of his most famous portrait. This riveting film earned three Oscar and two Golden Globe nominations and reveals Johansson as a superb actress. This film is rated PG-13 (some sexual content).
• 7:30 p.m. Interview. Dr. David Wong, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, University of Toronto, discusses “eye care” and the stigma attached to eye donations.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 4

• 8:00 p.m.: CCB interviews. CCB President Harold Schnellert; and the Nova Scotia's CCB Connected Youth Chapter Vice-President Adam Noble. This is the first chapter of its kind in Canada.
• 8:30 p.m.: Described Film -- Shadow of the Vampire
• Synopses: Obsessed with capturing reality on film, famed German director Friedrich Murnau (John Malkovich) sets out to make the most frightening vampire movie ever. His star (Willem Dafoe), a spectral creature with strange appetites, soon reveals a commitment that exceeds even Murnau’s. This film is rated R (some sexuality, drug content, violence and language).

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 5

• 8:30 p.m.: CCB interview. One official from Lethbridge, AB.
• 9:00 p.m.: Described Film -- Confidence
• Synopses: When grifter Jake Vig (Edward Burns) mistakenly rips off L.A. mobster Winston King (Dustin Hoffman), he’s given a choice: run a major con on a mark selected by the King, or get killed. Jake goes for the con, with the help of an alluring shill (Rachel Weisz). “A sweet, sexy sting of a movie,” says Rolling Stone. Slick direction – fine performances – a first-rate cast. This film is rated R (language, violence and sexuality/nudity).

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 6

• 8:30 p.m. Interviews. Lethbridge Lions Club Members discuss the 8^th Annual Lions Mexican Eye & Health Clinic
• 9:00 p.m.: Described Film – “O”
• Synopses: Taken for granted by his father, his teammates and his friends, Hugo Goulding (Josh Harnett) devises an intricate, sinister plot to ruin everyone he believes has wronged him. This raw version of Shakespeare’s Othello stars Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles and Martin Sheen. The film is rated R (violence, a scene of strong sexuality, language and drug use).

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7

• 8:30 p.m.: CCB interviews. REPEAT: CCB President Harold Schnellert; and the Nova Scotia's CCB Connected Youth Chapter Vice-President Adam Noble. This is the first chapter of its kind in Canada. Original broadcast date: Monday, February, 8:00 p.m
• 9:00 p.m.: Described Film -- Monster’s Ball
• Synopses: Soon after he retires, a corrections officer (Billy Bob Thornton) in the southern U.S. is drawn into an unlikely relationship with a young, desperate black woman. Halle Berry won the first Academy Award given to a black actress for her starring role in this powerful drama of love and redemption. A not typical Hollywood ending is persuasive and graceful. This film is rated R (strong sexual content, language and violence).

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8

• 8:30 p.m.: Simulcast – The Rick Mercer Report.
• On Friday, February 8 at 8:30 p.m. EST VoicePrint on its national service, and CBC-TV 8:30 p.m. local time, will both broadcast a special White Cane Week episode of The Rick Mercer Report, with description by AudioVision, VoicePrint’s sister division. “We encourage viewers -- sighted and non-sighted -- to access this special simulcast by using the S.A.P. (Secondary Audio Programming) on CBC (where available) and hear first-hand what our unique service can do towards building a truly inclusive society -- and to experience the audio soundtrack, as a blind person would,” says Arlene Paterson. Details on how to do this are on our website
• Midnight: Described Film -- American Psycho
• Synopses: His fiancée calls him her boy next door, but Patrick Bateman has a nasty little hobby she doesn’t know about. An ultrahip Wall Street VP by day, he’s a homicidal maniac by night. Christian Bale is mesmerizing in this stylish, wicked satire on ’80s yuppies. This film is rated R (strong violence, sexuality, drug use and language).

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9

• 2:00 p.m.: Interviews. With Achilles Canada coordinator and participant
• 2:30 p.m.: Accessible audio versions of articles on vision loss (a special edition of Ability Today)
• The Globe & Mail ‘s January 22, 2008 article: “The battle over two drug treatments,” written by Carly Weeks (Synopsis: treating Macular Degeneration)
• The New York Times, January 2, ‘08: “Nearly Blind and Coping with Shame,” written by Jennifer Lee (Synopsis: “How do children learn that their parents are ashamed of them…the lies”)
• The Associated Press (printed in the January 13, ‘08 edition of The New York Times): Love of running keeps blind marathoner going,” no author cited
• The Toronto Star, January 2, ‘08: “Another Tribute for 'Black Ace’,” by Peter Edwards (Synopsis: a story on Herb Carnegie, 88, considered to be the greatest hockey player never to play in the National Hockey league, lost his sight eight years ago to glaucoma)
• The Toronto Star, December 21, ‘08: “Blind hockey dad follows puck,” by Lois Kalchman (Synopsis: “Two rink cohorts supply play-by play to bring games alive for keen fan”)
• 3:00 p.m.: Described Film -- Snow Walker
• Synopses: Stranded in the high Arctic after his bush plane crashes, maverick pilot Charlie Halliday (Barry Pepper) realizes his ailing passenger (Annabella Piugattuk), a young Inuit woman, offers his only hope of learning how to survive in this beautiful but unforgiving environment. A rich and rewarding movie, loosely based on the 1972 crash of Canadian bush pilot Martin Hartwell. This film is rated PG (thematic elements, language, some disturbing images and brief nudity).
• 9:00 p.m.: Described Film -- Gods and Monsters
• In 1950s Hollywood, aging film director James Whale (Ian McKellen), the man who made the movie classic Frankenstein, now leads a quiet life in the company of his housekeeper (Lynn Redgrave). But things change when the flamboyantly gay director befriends a young gardener (Brendan Fraser) who knows nothing of his past. A haunting sound track and a mesmorizing portrait of bleakness. This film is rated R (sexual material and language).