Northern Virginia Open Captioned Movies

06/06/2025

Three hours ago, University Mall Theatres in Fairfax announced a major change to their open caption screenings! They have not stopped; in fact, they are changing to all-day on Wednesdays! Why are they making this change? They are making this change to be more consistent - eliminate the confusion some people were experiencing - to make it easy for people who want or need open captions. Just come on Wednesday, any time on Wednesday, everything will have open captions for every screening!

05/24/2025

We don't know what's going on, but the University Mall Theatres in Fairfax doesn't seem to be offering open caption screenings much anymore. No open caption screenings this holiday weekend for example. Their sister theater the Cinema Arts still has open captions.

05/01/2025

Folks, a new movie theater is going to open in Falls Church at the end of May. It is a Paragon Theaters dine-in theater called Paragon Founders Row, at 112 Founders Ave in Falls Church. We contacted them as soon as we learned they are coming, to ask about open captions. The response we received today? Oh, we are ADA compliant already! We have closed caption devices. Didn't even BOTHER to address open captions.

This theater has other locations in Florida, where they are based, and in North Carolina. None offer open captions. But this is Northern Virginia, where we have a sizable deaf and hard of hearing community. We have already written back to make it very clear we will not go to their theater if they do not have open captions.

Furthermore, when they do open, there are bound to be stories in local papers (think Patch) and the Washington Post. When you see those stories, make sure you contact the reporters to make them aware this theater is not offering open captions.

01/29/2025

Got friends/family in the Wi******er, VA area? (not Northern Virginia, but still Virginia - Frederick County, Virginia). Alamo Drafthouse there is starting to offer regular open captions. They have already posted their first offering. It is an OC screening of the new Dog Man movie.

01/27/2025

The good news is that University Mall Theatres still offers open captions. The bad news is that they have apparently dropped Saturdays and now have open captions only on Sundays. Have any other Northern Virginia movie theaters recently cut back or dropped open captioning? If theaters don't see decent attendance for open caption screenings, they can and will reduce or drop open captions altogether.

11/09/2024

Now it can be told: The Reston Accessibility Committee is the reason that the Look Dine-in Cinema at Reston Town Center now has Sunday open captions. This committee gave permission to post the following article from their newsletter.

Open Caption Movies at LOOK Dine-In Cinemas Reston

Reston Accessibility Committee (RAC) is pleased to announce that LOOK Dine-in Cinemas in Reston Town Center is now providing open-caption screenings of its movies routinely on Sunday evenings. This is a major service for the deaf and hard-of hearing community in the Reston area. Depending on public response, there is the possibility that this program can be expanded to more time periods during the week.

Since its inception as a committee of the Reston Citizens Association, RAC has worked primarily to improve accessibility for those with mobility disabilities. Each theater in the LOOK Dine-in Cinemas Reston has already been designed to accommodate two wheelchairs with adjacent seats for companions. Advocacy for the deaf and hard- of-hearing community was a new endeavor for RAC.

After being contacted by Erik Nordlof, founder of DC Deaf Moviegoers and Allies, earlier this year, RAC agreed to support his request to seek open caption screenings of movies at the LOOK theater in Reston. For some time now, the LOOK Cinemas Reston theater management has been providing open captions for the Senior Movie Day films it runs once a month for the Reston Association. To show all current movies with open captions on a regular schedule was a much larger commitment for the LOOK Cinemas team. Under the leadership of Shelby Schultz, Director of Programming for LOOK Cinemas, it has now been accomplished. Starting Sunday, October 20, one showing of each film between 6:00-9:00 P.M. (considered prime time for dine-in theaters) has been provided with open captions. Ms. Schultz is willing to advocate for LOOK Cinemas’ expansion of this program; however, she needs public support of the current operation to do so.

RAC encourages the Reston community to attend these showings so that open-caption movie opportunities can be increased throughout the week at LOOK Dine-in Cinemas Reston. Help spread the word!

10/16/2024

GREAT NEWS for NoVA open caption movie fans! The Look Dine-In Cinemas in the Reston Town Center is going to start offering open captions on Sunday evenings, beginning THIS Sunday, October 20! A check of their website found that almost every film had open captions on Sunday evening. The times range from 6:15 pm to 9:20 pm.

Direct link to their website: https://www.lookcinemas.com/location/1016

10/15/2024

If you go to this theater for open captioned movies, see and share this (and get a card).

Hey Folks - We have a HUGE FAVOR we'd like to ask. Kyle - the guy who's always smiling - is in the Hospital! He's been out for a couple of weeks with an auto-immune condition (nothing contagious) so rough that he can't even sit up in bed!!! He's expected to make a full recovery - but it is gonna take weeks!

He would be absolutely THRILLED if any of his BELOVED CUSTOMERS were to send him a GET WELL SOON card - if you can - please drop your well wishes by the theater (or mail them here) - and we'll bring them to him in the Hospital!!!

THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE BEST CUSTOMERS IN THE WORLD!!!

08/05/2024

Theaters really need to promote their open captions. Recently met a parent of a deaf child from farther out in NoVa who did not know that just 20 min from their home was a NoVa theater offering open captions. They were delighted and excited to see that theater's oc listings. There are probably many in NoVa unaware thar local theaters have open captions. Each of you that follow this page is a potential ambassador for open captions.

06/20/2024

Showplace Icon in Tysons Corner has closed. That theater had offered open captions. It is apparently going to become a Look dine in theater. Look does not offer open captions unless forced to by law in places like new york city where the law mandates that they offer at least some open caption screenings. So this is bad news for the Northern Virginia open caption audience. A theater has been lost and the replacement theater won't offer open captions.
https://patch.com/virginia/vienna/s/ix9r7/shuttered-movie-theater-tysons-reopen-under-new-owner-report
...reason number 1,001 why we need a law for open captions in Virginia!

Although the ShowPlace Icon Theatre in The Boro showed its last movie on Sunday night, a new owner has already signed a deal to reopen it.

05/10/2024

Washington, DC just did it - they passed a bill for open captions in DC movie theaters!

This is the update we thought we would NEVER, EVER write. After four tries, Washington, DC has succeeded in passing legislation for open captions!!! The DC bill passed unanimously on May 7, 2024. DC is now the second city to get a law for open captions. Move over, New York City! What does this law d...

04/19/2024

He's from NoVA but cheering Maryland!