Twenty Summers Film | “Signs from the Mainland” Preview + Q&A with Jeffrey Mansfield and Michael Cestaro

Join us for a preview of the film Signs from the Mainland, a documentary short that explores the extraordinary history of the Martha’s Vineyard deaf community, followed by a conversation with former Twenty Summers Fellow Jeffrey Mansfield and director Michael Cestaro.

Signs from the Mainland is a documentary short that explores the extraordinary history of Martha’s Vineyard’s deaf community that thrived for well over a century. Starting as far back as the early 1700s, genetic deafness took a foothold on the island where as many as one in four residents were deaf and a majority of hearing residents also were able to communicate in what is considered one of the precursors to modern American Sign Language. The film will explore the deeper meaning and lessons to be learned from this unique enclave where deaf and hearing individuals coexisted seamlessly.