Nonstop Giggles at the Super Mario Movie
Nonstop giggles at the Super Mario movie brought me so much joy as a parent. Every time we heard our kids laugh, my husband and I would look at each other and smile.
Going to the movies is one of those classic family activities—something so many people take for granted. But a question we often get is:
How do you do something like that when your child is blind?
Our First Try at the Movies
Let’s rewind to 2023 when The Super Mario Movie was first released. This was the first movie our fully blind son was actually excited to see.
With the promise of popcorn, pop, and plenty of sweets, we convinced him to give the theater a try.
Before we went, I called ahead to make sure the theater offered audio description headsets so Titus could fully experience the movie.
For those who aren’t familiar:
Audio description is a service that provides narration of important visual details—like actions, facial expressions, and scene changes—through a headset for people who are blind or have low vision.
We got settled in our seats, snacked on popcorn, and watched the previews (audio description doesn’t play during previews). But when the movie started… the headset wasn’t working.
I ran out to get a replacement, only to find out none of them were working, and no one knew how to fix it.
My husband did his best to quietly describe parts of the movie to Titus, and he still enjoyed it—but we all knew the experience could have been so much better.
This Time Was Different
Fast forward to now.
Our kids have been counting down to the sequel, and we finally made it to the theater this weekend.
We’ll admit—we were a little nervous. Would the headsets work this time?
After the previews ended, the movie began… and so did the audio description.
It worked.
With a slushy in the cup holder and popcorn in our laps, we all settled in—and this time, Titus got the full experience.
The Best Part Wasn’t the Movie
The movie was great.
But the best part?
The nonstop laughter from both of our kids.
Hearing Titus laugh right along with his sibling—at the same moments, for the same reasons—was everything.
Knowing that our child, who has no light perception, was able to fully enjoy a movie he had been so excited about… it just hits differently.
Same Experiences, Just a Different Way
Thanks to assistive technology like audio description—and theaters willing to offer it—Titus was able to experience something that many families do every weekend.
People often wonder how he can enjoy things that seem so visual.
This is how.
He can do anything—sometimes it just looks a little different.
And this time, it sounded like laughter filling a movie theater.
Amazingly Blind 