Serial Podcast

Of the all programs Kyla has assigned and displayed to us over the course, none has caught my attention and impressed me more than Sarah Koenig’s Serial Podcast: a 12 part series that explores the mysterious 1999 murder of schoolgirl Hae Min Lee. The podcasts are among the finest investigative journalism I’ve ever experienced – I was really taken a back by how Koenig and her collaborators have made this program so incredibly riveting and innovative. It also exemplifies a new future in radio through the medium of podcast and thus how radio documentary and online culture can be a … Continue reading Serial Podcast

Brainstorming – PB4

After learning various lessons on execution, planning and software from the last three briefs: I am genuinely looking forward to Project Brief 4 and am eager to actualise some of the ideas I’ve had for the piece. Essentially, I want to journalistically report on the Male Gaze (a concept that is widely discussed in feminist theory based on male lust and its subsequent empowering and enslaving nature). I want to narrow this down by localising and personalising the concept by interviewing individuals, local organisations and injecting a sonic sense of locality to the piece. I feel confident to enter a … Continue reading Brainstorming – PB4

Field Production Reflection – Ruby Moves In

For my field production I focused on a big development at Flat 18; a new housemate. Ruby has organised to live there for a month as a sort of trial period to see what living out of home is like. A factor of this is based on her sometimes turbulent situation at home and it has been a fun and cleansing change. The natural domestic sounds that this narrative provided are quite obvious and I knew that the way I organised the piece was imperative to how engaging it could be and thus make it sound less predictable and formulaic. I … Continue reading Field Production Reflection – Ruby Moves In

Studio Production Reflection – The Set That Didn’t Happen

For my Studio Production piece I focused on housemate Jade; whose music, insight and expression makes for some interesting sounds and ideas to explore. My plan was to basically document the process of a planned DJ set and deconstruct the journey from Jade’s bedroom creativity to a public space, particularly as Jade is still finding her feet in DJ-ing skills. Unfortunately, Jade was not notified that the equipment would not support her USB and thus night ended up being a bit of a disaster. Nonetheless I still acquired enough material to portray Jade in my intended way and still got what … Continue reading Studio Production Reflection – The Set That Didn’t Happen

Project Brief 2 – Flat 18

For Project Brief 2 I decided to focus on ‘Flat 18’, the home of my three friends Jade, Jasper and Shannon. I have a unique relationship with their home as it is in the same building as the apartment I grew up in and currently still live in. Subsequently I was wanting to focus on the way three young adults navigate personal space and coexistence: an idea enhanced by their unique dynamic as a three. I was inspired by several of the readings Kyla had provided us; Serial in particular has got me so obsessed – I love the way Sarah … Continue reading Project Brief 2 – Flat 18

Audio

Project Brief 1 – Pat of Six

For Project Brief 1 I had the honour of interviewing Patrick, a very charismatic character who was extremely generous as a subject in what accumulated as 45 minutes of audio footage. While in the future I hope to have a more direct plan, I let the results of the interview dictate the direction I went structurally and in developing a somewhat narrative. I actually purchased sound effects from a site ‘Audio Jungle’ to embed to texture and context into the work, a cost I can now learn to avoid with more forward sonic planning.

We recorded in one of the Building 9 studios which provided pretty clear and pure sound however there were some issues with popping – perhaps a result of how close the microphone was placed. I’ve also learnt from listening to the finished product with headphones (something I didn’t do during the editing products) to listen more clearly for unintended snippets of my voice.

I edited this piece with Reaper which I found generally quite easy however I’m more appealed to idea of using pro-tools as it seems to be used more professionally and be a more sophisticated software. I also hope to find better sources of sound effect and music as I continue to be hesitant about involving musical elements due to copyright restrictions. This is an anxiety I will have to overcome and will require greater research and commitment.

Kyla provided some interesting feedback such as spacing out the editing more and not try and condense the recording together too much. I understood what she meant after listening to Bea’s piece which included some interesting use of sonic interludes that enabled a much more atmospheric and thematically stronger and spaced out product.

Conclusively, I feel more ambitious for my next endeavour particularly after hearing the work of my peers which admittedly made me feel quite amateur in comparison. I believe more preparation in what I want to convey in my work will help for improvement.

Reading – ‘Your Ears Are a Portal to Another World’

Virginia Madsen’s essay on the development of the radio documentary provided some interesting perspectives and context on what I’m learning to be quite a diverse and complex medium. I was particularly interested in the historical periods in which ‘the radio documentary’ flourished: briefly during WW2 and then re-emerging in the 1960s. Furthermore, the examples of programs that uncovered corners of the earth (from obscure countries to working class communities) and supplying voice to the unheard is a rather inspiring notion.

Radio’s New Wave (First Class)

On Wednesday afternoon (after an enduring 5 hour break), Kyla’s first studio class commenced. I selected this studio out of intrigue with what the journalistic and narrational possibilities could be through the medium of radio. I felt that this focus would prove the most valuable for me out of the options, and while I’m slightly nervous about what this semester will bring: I am looking forward to producing my own audio-story. Kyla ended the class with a recording of several hospitalised and critically-ill children. The way the story developed through contextualisation and emphasis on child-like innocence and metaphor was pretty masterful, particularly … Continue reading Radio’s New Wave (First Class)

PROJECT BRIEF 4 / REFLECTION

  Reflection For Project Brief 4, titled “Exploring Texts in the Digital Age: Social Media, Self-Identity and Psychoanalytical Criticism”; Zachary, Monaliza and I created an artefact with separate topical sections for each of us to stylistically convey in our chosen format. A collage of the human body made by separate images was our central product with a designated section of the body reflecting our topics. I focused on the societal implications on social media through two comparative column-style pieces titled ‘Why I hate Grindr but think Tinder’s ok’ and ‘#TBT: 90s Media Influence Compared to Now’. Over 6 weeks my … Continue reading PROJECT BRIEF 4 / REFLECTION

Project Brief 3

For Project Brief 3 I was motivated by one major goal: to be able to present a cohesive product that didn’t make me cringe and weep of embarrassment. Compared to Project Brief 2 this film involved much more planning and vision and thus was greatly superior. As a journalistically driven person, I opted for an interview formula but wanted it to be curated in a style more focused on the subject and not distracted by the process of interviewing (or in this case, a discussion). Sibha (a close friend of mine) and I accumulated 75 minutes of footage, which presented … Continue reading Project Brief 3