Category: Media (Page 40 of 45)

What a Sight!

September 30, 2010 / / 0 Comments

We can’t help ourselves. We love Movies for the Blind.

These good folks take all kinds of great and schlocky movies from the past and make ’em so you can do all the work in your brain.

We’ve mentioned this before, but visuals as much as we like them, are really not very good for exercising the imagination- certainly reading is better- but Audio Drama is just the best. After all, how much better is it to recreate a scene with a little dialogue, a little narration, or a few well-placed sound effects?

Go check out MftB today!  May we recommend as a beginning The Last Man on Earth?

Or better yet.. go subscribe so you don’t miss a thing!

Circle them Wagons. Its the Indys!

September 30, 2010 / / 1 Comment

The College Hill Independents that is!

Radio Drama Revival’s Fred Greenhalgh gives Audio Drama a boost in one of the more recent articles on the re-emergence of audio theatre with the growth of the Internet in a piece called Airwave Renaissance by Natalie Jablonski.

We have a little wince when we see words like “we forget there was a time when…” and “stirrings of life”, its good to see some people who haven’t had an interest in all things audio take a little notice.

But we think that Audio Drama has been off life support for a while, thank-you. The Sonic Society ranges from 30-40,000 listeners a week and ranging up towards the hundred mark, there’s a pile of people out there making audio drama. Sure we don’t hit youtube levels, but how many stage plays go viral? Or new painters?

While certainly there are some folks who reflect the old timey radio stylings, I’d say that modern audio drama has really upped its gain. Companies like Colonial Radio Theatre and Radio Repertory Company of America and Jim French Productions (companies that aren’t even mentioned in the article) have been doing quite well in the United States.

Someone wake the doctor, the patient has slipped out the door.

I feel very blessed to be on the ground floor of this latest, pardon the appropriation Fred, Revival of Audio Drama. I know Fred feels the same way. And while podcasting hasn’t exactly thrown pots of money in the direction of radio drama providors… it hasn’t made money for standard radio folks like the BBC, CBC, or other huge organizations. That’s not a limitation of the medium of audio drama, but rather the expectation of folks in the modern age of the Internet.

Our minor corrections aside, go read Airwave Renaissance yourself and tell us what YOU think.

After all, my grade 11 students haven’t listened to any audio dramas. Of course, they never heard of podcasts either, and were shocked to find out that some of their favourite kind of music was available for free on their I-pods.

It’s not so much Audio Drama that needs to hit the mainstream, but the idea of podcasting itself.

For those who may not know…

September 26, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Kenneth Jarman has written a good introduction about, well, introductions to Audio Drama in the Examiner.

After six years of Audio Drama trumpeting, we sometimes wonder if there’s still a street in a city, a pasture in the farmlands, or a grove in the hinterland that doesn’t know about the amazing re-genesis of modern Audio Drama, but it’s amazing how many people:

a. Don’t know about it.

b. Think it’s just reposting Old Time Radio

or

c. Don’t think that Audio Drama would be any good to listen to as an alternative to music.

To them, I always ask. “How great would it be to watch movies in your car without having to stop looking at the road?” or “Wouldn’t cleaning the house or the dishes go a lot faster if you had a movie to watch without actually watching it?” or “How many times have you said you need to go for a walk or work out, but you just have no way to look forward to doing it?”

I know this Fall, I’ve made walking a daily (usually twice daily) practice, and I’ve listened to so much more. Sometimes I’m in the middle of a story, so I go for a longer walk just to finish it up.

Could Audio Drama actually promote healthy bodies as WELL as healthy minds?

We’ll get our scientists on that right away. In the meantime, have a read of Jarman’s piece. It’s a great primer!

Off the Cuff!

August 6, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Some months ago, Tim Heffernan from the newly revamped Dramapod asked me to be involved in his latest fun project “Off the Cuff”. It’s a great ad lib show in which the contestants are mailed an audio file and you’re to give off the cuff answers to the questions.

Long time listeners know I am hopeless at improv so I invited the amazing John Bell from Bell’s in the Batfry to come for support.

Keeping the “Off the Cuff” feel, I recorded my lines, and passed both to John who filled in the gaps.

I feel extremely badly as I know Tim wanted to start his show off with me and I held him back. I hoped the response was worth the wait..

Let us know what you think! Have a listen to Off the Cuff Episode 2 with Jack Ward and John Bell.

Look Who’s Fanboy Ear Candy!

August 5, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Shooter from Furious Fanboys wrote a great article on his picks for Top 5 Bits of SciFi Earcandy and guess who got two nods of the five?

Before we let the cat out of the bag lets take a moment and give a nod to the other three mentioned:

1. National Public Radio Star Wars Series– Who can deny one of the greatest audio drama adaptations of the classic George Lucas myth of all time.

2. Wormwood- A Serialized Mystery– This mystery series came out of nowhere just two years ago and took the audio community by storm. Not only did we have a ball playing them on the Sonic Society, but they swept the first season of Uni Awards an instant fan favourite.

3. We’re Alive- If you’re looking for one of the greatest reasons why serialized Audio Drama is one of the most powerful mediums, look no further than the exciting Zombie series “We’re Alive”. Another great find for the Sonic Socierty, this tale about survivors held up in an apartment building in LA is compelling action horror!

And now for the our connection:

Firefly Old Wounds and the Sonic Society were both mentioned as two other gems in the Earcandy list.

But don’t just take our word for it. Go read for yourself!

Refreshing Sounds

August 2, 2010 / / 0 Comments

[From Jeffrey Adams. Do your part to help, won’t you? – Jack]

Huge, massive, gigantic news for Sounds for Soldiers

Sounds for Soldiers, the project by audio theater producers wanting to create and ship 10,000 audio theater CDs to service men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan, got a HUGE boost today when word came down that we’re in the running for a $5000 Pepsi Refresh grant!

What does this mean?  It means we can get $5K IF all of you go to Pepsi Refresh and VOTE!!!!

That’s right, Pepsi Refresh grants are decided by online voting.  We need to finish in the top ten for the month of August to qualify, and we’re currently 155th (bleah!).  You can vote once a day.  If you have multiple emails, you can vote for each one once a day.  It’s free.  It’s easy.  Pepsi doesn’t want any of your information (short of an email address) so please, PLEASE for the sake of the men and women who have sacrificed for nearly a decade now: VOTE!!!

And when you’re done voting, consider sending this email along to your contacts list.  Yes, I suppose it could be considered spam, but like all advertising, it’s only advertising if you’re not interested.  If you are interested, it’s INFORMATION.  And who wouldn’t be interested in sending a small (very small) thank you to the men and women in harms way for the sake of our freedom.

Thanks,
Jeff Adams

 

Text Message: text 101175 to 73774 (standard text messaging rates apply)

Run to the Border

July 11, 2010 / / 0 Comments


PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
THE 1920‟S COME ALIVE AGAIN WITH THE SOUNDS OF RUM SMUGGLERS, HIJACKERS AND CUSTOMS OFFICIALS THIRSTY FOR BRIBES IN THE RADIO BROADCAST PREMIERE OF „RUNNING TO DETROIT‟
CHATHAM, Ontario Canada – July 12, 2010: Voices In The Wind – Audio Theatre and Country 92.9 FM / 630 AM CFCO are pleased to announce the radio broadcast premiere of „Running to Detroit‟ on Saturday July 17th at 1:00 PM on Country 92.9 FM / 630 AM CFCO and simulcast
live from their website.
David Farquhar, the Executive Producer of Voices In The Wind – Audio Theatre is delighted
that the radio broadcast premier of  “Running to Detroit‟ is part of the new CK on the edge Summer Arts Festival. The public is also invited to come and listen to the broadcast debut of “Running to Detroit‟ together with the cast at the William Street Cafe on Saturday 17th July 2010

@ 1:00 PM. The William Street Cafe is located near the corner of William and King Streets in downtown Chatham.
Farquhar says, “The radio drama revolves around Meg and her Mom Sandra who are heading to Detroit for a little cross border shopping and a Tigers game. But due to unforeseen circumstances
they are turned back at the border. An odd encounter on the Windsor waterfront leads them into a wild night of time-travel; rum-smuggling; a near-drowning; hijackers; customs officials thirsty for bribes and a chance encounter with controversial baseball legend Ty Cobb. The sound effects and music will take the listeners back from 2010 to the 1920‟s, a time when heading for the Wild West meant sneaking into Michigan with a boatload of Canadian contraband!”
Farquhar notes there are references in the radio drama to Chatham, Windsor and Detroit so the
show will appeal to listeners on both sides of the border.

“Running to Detroit‟ was scripted by Dave Carley one of Canada’s leading Playwrights and Radio Dramatists especially for Voices In The Wind – Audio Theatre. Dave’s works have been produced across Canada and the United States, as well as many countries around the world.
“Running to Detroit” was directed by Joey Ouellette, Artistic Director of the Purple Theatre Company, Windsor.
The Actors include Noelle Dupuis, Michelle Mainwaring, Bob Telfer, Cheri Scratch-Lapain, Keith Burnett, Jason Gale and introducing Rachel Muharrem as Meg.
Artwork by Laura Broadbent, Montreal

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