Tim Edwards – Graduate Q&A

Q. What is your job title and where do you work?

I am a freelance Sound Recordist. I work on various projects but the bulk of my work is with Amersham based ‘Boundless Productions’. For Boundless, I am one of a handful of Location Sound Recordists working on the daytime property show ‘Escape to the Country’

Q. When did you start working there?

I started working for Boundless at the end of summer 2014 after successfully completing an in-house training program with them earlier in the year.

 Q. In a typical day, what do you do?

Working on ‘Escape’, a typical day involves working as part of a small, 4-person crew with a presenter and two contributors. My job is to get the guys in front of the camera mic’d up with radio lav mics, so that the mics aren’t visible on camera. I then mix 3-4 signals down to a stereo mix which is recorded straight onto camera for sync sound. Whist each show follows roughly the same format, a ‘typical day’ can be extremely varied. We work both inside and outside, with animals, on land and on water! Aside from making sure the microphones are hidden and are sounding great, it is my responsibly to make sure that the ambient sounds of the environment we are in do not impact negatively on the way the show might be cut together. The golden rule is: if it’s not on camera, it shouldn’t be heard. Aeroplane and traffic noise are the two main offenders but nearby building or gardening work is also a concern! It is not uncommon to have to politely ask people if they wouldn’t mind giving up 15-20 mins of silence so that we can film uninterrupted. People are generally very friendly and accommodating once we explain what we’re doing!

Q. How did you get the job?

When I was at Bucks, Al Green sent us an email about a ‘trainee sound recordist’ position being advertised in Amersham. I applied for the job after seeing the same advert on a jobs board online the following year. Most of the decent sites (e.g. Production Base, Film & TV Pro) have free and paid-for sections which appropriately yield unpaid and paid jobs respectively. It’s worth doing a few of these ‘expenses only’ things to gain experience, and they won’t cost you to apply.

Q. What are the best bits of what you do?

The best bit about being a ‘soundie’ is when everything runs smoothly. Nobody likes ‘waiting on sound’, so it’s nice when you manage to do your job and make it look easy. It’s also satisfying (in a TOTALLY different way) when things go wrong and you manage to fix them quickly. For me, the variety of the job is what I enjoy. Going to places you would never normally go and meeting all kinds of interesting people keep things really interesting. When you’re outside in the sunshine, it hardly feels like working at all!

Q. What are the worst bits?

Rain, wind, cold, early mornings, traffic, strimmers, angle grinders, starched shirts and hairy chests! – for all kinds of different reasons!

Q. What advice would you give to anyone looking to get into the same line of work?

Get as much experience as you can. Try and get a basic kit of your own together as this will help you get jobs. Nobody likes sorting out hire kit and having your own means you can charge a higher day rate.

Be friendly and as helpful as you can be. Working in TV is as much about getting along with people as it is being technically god at your job. Especially when you’re starting out, try and tread the fine line between showing that you’re capable and being a know-it-all. That said, it never hurts to have at least some understanding of everybody else’s roles. This will help you work well as part of a team and make some sense of the jargon that is associated with each job.

Q. Anything else you’d like to add?

Do as much as you can whilst you’re at Bucks, the kit you have access to will cost you a small fortune in the ‘real world’ and being able to use it for nothing will get your foot in the door of countless opportunities outside of uni!

Escape to the Country

Our graduate Tim Edwards was the Sound Recordist on today's episode of BBC's Escape to the Country. Soundin' good Tim!

Sound Design showreel

See some examples from last years graduation work here.
https://vimeo.com/119244348

On most productions, Audio & Music Production students handled sound recording on location, sound mixing / sound design, and music

AMP student work recognised at UK Music event

On March 3^rd I was invited to attend an event organized by UK Music. 

Essentially it was a high profile acknowledgement of having devised and led the pilot initiative with BBC Introducing, which we have now been invited to help instigate at other Universities and Colleges, in-keeping with the BBC’s remit to promote new music.

The centrepiece of the event was the screening of our BBC Introducing making of video (https://vimeo.com/116336617 ); great for our profile! Huge credit to Steve Dominey who edited the film, which was very well received by the attendees and drew lots of positive comments. 

Although Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Sajid Javid) didn’t turn up (he was called to China at short notice), Baroness Jolly, who deputised for Sajid Javid, and the Shadow Culture Minister both made a speech. 

The Head of Universal Music was there, along with a few other major industry players. Dennis Weinrich from JAMES was there, supportive as ever, and Lorna Finlayson from UK Music grabbed me on arrival saying she wanted to introduce me to some people from the University of Westminster who want to do something similar.

I also caught up with BBC Introducing Producer Kieron Yeates, and they all seem delighted with what we have done – impressed by the production values and amazed at the quantity of output; 4 shoots delivered to date with another three scheduled for 

March. 

In short, this was a great showcase for our Audio & Music Production and Film & TV Production undergraduates. So well done everyone, it’s all good!

Bucks students record artist Natasha North for BBC broadcast

 

Students from Buckinghamshire New University have enjoyed the chance to record up and coming singer-songwriter Natasha North for a show to be broadcast by the BBC.

As part of a partnership that the University has with the programme BBC Introducing, students from the School of Media Production and Performance had the opportunity to mix and record three of Natasha North's tracks as well as film and edit her performance on campus. The show will be aired on BBC Three Counties Radio and the BBC Introducing website this Saturday.

Daniel Garise, who is in his final year of a BA (Hons) Film and Television Production degree, said: "This is my first experience as a producer and it's been exciting and challenging to make sure everything runs smoothly.

"We first started talking to Natasha and her team a couple of weeks ago to finalise the track list and to find out what we need to mix and how the day should run. It's been a great experience for me and very rewarding to work on a show such as BBC Introducing."

The show, which was recorded in the University's recording studio in the main Gateway building, enabled students to get a taste of what it is like to work in the media production industry and to put into practice the skills they have learned throughout their studies.

Lecturer Daniel Peters, who supervises students studying BA (Hons) Audio and Music Production, commented: "These sessions give final year students the opportunity to work in a professional scenario. From pre-production, to the shoot and then to post-production, students are expected to liaise with industry professionals, hit strict deadlines and produce work fit for broadcast." 

Natasha North said of her experience at the University: "It has been extremely professional and everyone knows exactly what they are doing. The students have been brilliant at sorting everything out."

Students previously recorded band The Scruff for BBC Introducing, and the series is due to continue featuring student recordings as part of its ongoing partnership with the University.

The latest artist the students worked with was singer/songwriter Alex Bay and guitarist Kaid Hussain.

Student Adam Taylor, studying BA (Hons) Audio and Music Production, said: "I really enjoyed the experience of having Alex Bay in for a live shoot.
"Having the challenge of an outside artist coming in gives you some real life experience you cannot get in lectures. It was unpredictable and forced us to think on our feet and problem-solve. Challenging and fun!"
Main picture: Artist Natasha North is recorded by students in The Gateway recording studio.
Second picture: Alex Bay with students following his recording.

Find out how you could study the courses featured in this story

• BA (Hons) Audio and Music Production
• BA (Hons) Film and Television Production

Skillset accreditation

Some good news in the department. The Film & Television Production course has recently been accredited by Creative Skillset, the industry body for skills in the creative industries. It's a prestigious award and good news for students on Audio & Music Production too, who work closely with those on Film&Television contributing to the location sound and audio post-production/sound design on productions during the course.

Audio & Music Production itself is accredited by JAMES (Joint Audio Media Education Support), a Skillset approved organization. JAMES accreditation is awarded to audio/music courses which are considered as meeting the needs of industry effectively, and the course is one of only a handful in the country to have been accredited.

http://www.jamesonline.org.uk

LOCATION SOUND

Dan Snow shoot

 Like many of the teaching staff at Bucks, I still get to be involved on professional productions from time to time. Eg. this recent corporate film shoot, a conference opener for IoD – with BBC presenter Dan Snow. I was the Location Sound Recordist, providing all sound equipment required and working alongside a small camera crew to capture the presenter’s pieces-to-camera.

The call time on location was 6am at IoD's HQ in central London, an early start even by filmmaking standards!

As for most shoots like this, I used a radio clip mic on the presenter. This enabled an even pick up of Dan’s voice as he walked around the building (up and down stairs, in and out of rooms, etc) and it’s normally better than trying to use a boom microphone for ‘walkie-talkie’ shots like this.

 It was shot using a Steadicam, used to track the Canon C300 camera smoothly around the location.

A steadicam in action

This needs to be perfectly balanced to keep the movement smooth, hence we needed to do away with the cable i normally run between the SQN sound mixer and the camera and instead use a wireless ‘camera hop’... basically a radio transmitter hooked up to the mixer and the receiver mounted onto the Steadicam rig. When working like this you need to run a backup recording, we used a Zoom H4N recorder.

The shoot was done and dusted by about 9am, at which point we enjoyed a bacon sandwich from a nearby cafe and went home. A good day at the office!

Location sound recording techniques like these are covered during the Sound Design modules of the course that make up 25% of the teaching in years 2 and 3. We have multiple location sound kits for students to use – all spec'ed to a broadcast standard with kit from Sound Devices, Sennheiser, and Audio Ltd etc

Al Green

Sound Design lecturer

My SQN 4S mixer and location kit

AMP Graduate Interview: Ally Siu

Q) What is your job title and where do you work?

Currently I am a self-employed freelancer. I keep my own diary and set my own pay rate. I work for multiple companies that vary from agencies to production companies and major corporate businesses.  I usually refer to myself as a live events technician; this covers my whole skillset, which is more then just being a sound technician.

Q) When did you start working there?

I have been freelancing since the summer of 2013 so just over a year now. However I did spend a year as an onsite audiovisual technician and manager for a production company.

Q) In a typical day, what do you do?

A usual day for me starts at a ridiculous time in the morning and travelling to the event site where I then help unload the truck(s) carrying the show kit.  The next several hours will be spent rigging and testing and sometimes rehearsing before the show starts and we are live.  There isn’t usually much time for testing so you have to be sure you know what you are doing and test along the way to give yourself a helping hand and lessening the rush when time is running out.  Operating during the show is the highlight of course where you can enjoying the thrill from executing your role to the highest standard.  Once the show is done you are then in de rigging mode and preparing to load the van back up and then go home at another unsociable hour!

  

Q) How did you get the job?

As mentioned earlier I worked as an onsite technician and then as a venue manager for a production company. I soon realized that being a venue manager was basically a fancy term for salesmen! I decided very quickly that I didn’t want to be a salesman, so I handed in my notice and started looking at various options.  With my experience levels from the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics and my time working on site I decided I could go and be a freelancer as I had the necessary skills to be successful.

Q) What are the best bits of what you do?

I get to work with some very talented people, which is an opportunity to learn as much as possible to further my skillset.  Since working after leaving BNU I have picked up more skills and am far more employable because of it.  I now get work not only as a sound technician but also as video/data operator, lighting tech and video conferencing controller.  My degree in audio and music production has had an influence in all the jobs I do as not only can I step in and help out whenever needed but as a video/data, lighting and VC technician I know how sound/audio interacts with each discipline and can offer advice to improve the overall show.  Being a freelancer also means I don’t have to work every day.  At the moment I earn more from 3 days work as a freelancer then I did from a 5 day week as an employee and I still work nearly 5 day weeks so my weekly turnover is excellent!

Q) What are the worst bits?

Definitely the unsociable hours, I’ve realized that all those midday naps I took while at university were in no way preparing me for a working life!  A hard part of freelancing is finding your own work.  I am now at the point where some companies come to me asking for work because they know me now.  If you choose to go freelance be prepared to do a lot of job searching and make sure you are comfortable with approaching people and essentially getting in their faces.  One company that now provides me nearly 45% of my work ignored my first two emails.  I then sent another and waited a few days before calling them to see if they had it.  Don’t be afraid to be bold! Companies like that!

Q) What advice would you give to anyone looking to get into the same line of work?

Get involved with everything.  Even if you are on the job as a sound technician have a chat with the video/data guys; I know we tend to call them vidiots but there is a lot of work out there for good video/data people and adding an extra skill to your repertoire is always a good thing.  If you can pick up some lighting skills as well do it.  Companies have a real appreciation of multi skilled people and will always employ you if they know you can do more then one thing!  I began to make friendship with project managers and now I do some project managing of my own.  I have managed two mid scale musical productions which included soloists, choirs and orchestras! I organized all the equipment and had it rigged into the venue and operated the shows. 

Be a help not a hindrance, just because you area good sound tech doesn’t mean you are above mucking in and helping get a show ready.  Don’t be a white glove operator (someone who turns up expecting everything to be ready to go) going above what is expected of you is a sure fire way to get more work and will play in your favour when you ask for a pay rise! 

Q) Anything else you’d like to add?

Enjoy what you do! If you don’t enjoy it then change something.  I found working as a venue manager depressing because I was spending all day at the venue and sometimes all night before going home, sleeping and then returning to my venue! Leaving that job and going freelance was the best thing I have ever done.  I get to meet new people and do new things every day! I now find it hard to see myself doing anything else.  There’s no one way to achieve success so make sure you make it your own way.

Visit to Wycombe Wanderers Football Club

Final year AMP students recently had the opportunity to carry out an audio 'health' check at Adams Park; the home ground of Wycombe Wanderers Football club. Students got to shadow professional consultants from Sennheiser, looking at the way audio is currently used at the ground on match days and suggesting system updates and improvements. 

Check out a short video documenting the visit, here; http://youtu.be/dDq5e2OGmG4