Category: Guest Lecture

This week our lecture was from Helen McCarron and Claire Butler, from the careers and employability services. They came to give us a brief introduction on working in freelance, and becoming self-employed after our time at university is over, with their aim for the end of the lecture being we are all aware of their services and the support they provide – from starting your own business to providing workshops and funding. Workshops that include business planning, sales pitching, book keeping and trademarking.

They started off by showing us some statistics, from the Creative Skillset Workforce Report 2014, two of which were that 30% of people working in creative media are freelance, and 67% in audio, sound and music. They did a short quiz with us, just to see what our knowledge was currently on things such as taxes and the dates involved in regards to paying tax, and the level of income you have to reach to pay it. From this they did mention the importance of always keeping track of all your payslips; don’t throw them away, keep them filed correctly for the year so if you ever have any problems with HR revenue, you will make life a lot easier for yourself. Also, if you get business expenses from your job, keep those receipts as well, from petrol usage to business phone usage. In regards to the pros and cons of self-employment, pros are; freedom – a flexible work schedule, you are your own boss. Variety in projects – you will never be stuck in a rut of doing the same thing day in and day out, and this way you will build an impressive, diverse portfolio. As for cons they include the main one, uncertainty – nothing will ever be guaranteed, the future isn’t set in stone. But on the flip side of this it may become hard for you to switch off, as it will constantly be like you are taking your work home with you. Not only that but the initial start up costs, and no security – being self-employed means you will never get holiday or sick pay, which may stop you from having hardly any breaks throughout the year, and battling through any illness to stay afloat.

This lecture meant nothing towards my own personal audio project, but it did start to make me think about the possibility of being self-employed; I have always seen myself moving into a company of some sort, but seeing how high the percentages are of those that end up in self-employment after university brought me to some kind of reality. It is comforting hearing the level, and widespread, of support they provide us students when coming towards the end of our degrees, and the possibilities that are out there.

Lol Hammond is a musician, producer, DJ, and legendary music supervisor. But before making his name as a music supervisor he started in the electronic music scene in 1991, through the sound system spiral tribe – a group of DJs that organised free parties/raves and festivals. He also created Drum Club, along with fellow Londoner Charlie Hall, an electronic music duo who released a few albums, remixed others and also had their own work remixed.

Now though he is a music supervisor and has been since 2001, now working for Vertigo Films. He began his talk with a showreel of some of the films he has worked on which include the critically acclaimed The Football Factory, as well as The Sweeney and Dirty Sanchez: The Movie. Only briefly talking about Vertigo Films, he says they are now branching out into TV; they are doing the new Sky show Britannia, which has a much bigger budget than any other (including Game of Thrones). When talking about the roles of being a music supervisor, he began with one of the most obvious points; that he has to source all of the music that goes into the film – whether this be existing tracks or getting in composers. But before this the film will get cut down to an ‘assembly’ and he will be sent the film to watch through, then he will sit down with the director to decide where music is wanted/needed. However from this he explained that with some directors the process can become a bit ‘political’, this being because a lot of directors are very head-strong and they know what they want, but this doesn’t necessarily mean they know what is best for the film. It’s not their area of expertise. Lol will recommend a handful of composers if they are needed and he made the point that sometimes it’s a good idea to let the director think some things are their idea, all about “mind games”. On the topic of artists, he briefly spoke about licensing – the recording and mastered piece is owned by the artist or record label, and the composition is owned by the publisher. Making sure you work within the budget given to you, no matter how big or small, is important; use it wisely, learn to haggle if need be, or you might be as lucky as he was when working on The Firm where all artists agreed on having the same, equal amount. Lol did mention however that if you can speak to the artists directly it could make a massive difference, because the artists’ managers will always go for the biggest price – starting off at that. For example Coldplay usually charge £250k for their music to be used, but he went to them directly and showed them the film The Escapist and they loved it that much they themselves lowered the price. A lot of artists don’t focus on the money like their managers; if they enjoy something why wouldn’t they want their name to be apart of it. Also, the answer to the question “when you have the licensing to a track does that mean you can do anything to it?” is usually no. You can ask but you usually can not cut it up.

It is possible for a bad soundtrack to actually ruin a film, with the music chosen not really fitting into what is happening visually; ruining moments, making the viewer think the films going in a different direction than what it actually is etc. but Lol says that some expect the music to have the ability to actually save a film, which could be possible to an extent, but it’s worth remembering that the music is being added to what has already been visually made and edited; if a film has a bad narrative it will be hard for anything to save it. He says he still very much loves films – although understands why some people in this job role can fall out of love with them – and his DJ past/skills help a lot with having a very wide ranged knowledge of music. Something that is so essential in being a top music supervisor and standing out. But it isn’t all about just the music, being in his role. Knowing how to manage people is very important – you need to know how to adapt to any situation and be able to control numerous people and different factors, this including the director; being forceful in your expert opinion but being wary of not wanting to annoy them and step on their toes. All of this includes being able to handle not only deadlines, but also knock-backs. Not everyone is going to agree with your opinion in every single choice of music, or which composer is brought in – although he did tell us that, ironically, if a composer is pushed on him that he didn’t even want to work on the project and they aren’t that great, it all falls back on him. But that is just another thing you need to be able to handle. Ending the talk he stated that some films “are a dream” and others “are bonkers, which included a story he told us about one director that actually sneaked into the studio during the nights when everyone was gone, and was creating his own edits. Another example of difficult directors and situations.

Overall, although nothing that was spoken about really helped with my own personal audio project, I did really enjoy the talk as he was very engaging and I always like to hear from industry professionals; how they got to their roles, what they enjoy, and their own personal experiences. This being because becoming more aware of the actual business factors in the music industry – from film to recording studios – is something I am really keen to learn more about for the future.

This week’s guest lecturer was previous student Luke Pickering, who started his studies at Lincoln in 2009. He has now gone on to be fully involved in studio work, having the pleasure of working at the legendary Church Studios in London, now owned and ran by Paul Epworth – Epworth is a respected Grammy award winning song-writer and producer. His impressive discography includes heavyweights in the industry such as Adele, Bruno Mars, Coldplay and Bloc Party (only to name a few) and tracks featuring in blockbuster films like Django Unchained and Skyfall.

To begin with Luke spoke about the current studio set up at The Church Studios; they have two 72 track desks, which are two out of the only five that have been created, and also there newly built Studio 2 room which in his own words is the best SSL mixing room in London; a very futuristic, clean looking studio. Very desirable. He then went on to speak about Miloco, who in Luke’s own words are “keeping studios as we know it alive”. They are a company that not only run studios and help with clients booking those studios out, but they also expand into studio builds, designs and installations, repairs and they also sort out work experience, and not just in London, but throughout the world.

Speaking of the more ‘traditional’ studio roles he first spoke of a studio assistant, who’s tasks include: equipment inventory – something Luke said he has to keep on top of for The Church Studios, which is over 900 pieces of equipment. They have to arrange repairs for equipment, so this means knowing that a piece of equipment is too far gone for you yourself to simply fix, which leads on to another task of a studio assistant; making life easier for the assistant engineer; to know what is happening in the studio such as equipment that is out for repair, so they do not have to even think about those sorts of things. A studio assistant will also organise bookings if someone wants to book out any equipment or a studio room, and they will even help with runners. Those on work experience. Luke then made the point that you need to be ready for anything; a studio environment is not a 9-5 job where what happens day in day out is pretty much the same, it can at times be extremely stressful or at others be really slow and you will find yourself sometimes not needed in that room. Another point made; don’t be in a room that you’re not needed in. Following on from the studio assistant summary, Luke then described the roles of an assistant engineer, which include: knowing the studio inside out, which means you are the first to arrive and set up and you are then also in charge of the pack down; you know where everything goes, you know how it all works and when the engineer needs something you can get it for them straight away. If a previous client comes in, you should be able to recall the setup they previously had and have this ready for them. You also keep everyone ‘fed and watered’ – which, of course, means making a good cup of tea. He makes the point that if you are in this role, or even a runner and on work experience, it is important to make sure you make a good impression and make the effort. Make people notice you.

Luke ended the talk with some do’s and don’ts with CV and cover letter writing. For the do’s, make sure your cover letter is personal to the position you are applying for, not for that job you’ve been dreaming of since you were 16. This leads to making sure you do your research into the place you are applying for; showing them you are interested in them specifically and you’re curious. Also show that you are flexible and that you acknowledge those mundane jobs – being a runner, making tea and showing you know that you won’t be sat down behind a desk any time soon. Listing your skills as far as being computer and social media literate is a good thing to show as far as skills are concerned because it shows you are intuitive, willing/wanting to learn things of your own accord. It is important as well to not talk about yourself too much (do NOT call yourself a ‘recording engineer, or producer) and do not write more than one page as your cover letter. Employers read countless applications, don’t make them bored.

To conclude this guest lecture, Luke told us about his experience of leaving uni and showing he was adamant on not ending up in a 9-5 job, but showing that working in a studio is not as glamorous as what some people might perceive it as. It is hard work and you have to work your way up – making tea and doing errands is more than likely part of the things you will have to do. But in the end, if it’s really what you want to make a career out of, it will always be worth it. The thing that I took from this lecture more than anything was not only confirming good CV and cover letter writing, but being told about the company Miloco. Founding out about companies that are big on work experience and can really help me with getting in to my desired career is important right now, being nearly half way through my final year already.

Quoting from his own personal website:

“Using intuitive composition, field recording, improvisation and photography, Jez has been exploring his enjoyment of and interest in detail, simplicity and his emotive response to places and situations for over 3 decades.” When growing up he was a choir boy and before every session they were all made to ‘listen to the church’ for 20 minutes, and at the time it drove him absolutely mad but now, as he looks back, he’s realised that it had a very big impact on his life. Paying attention to the sounds that are almost overshadowed and lying underneath.

Jez-Riley French is, as I would describe, a sound explorer, and throughout his talk it was evident that he enjoys exploring sound deeper than most would. He began his talk with explaining contact microphones, developed by Jez, that instead of picking up air vibrations they pick up solid object vibrations. This he says is beneficial because the manage to pick up a full range of frequencies – also they don’t pick up hardly any air vibrations – this was also displayed by another of his recordings he showed us, which was on a print rack. They can pick up sounds from almost 2 miles away, which was proven by a gunshot in a piece of his from a score that he recorded in Italy. Another of his recordings he played us again used contact mics where they were placed on barbwire with the sounds being produced by insects and leafs touching the wire; the same way the noises were created for the original Star Wars. He also briefly spoke about hydrophones, which are microphones that can record in liquids; then playing another piece of work that is his, of water with vinegar in to bring out the minerals (dolomite).

Most of his work is durational, which has been played in galleries and exhibitions such as Tate Modern and organisations in Iceland and Italy, and this is because he is interested in the psychological attention we as humans have, especially in relation to music and sound. From this he recommends that when doing field recordings to keep recording for longer than you’d originally think, because if you record for 30 seconds you will end up wishing you had 10 minutes of that recording. More sounds means more use for more projects. While on the topic of field recordings Jez was very clear with making his opinion on the definition of what most view field recordings as, and that he disagrees. He says it is “not just nature and the serenity of the countryside” because we are all part of nature. Environmental recordings should also, in his opinion, be played at the volume in accordance to reality, so basically do not mess with it; when it is untouched and at it’s real level from the recording you hear more, because our brains psychologically recognise the sounds as reality.

He goes a little bit more in-depth on the topic of nature and field recordings by saying that since we have evolved, and technology along with us, we have “ruined our ears”. This he states has been caused by too much heavy compression; and even jokes that cows could wipe us out by sneaking up on us, because we just wouldn’t hear them. Then talking about infrasound (frequencies too low for the human ear) and ultrasound (too high for the human ear)  French makes known that we can not hear infrasound’s but we can sense them; using an example from scientists who believe that if the world stopped turning we would die in two weeks from the lack of vibrations we are so used to yet so unaware of constantly throughout life. He also played a recording for us he did in the mountains, where there was no traffic etc. using geophone’s, of just the world passing by. Then telling us an amusing story of bird experts who spent time arguing over what species they could hear in his recording at Fjallsarlon Glacier Lake, but yet those so called birds were actually in fact the ice melting; this played on the fact that we get used to hearing what we want to hear rather than what’s really there.

I really enjoyed this talk, even though in all honesty I wasn’t expecting to because of my lack of previous experience in field recordings, but it really gave me a bit of confidence in a way for me doing it for my project. Also when he spoke about hydrophones and then I found out the university now has them I am interested in using those. And on his end comment when asked about the pictures used for his recordings and scores, he said that he feels still images work better with sound, and as this being something I am doing for my project it made me feel more confident in what I’m doing.

Lucy Johnstone is a freelance sound editor experienced in dialogue and foley. She has an impressive list of credits, those of which include: Top Gear, The Undateables, Bear Grylls, Eastenders and Grand Design. http://www.lucyjsound.com/ 

To begin the lecture, Lucy started with the difference between working on sound for a TV drama, and a factual documentary, which is the money. The more time spent, the higher the budget which in this case will be a TV drama, so for this she made it clear it is all about being quick and efficient. With that she led on to her statement “30% what you know 70% how you are” rather than the worldwide statement “it’s all about who you know”. Johnstone made this point due to the fact that the way you manage not only other people that you are working with, and working for, but also how you handle yourself; remaining calm in stressful situations and not letting employers see you panic, so they know you can handle anything. Enforcing the point that it your skills and work drive are very important. She also reminded us about the importance of different directors having different preferences, so it is always important to ask, and also for you yourself to talk to editors before they send you a tracklay; when all sets are together and there are 5 second handles, when needing to move regions around, it makes it easier for you.

Lucy seems to specialise, and enjoy dialogue, and spoke to us about it being mixed properly before you send it off; ensuring everything is synced, there’s no clipping etc. and all personal preferences are completed. Her experience working on shows such as Grand Design and Bear Grylls has extended her knowledge and has helped to continue to develop her skills. Facing different challenges on different shows, with Grand Design working around a construction site, and Bear Grylls (the experience she spoke about) where they have to sort out the dialogue from each contestant while they’re walking through rain and waterfalls and constant rustling from bushes. And while on the subject of rain she stated that with rain and clapping recordings make sure they have an ending rather than just fading them out; to do this take out the middle to shorten the sound bite to the desired length of time with the ending. While watching a short clip of Grand Design’s that Lucy had worked on she told us to be careful about swearing as there are different rules – so another thing that you should ask the director before starting the project. On the final note she told us to try and get plenty of work experience, as this is how you will develop your skills and learn to work in the business.

Although a few of the things she spoke about techniques wise are things we have learnt from other modules across the course, her business experience and drive is something to desire and I found it really enlightening to hear about her personal preferences and how she has learnt to handle the business from her own experience.