Radio Reflection- Semester 2

Beginning with the first show of the semester (21/07/14), which was drastically pulled together very last minute with almost everyone being out of state and working with new people was an absolute challenge for all of us. Imogen was on panel, Vanessa (former group member) was producer, Elizabeth and I were hosting and Ryan took the role of online producer. Arriving early at the station and finally meeting each other properly and sorting out the last quick fixes to the script and adding those extra questions was really helpful and we somehow managed to pull off a really great show. Each interview was really great and chatty, although nerves did at times get the better of me, presenting is a tough job when you aren’t very inclined to do it, I’ve learnt that 2 cups of coffee before a show is not the best idea no matter how great the roast its. However I think that this show was a really great start to the semester with the new and improved group 3.

Our second show (01/09/14) again was another step up. With Imogen and Ryan hosting, Liz producing and I panelled for the first time, which I really enjoyed most out of all the roles. The show went smoothly and we were perfect for time, I think the improved confidence and being much more comfortable working with each other was really evident and helped make the show more successful.

Finally our last show of the semester came around (06/10/14) probably at the most stressful time possible (assignment due date time) but we did incredibly well. Liz and I were up hosting again, Ryan panelled and Imogen took a crack at producing. We did come across a few problems; the Saturday before our show we had an interview pull out, which left us in a bit of a sticky situation, however quick thinking on Imogen’s part had a great package piece ready to play, which we know is something you should always have prepared in case of this situation. Next we had an interviewee show up with more than herself (that being two other people who were planning on being interviewed also and she did not make this clear in the emails). We had only prepared questions for one person, luckily Liz and I were able to put our heads together and quickly resolve this and the interview was a smash! Our final interview was also really interesting and we were able to make up the time we lost with our missing interview with an audio piece that she wanted to play as an example of her work which was absolutely fantastic.

We got feedback after this show from RRR’s Elizabeth, who began with how our intro did sound a bit scripted, however went on to say how great she thought the show was, the philosophy interview was interesting and that the package piece was really good. We were astounded because we have never had such good feedback from her and to here that the problems we had prior to the show that we resolved actually worked out really well.

I can honestly say that I have learnt a great deal about working in the ‘real world’ of radio and have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Triple R and hope to use these skills of producing and presenting a show in to more than just radio.

Ghost Chips

As a part of my Radio 2 course elective, an assignment called Audio Arts arose at the beginning of the semester and had me pondering on the many things I could do creatively.

I settled for something reasonably close to home. New Zealand that is.

New Zealand’s sense of humour is a rare and unusual sort, captured perfectly in our original advertisements and films.

One of my favourite directors, Taika Waititi, known for Boy (2010) and more recently What We Do In The Shadows (2014)

 

Using audio from various drive responsibly advertisements and the film Boy I have created an audio piece inspired by the kiwi sense of humour and my native culture.

What you are hearing:

Classic audio snippets from Boy (2010), New Zealand’s ‘Legend’ stop a friend from drink driving advertisement and ‘Blazed’ anti-drug driving advertisement.

Tracks

I begin the piece off with a snippet of Shooting Stars by the Bag Raiders just to set the timing up of the piece. A classic maraca shaking in the background, simple and very effective.

The “sick beats” of OMC’s classic track ‘How Bizarre’ is the next song to grace your ears, one that has been classified as New Zealand’s unofficial National Anthem.

Now I couldn’t have passed up the chance to play some MJ, Rock With You was in my opinion the perfect song to demonstrate “some Michael Jackson dance moves” 

Next up is a reggae song, a classic style representing every New Zealand summer and bringing nostalgia on to the many, finally followed by Foux Du Fafa by the iconic Flight Of The Conchords.

What I tried to do with this collected audio, was to create something that sounded almost like it interacted with each other, for example the part when it says “hey Chardonnay wanna see some Michael Jackson dance moves?” <insert MJ song here> and then another vocal piece replies with “Nah bro like this” <Insert reggae tune here>

The idea was to portray some elements of NZ that I love, without having the help of visuals, a difficult task for sure but I very much enjoyed trying to piece it all together.

Here it is, the audio piece you have been waiting for: