Frightfest 2014

Angel Perez Grandi August 29, 2014

How was your bank holiday weekend?! We were at Film4's Frightfest and had a ball.

The first time we went was for The Human Centipede (first sequence) and we were back again this year to watch The Mirror, which we were very much proud to be a part of! The film was well received and it's always nice to put faces to voices after working long distance. Congrats to Ed Boase and all involved! Production Company / Crew. The Mirror will be released on DVD the 8th of September 2014.

Festivals like this are a great platform for film makers. They put the spotlight on up and coming talent and also allow fans of genres like Horror and all it's sub-genres to see the kind of stuff they love in all their glory- where they should be seen; on the big screen. Some other great local film festivals...

What have you got planned for the weekend coming up? We did an interview with the infamous Dean Humphreys this week which we'll be writing up- will be posting it soon. We also got inspired by all the blood and guts of Frightfest, so we're onto some Halloween themed sounds in the studio. In the meantime, have a good'un and here's some cool stuff from around and about...

Sound Postcard 01 // Perito Moreno

Angel Perez Grandi August 22, 2014

Whenever I've been away, either travelling or for work, I've sent Sound Postcards to family and friends. I find the combination of a still image with audio to be more moving than a quick video. A bit like audio books, part of the work is done for you but you still need to use your imagination to build the full picture, and I think that stays with you for longer.

Sound is almost always coupled with moving images, but photos allow you to keep the auditory sense at centre stage. Something we're always aiming for!

Parque Nacional Los Glaciares, 1/6/2010

Dear May,

It's early in the morning and I finally made it to this amazing corner of Patagonia. I tried getting inside the park in the middle of the night to beat the crowds but the guards wouldn't let me so I set camp in front of the gate and waited anxiously between snoozes, like it was the first day of sales at El Corte Inglés.

I managed to wake up on time and still be the first car in so got a good hour one-to-one with Perito Moreno. And the wait was all worth it as the monstrous glacier offered itself up in full; rips, cracks, booms and splashes continuously animating the morning. You know Perito Moreno is one of the few glaciers in the world that isn't receeding?

Thank you Perito, thank you Patagonia. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. One day, we'll go back together.

Love,
A.

Recording Locally

Angel Perez Grandi August 15, 2014

We all dream of working in far off exotic places. There's no denying travel is enriching, but what about all the stuff that's in your own back garden? Have you ever really looked around you? Or more importantly, stopped and listened? Wherever you live, there is someone else in the world who sees your home as exciting and worthy of discovery. Even if you live in Wolverhampton.

This week I've been focusing on what I can hear around me, both from an enriching point of view, and a practical library-growing angle.

So without further ado, I give to you, My Back Garden... (or a few miles radius from my house)

I wanted to encompass some varied atmospheres, as well as finer sounds to be edited and stashed in the library. When I arrive to a location I like to start with atmospheres and then record more specific sounds afterward. Because, I can guarantee that only by sitting in silence for quite a while will you hear the most noteworthy. For example, maybe on arrival to a beach location you plan on recording lapping waves, seagulls and the sound of water hitting the rocks from varying distances. But if you take time out first of all, you might instead notice the patter of a tiny crab across the sand, or how the grass between the dunes sounds from different locations, or the dull thud of distant footprints when you lie on the ground.

This doesn't only apply to mystical empty beaches, or rural locations like my own. In a factory there will also be less obvious sounds that are worthy of recording, it only takes a little patience to find them, and then isolate them so they can be preserved as best you can manage given your circumstances and equipment. You can also make a note of these details and recreate them in the studio later.

The examples given in this post are all country-side based, but I implore you to apply the same mindful method wherever you are- there's always something hidden!

Anyone else have any local finds to share? Would love to hear other hidden spots you've found in Ireland, the UK or beyond.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! And here's a couple of links to some sound related further listening...

Going It Alone (The long and winding road of self employment...)

Angel Perez Grandi August 8, 2014

Going It Alone (The long and winding road of self employment...)

Outside

Angel Perez Grandi August 1, 2014

I recently took a trip to China. I travelled down the Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan borders, with the intention of collecting enough to compile a sound package and add to my library. That I did, and trust me if ever you get the chance- go there. It is an amazing part of the world, one full of colour and with a wealth of unusual sounds. The people are fantastic and the landscape so varied that it was a humbling experience for me and my Sennheisers. I came home with a reaffirmation of what motivates me, a remembrance of why I fell in love with sound, and a new resolution to make time to get out of the studio and record.

Karakul Lake-Muztagh Ata-Gonger (c. Sound Ark 2014).jpg

Trying to carry that feeling back home, I've vowed to get out at least once a month in the field. With minimal equipment, I want to get to places and record purely because they interest me; not just because I've been commissioned or need it for a film. I've since sought out some great things to record locally, and I really recommend making the effort to get away from the screen that so many of us audio professionals and enthusiasts are often glued to. There's no greater contrast than being in front of a computer, and sitting in a field with your mic. Get out there!

Here's a few sights and sounds that inspired me...