Welcome back to the Podcast Academy blog, where we'll be narrating the journey of our six projects. Each week, our seven participants will engage with industry professionals, Production Lab mentors, and one another to produce their own narrative, episodic podcasts. The ultimate goal of these workshops is a trailer and first episode presented during Podcast Academy’s Live Pitch Event (September 26th), where our participants will pitch their podcasts to a live audience and industry professionals in hopes of getting picked up for further development. Without further ado, let’s kickoff our recap of Sunday’s session!
The First Few Minutes
Katie kicked things off with a quick exercise about the first few minutes of an episode, specifically the first episode. We first heard our special guest Megan Tan’s first “1:25” from her podcast, Millennial, and the intro to Katie’s first ever podcast, What’s Happening Here? We then took a look at John Cameron Mitchell’s new musical podcast, Anthem: Homunculus.
Major Takeaways from the Exercise:
I) Worldbuilding can take a variety of forms, like through other characters or through a well developed soundscape. Whatever the case, it is imperative to build your world at the onset of your narrative and episode.
II) Nonfiction introductions usually take the form of “Who Am I; What Is This; Where Are We Going.” This helps set up the stakes for the whole story.
III) Narration helps internal thoughts emerge for a character, especially the protagonist.
Learning From Millennial Megan
Megan Tan, creator of Millennial and producer of The Habitat, came in to discuss her process of building an indie podcast, creating an aesthetic and brand for her show, and her process of creating an episode. Megan, a self-confessed Virgo planner, first had us write down two things we hope to get out of the session and the dream for our particular project. She then took us through how she developed her own syllabus in her quest to become a radio producer and what she learned during this journey.
Major Takeaways from the Exercise:
I) Always have an audience in mind. Audio is an intimate medium, so making a podcast with an audience in mind helps you instill a sense of intimacy and investment within your listeners.
II) Tone and aesthetic will emerge naturally because they come from your personality.
III) Always have a plan for your interviews. What do you want to glean from this conversation?
IV) When editing and going through audio, use “filters” for the type of content you want/look out for.
V) When in doubt, use the “but… therefore” structure. This will help you craft a story out of your tape.
And that’s all for Podcast Academy’s second session! We met Megan Tan, discussed her process, and gained some more tips and tricks for producing our own indie podcast. Once again, follow our blog for a look into the exciting activities and trips we have in store and a glimpse into how to produce your own independent podcast. Continue taking note, because there may be a special prize given out during our Live Pitch Event for those of you who followed our journey and lessons! Until then, keep up with us here at NYU’s Podcast Academy!