5 Minutes with… Radium Audio studio!11/01/11
Want to know what prestigious sound design studio, Radium Audio, where doing with a snail heartbeat microphone? Hear from founder, Andrew Diey, here…
Having had the pleasure of working alongside sound design & music company, Radium Audio, on several of our digital and broadcast campaigns, including Citrix, NetApp and our showreel, we thought it was only right that we got up close and personal with its founder Andrew Diey to see what he has up his sleeves for 2011.
Where has Radium come from?
I founded the company in 2007 and now have a team of 12. We have a reputation around the world and as a sound design & music company, recognised and respected by big name brands and creative agencies.
What is the creed that Radium lives life by and what makes you stand out from other sound design agencies?
First and foremost, we are artists and apply our work to both not-for-profit art-based and commercial projects. Our mission is to become THE leading sound company on the planet! Our ethos is to produce the highest quality sound, no matter how big or small the project is. We are open with our clients and always share our well thought out and considered vision of their work, taking on board their needs and suggestions.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Our passion for Radium is immense- all staff are highly motivated and share the energy needed to push our craft forward. Our studio is a workshop of the latest technology amongst some more unusual sound making devices. Working with these ideas inspires and motivates us to get out of bed!
What has been the greatest achievement for Radium so far?
Our recent work with Taylor James on Rolex, as well as Ford and Mercedes; Our product design work for Bentley, Ferrari, Nokia; and sound installation work for Universal at Cannes. Along with being listed as one of the top 20 sound houses in the world by Motionographer, winning multiple awards and always creating a Hollywood standard sound for all of our clients.
What’s the wackiest method you’ve used for creating a particular sound?
Again, working on Rolex, the music score became interwoven into the sound journey. We wanted to capture the heart of the watch so we investigated how to capture the sound of sweeping movements and the coils within. Their watches are too quiet, so we found a microphone in Japan which is designed to capture the heartbeat of a snail. We applied it to the watches, which gave us a microscope into the world and sound of Rolex and its inner movements. We applied this to the ad, and you can hear the sound that has become a living soul as well as a painted picture in the mind.
Do you have a favourite source of inspiration when/if you hit a creative block?
The real world! It’s the best place to find new sounds, objects, locations, machines! They all have a unique sound which we are able to incorporate into our work.
Have you made any resolutions for 2011? Any ambitions you are burning to achieve?
Develop our new interactive department where we’ve already started to make prototypes with staff. We will continue to grow our creative department and generally improving our craft.
We suggest that you take a look at some of the projects and intriguing ‘in-depth’ behind the scenes video’s on Radium’s website, showing that sound design is a true art: www.radium-audio.com/