Pro forma for my audio drama

1. Audio
Will Anderson

2. Story
A watchman at Alcatraz Prison is on night duty
when many hauntings occur. We learn from the
watchman that these hauntings are of the norm
here as we follow him through the prison as he
tells the listener about the hauntings.

3. Research- If you are unable to find your own examples, you can use the ones
below.
• The Archers (audio drama)
• https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qpgr/episodes/player
• Short Cuts (documentary/factual)
• https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01mk3f8/episodes/player
• Lore (documentary/factual)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3RGz7Q_qlI
• Doctor Who (audio drama)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA50biqUB-8
• Soundscapes
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIUTO4gx5Eg
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JVm2IZ3ChU
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nc5YHodcXpM
DELETE THIS SLIDE WHEN DONE

4. Existing Products Research
• To The Moon and Back
– Uses loud, sharp sound effects to emphasise the impact of actions e.g-
when Bart hits one of the protagonists.
– Uses low pitch, low volume background music to add a dramatic and
tense feeling to the scene.
– The voices of the characters are easily distinguishable, meaning there
is little confusion as to who it talking.
– The reveal of one of the protagonist’s being a werewolf is supported
by a subtle chanting noise, emphasising its unnatural nature.
– We know the story is set in modern times as modern technology is
mentioned e.g mobile phones.
– The use of non-diegetic sound to add a sense of mystery to the story
draws in listeners interested in the supernatural.

5. Existing Products Research
• A Journey With Strange Bedfellows
– The Audio drama uses different background tracks to reflect the mood
of the scene, effectively changing how the listener will react to what is
going on.
– The characters are all voiced with somewhat old fashioned ‘posh’
accents, telling the listener that this piece takes place in Victorian
times.
– Ambient sounds are used to help set the scene e.g birds chirping tell
us that the scene is taking place somewhere natural outside.
– The altering background music helps to represent the different places
protagonist Hunter is travelling to, intriguing listeners who are seeking
an adventure story.

6. Existing Products Research
• Lost Property
– No background music is used during the raid, as instead the bombing
of the city around the main cast is all the listener needs to understand
the gravity of the scene.
– Actual children are used to be the voice actors for the children in the
story, lending authenticity to the story.
– We know when the story takes place from the sounds of the air raid
sirens and the bombs. Furthermore, the protagonist tells the listener
the date when the bombings increased in intensity, meaning it takes
place in WWII.
– The children talking about death causes a feeling of pity in the listener,
making them immediately feel a sort of care towards the characters.
Furthermore, the situation the cast are in (an Anderson Shelter) as
well as the lack of non-diegetic sound result in an authentic
experience which will draw in viewers interested in the history of the
war.

7. Existing Products Research
• Show Name Here
– Analysis

8. Bibliography
1. .
2. . N/A. (N/A). A Journey With Strange Bedfellows.
Available: https://www.finalrune.com/a-
journey-with-strange-bedfellows/. Last
accessed 6th Nov 2018.
N/A. (N/A). Episode 526 – 11th Hour Audio
Productions 2018. Available:
http://www.radiodramarevival.com/. Last
accessed 6th Nov 2018.

9. Planning

10. Idea Generation/Initial Reaction
• Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin,
after their natural deaths, hope to atone for their
sins in the Alcatraz Prison by appeasing the ghost
of Allen West, the man they left behind in their
prison escape.
• Morris and the Anglin’s die in the sea after
attempting to escape Alcatraz Island, and are
trapped in a cycle where their ghosts are forced
to repeatedly attempt to escape from the prison,
leading to the ‘hauntings’ that supposedly occur
to this very day.

11. Proposal
Working Title: Sleeping Slaves
What is it called? This can change if you think of something better later
Audience: My target audience would be people in their 30s-50s, as this piece lends itself to a serious and mysterious theme
which uses historical events for context. Gender doesn’t really matter in terms of target audience, as people of whatever
gender may enjoy it or not depending on their own personal preferences.
Who is your audience? Be very detailed; age, gender, social status, psychographic etc. Use the Audience Classifications
PowerPoint on Blackboard to help you develop this section.
Why would your project appeal to this person? Discuss each audience element in relation to content (why would your
product appeal to the age group? Why would your product appeal to the gender? Etc.)
Project Concept (approx. 200 words)
A watchman on nightshift in on patrol in Alcatraz Prison. He describes the frequent hauntings that occur there as he walks
through the many rooms. The narration combines the watchman talking to the listener about what generally occurs there as
well as what is happening in present time. The hauntings take direct inspiration from the supposed real life ones, including
Al Capone’s banjo, the phantom lighthouse and slamming doors.
In order to create this project, I needed to conduct thorough research into reports of the hauntings as well as the geography
and history of the prison. This included the infamous escape attempt which allowed me to add my own hauntings into the
mix of the ‘real’ ones.

12. Script
Scene one: Int. Alcatraz Prison
SOUND: Gush of wind, chains rattling
If you were to listen to the non-superstitious people of the world, they would tell you that I am alone. Listen to
some of the other watchmen, you’d hear them say that I’m alone. But let me tell you for certain – I am NOT
alone.
SOUND: Door slamming noise, followed by the sound of rattling keys
MUSIC: Mysterious background music plays
1500 prisoners used to be held here – now there’s not a soul in sight. Well, to tell the truth there’s not a body
in sight. It’s been thirty years, yet as I walk down the utility corridor,
SOUND: (Repeated sound of a door slamming, gradually getting louder and louder.)
the door I pace away from crashes shut as if trying to pursue me.
SOUND: (Slamming sounds stop)
Every day. Every night. Every sound echoes through through the prison halls, relentlessly hunting me down. I’d
heard rumours of these ‘occurrences’, but I didn’t believe them. Why didn’t I believe them?

13. Script
I mean it’s not like, its not like you’d be expecting a phantasmal man to greet you when you patrol
through solitary.
SOUND: Banjo starts playing off tune
And hell, don’t get me started on that stupid banjo I always hear playing in the showers. You know when
I first started here I thought, I thought that maybe I was imagining all this. Mind playing tricks and all
that. Heh, I wish.
SOUND: Door shuts, strong wind, walking on pavement.
It’s the lighthouse that gets me the worst. It just stands there, peering through the fog. There’s nobody
in it, no sudden movements. Just the lighthouse, standing there with no light, no noise. Nothing. I don’t
understand it at all. I mean, as unnatural as all of this is, at least the slamming doors and rattling chains
can be explained. But this lighthouse- its wrong. It shouldn’t be there. It hasn’t been for over seventy
years.
The thing is, I’ve never actually been attacked or hurt by any of these things. Most people would find
that reassuring. ‘Nothing bad is actually going on’ they’d say. But for me, it means something much
worse. If these paranormal occurrences were to harm me, I’d at least know why these spirits were here.
I mean, they were prisoners after all - wanting some form of revenge would make sense. Instead, I find
myself here night after night asking why? Why haven’t they attacked me, why do they do the same
things every single night? Its as if they’re being forced to repeat the same night over and over again.

14. Script
Int. Police Station

15. Sound Effects
Sound Effect Needed How I Will Create the Sound
Chains rattling Rattle some sort of metallic loop (e.g
keyring)
Scraping Scrape an object against a metal surface
Cell door slamming Slam a door shut
Keys rattling Rattle keyring
Wooshing wind Get online
Rusting paper Rustle some paper
Button beep Beep something
Typing Type

16. Resource List
Resource Owned/Cost What sound effect will it be
used for?
Paper Owned Rustling paper
Keyring Owned Rattling metal
Nail Owned Scraping

17. Music
Band Name Track Name Link

18. Production

19. Daily Reflection Preparation
Today, using the script I had prepared, I recorded the dialogue
for my project using a voice recorded app on my phone. This
resulted in the quality not being great, but it was sufficient
nonetheless. I used repeated takes to ensure I got the best audio
I could have gotten. Furthermore, I recorded the dialogue as
soon as I woke up on the morning. This resulted, as intended, in
my voice sounding dryer and a bit deeper than usual. The
dialogue came out to be about 155 seconds long, which is plenty
enough to make the audiobook 2 mins 30 secs as required.

20. Daily Reflection Day 1
• On day 1 I gathered audio for my project via downloading them online as
well as creating them myself. This included ambient background music,
wind sounds, slamming door sfx and dialogue, the latter of which I had
previously prepared. Although I was happy with the sound effects I
gathered, I wish I had been able to make more of them myself, as I was
only able to do so for a locking door sfx. I began to implement the audio
(excluding dialogue) into Adobe Audition, and without going into too
much depth edited it together. This involved overlapping some parts to
improve the transition between different pieces of audio.

21. Daily Reflection Day 2
On day 2 I began to implement the
dialogue. This helped to give me an
idea as to how long the piece
would be. The dialogue I recorded
was as good as it could have been
given I was using my phone to
record it as well as the fact that I
am in no way or shape a voice
actor. Said dialogue was too quiet
compared to the other audio, so
today I also began to edit the
sound levels of all my audio. In
summary I generally increased the
volume of my dialogue whilst
decreasing the volume of all other
sound, especially the diegetic
sound.

22. Sound Effects
Sound Effect Needed Link

23. Evaluation

24. Research
By researching three different pieces of media, I was able to gather a variation
of audiobook techniques for different genres. This allowed me to see how
different sfx could be used to make the listener feel a certain way, as well as
how to set the tone for the story using ambient sound (or lack thereof).
However, all of my research was done on audio dramas, meaning I never
looked into the other types of audio based storytelling and therefore was
never able to learn anything from them. For example, if I had spnt time
researching soundscapes, I would have learnt how to use audio to fully tell a
story with no dialogue whatsoever, which could have been incorporated into
my audio drama even though it has dialogue. This would have allowed me to
lessen the amount of dialogue (which in my opinion is the weakest point of
my audio drama due to poor sound quality) an instead focus more on the
ambient sound of the piece.

25. Planning
Before the college week started I recorded by dialogue so I could start editing
straight away. This meant that during the week there was no panic or last
second work to do. I left recording sound effects to when I was at college.
Although I was able to get some audio, in the future I would record my sound
effects at home so that I could have more control over the environment and
what props I used to make the sound effects. This would have allowed me to
have more originally made sfx instead of resorting to online audio for some of
it.

26. Time Management
On Monday morning I recorded the dialogue for my story as soon as I woke
up as to make my voice as dry as possible. This also gave me time to re-record
any dialogue that I wasn’t happy with as well as make some changes to the
script. On Tuesday I recorded some sound effects at college, including the key
chain audio. This left me plenty of time to edit all the audio together on
Wednesday, when I completed my project. I finished Wednesday off by
working on my evaluation, leaving me plenty of time left in the week for any
other work that needed doing.

27. Technical Qualities
My project isn’t overly complicated as I made sure to keep the number of sound effects
below a threshold. This ensured the audio didn’t become too cluttered.
Compared to works such as Lost Propety, my audio drama uses ambient background
music a lot more. Whilst in my piece the backing track is used to set the mood for the
story, in Lost Property no backing track is used to create the same effect. Although doing
completely different things, both works achieve the same goal which is to put the reader
into the setting.
To record my dialogue, I used an app on my phone. The quality of the audio, whilst you
can understand it perfectly fine, is a bit low.
To majority of the sound effects I used I obtained from the internet. However for those
that I created myself, I used the same app to record that I used for my dialogue. For
sound effects such as the keys, I simply shook a keychain. For the sound of opening a
door, I again simply recorded opening a door in real life. As for locking a door, I twisted a
doorknob to create the audio.

28. Aural Qualities
For the most part, the quality of my audio is good. The background music fits the
atmosphere of the story whilst not taking away from the audio. Furthermore, the sound
effects I used add to the tension of the story and help to give an idea as to what is going on
without having to say every little detail e.g the sound of a door followed by wind indicates
the protagonist has gone outside.
Although I was creative with how I told the story, what actually occurs technically isn’t as it
is all based on real life ghost stories of Alcatraz. However, I believe this adds to the
authenticity of the audiobook whilst showing listeners that I have actually researched the
supposed hauntings.
However, the audio for the dialogue is of low quality due to using my phone to record it. To
improve, I would use a proper microphone that could fully capture my voice whilst ignoring
background noise.

29. Audience Appeal
I made sure that the context for the hauntings that
occurred was based upon supposed real-life hauntings
in the very location. This should not only interest
people who are interested in the hauntings of Alcatraz
but help to give the horror a unique aspect, as nowhere
else, for example, are you going to hear Al Capone
playing his banjo in the showers.
I made sure that my audiobook didn’t rely
on any jumpscares and instead utilised
ambient sounds. I did this to prevent my
project from feeling too similar to other
media in the already over-saturated
horror genre. This will hopefully entice
people to listen to the piece.