Hey Reader, After a lovely train ride along the coast of the Pacific Ocean, my niece picked me up in San Diego last weekend. Her boyfriend was in the car. In front of him, she turned around and asked: "Did you work on The Last of Us TV series?" She was glowing; a big smile, wide eyes, expectant, and also knowing the answer. I said yeah, I did. She lit up even more. She wanted to know more -- what it was like, what I actually do. And I watched her explain Audio Description to her boyfriend....
1 day ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, I have a dear friend who won't say "I hope you're well." He says "I trust you're well." He'll say "I trust you had a good weekend." He's clear about why, and I can feel the difference. Hope has something earnest in it. A positive longing. I still like hope. But trust has a confidence to it. An expectation. I think of a trust fall -- you don't know exactly when you'll get caught, but you're making the leap anyway. That's something more connected than just hope. I've caught myself...
8 days ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader, The Thing Narration (Instead of Performance) Does There's a version of Audio Description that explains everything. It’s voice tells you what happened. It tells you what to feel. It tells you over silences because silence feels like failure. That version doesn't trust you. I used to do something similar in my own life. When I didn't know how something would turn out, I'd start running scenarios. If this happens, I'll say that. If they say no, I'll pivot here. I'd build elaborate...
15 days ago • 3 min read
Hey Reader, Last week, I paid $13 for a drive thru burger and fries. I remember the lunch impulse: “I’ll just grab a burger real quick.” I got into the car all excited and kinda happy about it. Then more than thirty minutes later, I arrived back. Of course the drive thru wasn't even fast. And dammit, I forgot to ask for the fries to be well done, which is a new thing for me. Two bites in, I knew that familiar disappointment. Not exactly “bad” feeling -- just like a neutral “nah, this isn’t...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
You're invited: The High Wire Act Read on for the house of cards / ceiling fan analogy, and an audio description tip. For this part, last week I wrote about when a performance starts being trusted. That's the thing I most want to spend an hour on with you. The High Wire Act: How Intention Changes Everything at the Mic Wednesday April 29 | 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern Free. Live only. No public replay. REGISTRATION LINK Lately, when people ask how I'm doing, I tell them I feel like I'm building...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
There's a change that I've felt inside the booth that's hard to give words to. Some people call it flow. I love that word. like a little cute leaf floating down a gently babbling brook (Babble. Get it?). I rise and fall around and above the big stones, gently, or sometimes, more likely, briskly, through all the elements, and just ride the waves. I think there's something else, too. You might think that it's a better read. Or a tidier technique. Like Marie Kondo your voice over. It's when stop...
about 2 months ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader, In the last three weeks, I’ve lost several jobs, and kept a dozen more. This Audio Description work, and maybe the work you do, doesn't move like the 405 during the pandemic, wide open and fast. I underbid a project. I overbid a project. I scoped a project cleanly, then all hell broke loose (through no fault of anyone). Several people told me they’d get back to me. Some had to say they lost the project. Some stayed in touch over years, still seeking funding. Some said wait. And I...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
A few years ago I met someone at an event, we had a good conversation, exchanged numbers, and then life moved along the way it does, and his name stayed in my contacts. Two years later I was talking to a friend about a museum he should visit with his family. We were both heading out. I wanted to send him a contact who could help. I texted the wrong name. The first guy texted back: what's this about? I said sorry, wrong person. He said no problem. We moved on. A few months ago I had guest...
2 months ago • 2 min read
There’s a difference between telling someone what’s on screen and bringing them into the scene. A decade ago, I was watching something with a friend who had recently lost his sight. With quality Audio Description, we were in the story together, laughing at the same moment, debating the same scene, experiencing the same film. With low quality Audio Description, he was getting stage directions while I was getting a movie. Same screen. Completely different experience. This week’s tip: Before you...
2 months ago • 1 min read
