AuroraCast: Recent Episodes
Droplet
AuroraCast is the official podcast of Aurora Eclipse Productions Ltd. Join Mike as he sits down with creatives from the film and music industry. Expect plenty of related (and unrelated) conversations offering insight and experience from many years in the business.
Hosted by Michael W. Bell.
After achieving success as a composer with credits ranging from the From Dusk Till Dawn TV show to ESPN and UFC, Adrian Croom set out to make an album showcasing his skills as a producer with a taste for darkwave and minimalist electro. Belladonna is his most remarkable work yet, a hybrid of film score grandiosity, post-punk moodiness and electro-pop hooks. Anchoring it is the masterful mixing work of Dylan Cameron (S U R V I V E, Troller), with his knack for bringing out exquisite and impactful bass without cluttering the haunting vocals and Grammy-nominated masterer Chris Athens (Drake, Meek Mill). Croom just finished composing the score for horror film Realm of Shadows, starring Candyman's Tony Todd.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
The Inner Circle Discord
Following on from last week's initial thoughts episode, Mike sits down with his old friend Jobo to discuss home cinema, the rise of Dolby Atmos and home automation in general! Jobo started his career working in IT before moving into bespoke cinema and home automation installations and has extensive experience in the field.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Control 4
HD Baset
Trinnov
Klipsch
Krix
The Inner Circle Discord
In this Solo Pod, Mike gives some initial insight and thoughts on Dolby Atmos and what it means for the future of audio-visual presentations. This podcast introduces the formal on both a commercial and consumer level and briefly discusses how it works, the initial games, films, TV shows and music which use the algorithm and more.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
The Inner Circle Discord
Joseph Goldsmith is the CEO and Executive Producer of Persimmon Lane Studios, LLC; an audio and video production company. He is originally from Southern Maryland and now lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. He is a full time dad, husband, composer, location sound recordist, post-production audio engineer, soldier, and GRAMMY-Nominated educator. He is also the Audio Director for Plover Animation which is staffed of alumni from Disney, Dreamworks, Sony, and more. Joseph has worked in the music, film, and graphic design industries as well as ministry since 2011. In his military service, he currently serves as the Public Affairs Non-Commissioned Officer In Charge of the 3rd Battalion for the South Carolina State Guard.
This episode of AuroraCast features Joe Goldsmith as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
The Inner Circle Discord
Persimmon Lane Studios
Joseph Goldsmith
GaurdCast
A Day of SCSG Public Affairs - Video
AuroraCast is back! In this Solo Podcast episode, Mike briefly brings us up-to-date, discusses future plans for AuroraCast and announces the release schedule for the Podcast which is fortnightly on Saturdays @19:00.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Matthew Scott Clark is an English tenor from Sussex, and alumnus of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, taught by Eric Roberts and Adrian Thompson.
Roles include: Peachum – The Beggar’s Opera (Opera’r Ddraig); The Defendant – Trial by Jury (Winterbourne Opera); Pásek - The Cunning Little Vixen (RWCMD); Don Basilio/Don Curzio – Le Nozze di Figaro (RWCMD); Bardolpho – Falstaff (RWCMD - conducted by Carlo Rizzi); Lord Tolloller – Iolanthe (Tarantara Productions - at Chichester Festival Theatre); Apollo – Semele (RWCMD/Mid Wales Opera); Soldier – Der Kaiser von Atlantis (RWCMD); Daniel Buchanan – Street Scene (RWCMD); El Remendado - Carmen (Kentish Opera); Parpignol - La Bohéme (Westminster Opera); Paris - Romeo and Juliet (Arcadian Opera); and Georg Dibdin/Robert Green - Der Vampyr (Gothic Opera).
Upcoming engagements include: Monostatos in The Magic Flute for Arcadian Opera at the Roxburgh Hall Theatre, Buckinghamshire in May; Giles Smoothly in @emele for Oxfordshire Contemporary Opera at Wheatley House, Wheatley in July; and the Witch in Humperdinck’s Hansel und Gretel for Westminster Opera at the Château de Panloy, Port-D'Envaux, France in August.
This episode of AuroraCast features Matthew Scott Clark as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Lizzie Aurora
Matthew Scott Clark: Were I a King from The Grand Duke
Doing it all for Nigel: from @emele, with tenor Matthew Scott Clark
Matthew Scott Clark on playing Giles Smoothly in @emele
Emily has an amazing story to tell across multiple disciplines. She is a Surrey based music teacher who has been playing the piano since she was five (now holding grade 8 certification), she holds a Masters in Music Composition (MMus) from Kingston University, is an award-winning composer and is also a Pilot Officer in the RAF Air Cadets.
This episode of AuroraCast features Emily Jackson as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Emily is currently offering a selection of online music workshops and theory/piano tuition for all ages, to give support to those studying music, learning an instrument, or for those that need something fun, social and positive to keep their minds occupied! Facebook
Video Version
In this episode, we finally welcome Richard Yaxley aka Hrothgar. He is responsible for designing the AEPL logo and the principle branding of the company and is the founder of the UK extreme metal band Iceni. Ric is a highly talented individual whose passion for interactive media, art and music is hard-wired into his entire human experience. He is a celebrated artist with experience in an array of digital media fields; these include graphic design, motion graphics, the creation of album covers, logos and branding, landscapes, video and video editing, music composition, podcasting, voice-over artistry, vocals and much, much more. Mike always described him as, “one of those annoying people who is just excellent at everything”.
This episode of AuroraCast features Richard Yaxley as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Newgrounds
RDGS Podcast
RDGS Podcast: Aliens Episode
Chiptune
Winamp
Office Meltdown Video
When The Wind Blows
Plymouth Brethren
MiniDisc
Propellerhead’s Reason
Time Commanders
Bermuda Triangle
Boudica
BFD Drums
Magna Carta
Binaural Sound
Transhuman
Shakespeare Vaccine
Ready Player One
Bands & Artists Mentioned:
Yoshihiro Sakaguchi
Theodor Kittelsen
Storm Thorgerson
Ofgraveconcern
Kingsley Freedom
Iceni
Heilung
Burzum
Mayhem
Lazerhawk
Les’s Dark Ambient Track
Whitesnake
Sisters of Mercy
Cradle of Filth
Marilyn Manson
Isabelle Swan is a graphic designer, based in London. In this episode, we explore Izzy's projects and deep dive on her insight into the graphic design world. We touch on what it means to be a graphic designer, typography, getting started in the world of design, digital vs the physical page, films and what films mean on a sociocultural level, the future of design, how school can push you forward with the right teachers, University, productivity, joining dots in your life to push you forward and way, way more.
This episode of AuroraCast features Isabelle Swan as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Dav (and the drug dealing ice cream van) returns to AuroraCast… It has been 8 months since we last spoke on the show and a lot has happened during that time. Given all face-to-face AuroraCasts were cancelled due to the continuing lockdowns, Mike has been a little despondent but we are back! It seemed only right to kickstart the show again with the mighty Dav.
In this somewhat spicy long format episode, we naturally develop the studio gear conversation with Dav giving us a deep dive into his own custom power units, soundcards, workflows, his recently conducted live interviews on YouTube, and way more. We also discuss ownership and touch on totalitarian dystopias, philosophy, psychology, the importance of religion, art, culture, alternative social media platforms, cryptocurrency, blockchain, privacy and; we put our tinfoil hats on to get into what’s going on from our own individual perspectives in 2020 and beyond.
This episode of AuroraCast features Davinder Bedi as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Dav’s Show, RadiAsian
Mike’s Chat on RadiAsian
SkyQuaker & Steve
RadiAsian on Facebook
RadiAsian on Youtube
Andrea Ratti Returns! Andrea has experience in several areas in film production including: working with 16mm, sfx, and vfx, filming underwater, large crowds, working with animals, guns /other weapons, filming abroad, late scripts, challenging schedules and harsh weather. He is literate with Mac (own), MovieMagic and all AD administration and fluent in Italian. He has trained in Health and Safety with a current first aid certificate with a 100% safety record throughout all work. We talk face-to-face about the future of the film industry post COVID-19, the mess the cinemas are currently in, the cancellation of films, Netflix, Tenet and more…
This episode of AuroraCast features Andrea Ratti as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Clips Channel
AuroraCast Archive
Facebook Group
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
Christophe Szpajdel is a Belgian illustrator. Christophe's work first came to attention in the mid-'90s with logos like Emperor, Old Man’s Child, Enthroned, Borknagar, Moonspell, Desaster & many more. Since then he has continued to make a significant contribution to the extreme metal scene having drawn for literally thousands of bands with the vast majority are still being used to this day, in some cases 30 years since their creation.
This episode of AuroraCast features Christophe Szpajdel as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
YouTube Main Channel
Clips Channel
AuroraCast Archive
Facebook Group
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
This episode features just Mike in his first solo podcast, which just so happens to be about podcasts... Join him as he runs through some of his new recording gear, explains his future plans for the podcast and how the idea of AuroraCast came about.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Episode 11 of AuroraCast is one of our favourites so far! Firstly because It's the first time we had two guests on the podcast, and secondly because we had the unique opportunity to discuss the process of filmmaking while learning more about the careers of film producer Al Eales and film director Paul Cheung.
In this episode, we talk through projects in which Al and Paul have collaborated and highlight some of their independent projects, all while learning about their approach to creating and facilitating their films on all levels. Al Eales (Mindless Intelligence) brings a ton of experience to the table having worked in the film industry as a producer, scriptwriter and production services manager.
Paul Cheung is the Director/CEO of FightGravityFilms. He has worked on an impressive number of projects over the years including; narrative, documentary, advertisement, music videos, personal projects and more.
This episode of AuroraCast features Al Eales and Paul Cheung as special guests.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Mind Over Matter
Tom
Arnilia Grove
Tom
Rise
The Last Music Photographer
Al Eales IMDb
Paul Cheung IMDb
Talisa Yorke is an experienced Saxophonist based in Surrey & Bournemouth, UK. She has been playing the sax for the past 9 years and has recently collaborated with SkyQuaker on both their debut singles… We hope you enjoy learning more about her work during this podcast, we are 100% behind Talisa and think you should be too! For more information & bookings, contact Talisa via email at talisayorkemusic@gmail.com.
This episode of AuroraCast features Talisa Yorke as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Talisa Yorke’s NHS Clap Videos
Tenor Sax
Alto Sax
Contrabass Sax
Baritone Sax
Soprano Sax
Henry Macini
Ronnie Scotts
Alto Choir’s
Mike’s “Weird Alien Trailer”
SkyQuaker’s Queen Kong
Ben “Ferdy” Ford
SkyQuaker - Thank God for Rock and Roll
New York Jazz Scene
Talisa Yorke - Prove It Wrong
Supertramp - The Logical Song
Pizza Express @ The Pheasantry
Michael Lee Taylor (Solo, Rogue One, A Force Awakens, Jupiter Ascending) is a sound recordist and boom operator for film and TV. A graduate of the National Film and Television School in Beaconsfield, United Kingdom. Michael forged a career in London, working in the sound department on films and TV Dramas. Whilst also finding time to work as a sound mixer on documentaries, commercials and corporates. Michael now lives in Toronto, Canada with his wife and continues to work in the sound department.
This episode of AuroraCast features Michael Lee Taylor as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
NASA/SpaceX Launch 2
Aurora Eclipse T-Shirt Model
South Park CD (1998)
Mike’s Youtube
National Film and Television School
Otis The Aardvark
ADR
Audio Drift
Avengers - Age of Ultron (film)
Solo - A Star Wars Story (film)
The Force Awakens (film)
Avid
Florence Foster Jenkins (film)
Ambient Boom Poles
MKH 60-1 Shotgun Mic
Shure SM7B Mic
Philomena (film)
The Boys (TV show)
The BFI
Under The Skin (film)
Grant Borland Podcast
Michael W. Bell - Maritime Discoveries
Dubbing
IATSE Union
Dorking Brewery
Dav Singh Podcast
Matt D'Avella YouTube
Lectrosonics Radio Microphones
Radio Frequency
Jóhann Jóhannsson
Hildur Guðnadóttir
Barry Grint (Alchemy Mastering)
Barbary Streisand Scoring Stage
Air Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Dolby Atmos
8D Music
Twickenham Studios
Grant Borland hails from Michigan, USA. He can be easily defined as a musical storyteller and composer for Film, TV, Game, Advertisement and Trailer. Grant began writing cinematic music back in 2015 and has never looked back! He has composed music for various forms of media, some of which we unveil during this interview.
This episode is a special one! Firstly because despite talking for years over various social media platforms, this was the first time Mike and Grant spoke face to face... Secondly, this is AuroraCast's debut international interview which is a big deal for us!
We would like to take this opportunity to once again thank Grant for getting involved! Until next time buddy.
This episode of AuroraCast features Grant Borland as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Grant’s Instagram
Grant’s Twitter
Grant’s Soundcloud
Grant’s Youtube
The Thought Collective Podcast
Matt D'Avella Youtube
The Faceless
Daniel James Youtube
Dirk Ehlert Live Stream
Black Metal
Ghostwriter Music
Gothic Storm
“Do They Hear Us”
Explosions In The Sky
Lights & Motion
Cavalry Music
Mike’s Doctor Sleep SFX Toolkit
Epic Score
14th Street, Santa Monica (LA)
Hans Zimmer’s Studio (LA)
Sony Scoring Stage (LA)
Abbey Road Studios (UK)
The Buffalo Lounge (LA)
Remote Control Productions (LA)
The Groucho Lounge (UK)
The Return of the Composer
AMC and Odeon Luxe
Dolby Atmos
Grant’s Placements
Mike’s pitch for Lucas Pavetto - The Perfect Husband
Zebra-2
Mike’s Jurassic World Pitch #1
Mike’s Jurassic World Pitch #2
Mike’s 13 Reasons Why Pitch #1
Mike’s 13 Reasons Why Pitch #2
ScoreCAST
Bollywood
MIBE Music
Michael W. Bell - Bewailing Under the Eastern Skies
Grant’s Sample Library, “ESCALATE”
Focusrite Scarlett Interface
Mackie Onyx Desk
Davinder Bedi AuroraCast
Slate Digital
Slate Infinity EQ
Waves
Sound Toys
Fab Filter
Camel Audio Alchemy
They say Brighton is full of creatives and we are starting to see just how true that is! A bit like Mike and Preston... Mike and Preston also go back around 15 years, initially meeting while both working in the games industry in Brighton. While conducting these interviews during the COVID-19 lockdown, it felt only natural to get in touch with Preston to see how his music career is going and we were pleasantly surprised.
Preston creates Electronica, but to break it down you could call his music Instrumental, Downtempo, Electronic, Techno, Electronica, Breaks, IDM and more! His latest Release is Replanar (Remix Album) is fresh onto the shelves... Preston is an avid Ableton user and supporter of Bandcamp where you can pick up all his releases. In this AuroraCast, he talks us through his approach, his setup, details some of his philosophies and gives us a ton of links to check out...
We would like to take this opportunity to once again thank Preston for getting involved!
This episode of AuroraCast features preston.outatime as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
DJ Food
Ninja Tune
Preston’s Bandcamp
Enceladus
Replanar
Preston’s videos
Video made for BUNKR
BUNKR
Cyberattack
Liotia
Ableton
Saros Cycles
NI (Native Instruments)
Volca Bass
Korg Triton
Arturia Keystep
Toyboxing - Mylar Melodies - Why We Bleep Podcast
ALC files
Slate Digital
NI free tools
NI Machine
Novation (I don't think anyone has bought them, maybe just collaborative projects with Ableton)
Phil Lucas (Comedian) took the photo on the cover of Coplanar
Bandcamp Pre-Release
Battery Operated Orchestra
SkyQuaker
Posthuman's bought music
Les defines the word awesome (and has done for many years now). He is a multi-instrumentalist playing guitar, bass and currently learning drums and keys. He is an incredibly active musician playing in multiple bands alongside entertaining his musical side projects. Les is currently playing Bass for Deathwish and Lightning Strike, Guitar with Two-Tonne Vice while working on his own doom, black metal, ambient and soundscape projects.
In this Skype conversation, we run through Les's current guitar setup, talk about amps, pedals, cabs, amp modelling, working in and out the box, playing live. DAWs, plugins, mixing, his introduction and journey into music, making his own guitar, future endeavours and generally have a catch-up!
We would like to take this opportunity to once again thank Les for getting involved! Until next time buddy!
This episode of AuroraCast features Les Plumridge as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version
Jackson Guitars
B. C. Rich Beast
Tube VS Valve
Amp Modelling
Reaper
GarageBand
Ric
Pro Tools
Logic Pro X
Sonar
Aria iPad DAW
Black Metal
Two-Tonne Vice
DeathWish
NI Thrill
Steve HW
Les’s Blacksmith Track
Michael W. Bell - Maritime Discoveries
TickTick App
Totnes School of Guitar Making
Joel is a DJ/Producer, playing Drum & Bass, Breaks, House, Funk & Hip-hop. Mainly producing Drum & Bass, although crossing over into other genres... Mike and Joel go back around 7 years, initially meeting while both working in the tech industry in London. Joel is responsible for introducing Mike to Drum and Bass, taking him raving for the first time and showing him the world of what it means to be a DJ...
In the episode conducted during the COVID-19 lockdown, Joel runs us through his current production and DJ setup, talks us through his journey into music, his vinyl collection, performance, family and gives us an insight into his future plans for both H1GHL1NE and his upcoming planned podcast! We also talk through some of the pros and cons of the COVID-19 situation from a human experience perspective. Until next time buddy!
This episode of AuroraCast features Joel Minney as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Novation Controller
Focusrite
Logic Pro 9
Ableton
Stanton Decks
NI Traktor
Native Instruments
Carl Cox’s Vinyl Collection
AEPL
Joel’s Soundcloud
Joel’s Twitter
Joel’s Instagram
Joel’s Mixcloud
Hellman’s Mayonnaise
Chimay Chaser
After both Michael W. Bell and Steve Hope-Wynne (SkyQuaker) were kindly interviewed by the mighty Dav over at RadiAsian Radio, it only felt natural for us to return the favour via Skype during the COVID-19 lockdown.
We spoke about pretty much everything, so much so we are probably not going to be able to list them all in our allotted space; but for a start…. Microphones, studio gear, fighting evil, studying, frequencies, tunings, good and bad record labels, 5G, books, philosophy, personal approach to music, history, books, background, university, studying, self-improvement, instruments, audio frequencies, synths, food, family and even drug dealing ice cream vans!
This episode of AuroraCast features Davinder Bedi as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Dav’s Show, RadiAsian
Mike’s Chat on RadiAsian
SkyQuaker & Steve
Chartered Financial Analyst
Left & Right Brain
Carl Jung - Memories, Dreams, Reflections
Jungian Archetypes
Herbert Silberer
Sigmund Freud
Tony Buzan: The Speed Reading Book
A. M. Ruppel: The Cambridge Introduction to Sanskrit
Puran Singh: The Book of Ten Masters
Bill Schul: The Psychic Power of Pyramids
Paul White: Recording And Production Techniques
Korg M3 User Guide
Mike Senior: Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio
Bob Katz - Mastering Audio : The Art and Science
Bobby Owsinski: The Recording Engineer’s Handbook
Dennis Wheatley
The Holy Bible - King James Version
The Sikh Scriptures
Jill Mattson - The Lost Waves of Time: The Untold Story of How Music Shaped Our World!
John A. Keel - The Eighth Tower
The Devil’s Tritone
5G
AEPL
EM Fields
432hz
444hz
440hz
The Ark of the Covenant
Enochian
Indonesian Gamelan
BBC Introducing
E-MU 1820M
RMS
Desired Effect - Nashiliya
Raga or Raag
Davinia Palmer
Kerrang!
Desired Effect - Christmas Krusmas
Miss D and Luv Asia Radio
Dav’s Mixcloud
The 2 Guys Who Write Everything
Joe Meek
Rudy Van Gelder
Mick Hinton (DAV Electronics)
Pete Williams
Ben “Ferdy” Ford
Ben “Ferdy” Ford is SkyQuaker’s amazing virtuoso guitarist and genuinely lovely guy… We were honoured to catch up with him during the COVID-19 lockdown to touch on his musical background, bands, influences, his guitars, gear, crazy time signatures, playing style, the forming of SkyQuaker, some of the philosophies which underpin his creative approach, his future plans and he even plays us some guitar!
This episode of AuroraCast features Ben “Ferdy” Ford as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Video Version.
Steve (Hope-Wynne).
Vladimir Bukovsky.
13/16 Time Signatures.
I had a moment… It’s the Mission Impossible theme, not the James Bond theme! And it’s in 10/8, not 12/8.
Davinder Bedi.
Sibelius.
Ibanez RG.
Les Paul 59.
Gibson SG.
Angus Young.
Tony Iommi.
PRS Guitars.
SkyQuaker - Queen Kong.
Paul Reed Smith.
Steve Vai.
SkyQuaker - Thank God for Rock and Roll.
Georgie Mac.
Tilly Yorke.
Roo Savill.
Motorheadache.
Dutchess.
Aurora.
Joe Satriani.
Pro Tools.
Logic Pro X.
Doc from Back To The Future.
Echo 7 Recording Studio.
Mike had the pleasure of catching up with Andrea Ratti during the COVID-19 lockdown. Andrea has experience in several areas in film production including working with 16mm, SFX, and VFX, filming underwater, large crowds, working with animals, guns /other weapons, filming abroad, late scripts, challenging schedules and harsh weather. Mike has just finished composing the music score for Andrea’s second short film which he very much hopes everyone will watch on release.
This episode of AuroraCast features Andrea Ratti as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
Andrea’s Website
Andrea’s IMDB
Link to Tiny Kernel
Sergio Leone
University of the Arts London (UAL)
Stanley Kubrick’s Wife
Elliot Grove
2001 Space Oddysey
Raindance Film Festival
Kings College
Hitchcock
Momento
Shane Meadows
Old Boy
Stanley Kubrick Experience
Sundance Film Festival
Scoring Hummingbird (Patreon Exclusive)
Stephen Hope-Wynne is a British Actor, Vocalist, Songwriter and the founder of the British Rock band SkyQuaker. Steve is a high energy, positive soul whose dedication to the world of creating art is second to none. He has an intriguing story and a fascination career having spent many years working in Television comedy and drama, Feature Film, Theatre, Radio and is a Voice Talent for Games and Animation. Steve’s latest role was as Richard Croft, father to Lara Croft in Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018).
This episode of AuroraCast features Stephen Hope-Wynne as a special guest.
Links and show notes:
SkyQuaker
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Binaural/8D Recording
Skyquakes
Queen Kong
Talisa Yorke (Saxophonist)
Dorking Brewery
Georgie Mac (Producer @ Echo 7 Recording Studios)
Roo Saville (Singer)
Abbi F Jones (Singer)
Simon Cohen (Drummer)
Ben “Ferdy” Ford (Guitarist)
Shadow of the Tomb Raider Video Game
Davinder Singh & RadiAsian (Producer/Musician/Radio Host)