Port Magazine: Recent Episodes
Port Magazine
Beginning with a speculative letter written aged 12 to actress Lillian Gish for a school project – the star of The Wind (1928) and frequent muse of controversial film director D.B.Griffith – Austin and Howard Mutti-Mewse embarked on a stream of correspondence with Hollywood’s vanguard that would continue for the next 30 years.
Here they share the story of how two boys from Surrey ended up befriending Hollywood's elite, and embarking on a journey that would taking them to LA...
28 May 2014
For many of us, gender is something that we think of in black and white terms, a binary of male and female. In the womb, we are prescribed gender identities, before the nucleus of our personalities are even formed. But gender is something more than anatomy: it is something more than physicality. It is beyond the simple, limited terms of 'male' and 'female'.
What happens when we challenge these judgements placed upon us? What happens when we take a journey into gender, of our own accord, discovering along the way who we really are, rather than who we are told we should be?
In this podcast, we meet Jake, Felix and Matt, three trans-people who are undertaking this very journey.
We also talk with activity and professor of equality law, Stephen Whittle OBE, about his experience overcoming the UK's discriminatory laws.
Produced by Barney Rowntree Production assistance Betty Wood
Music Antony & The Johnsons
Special thanks to Professor Stephen Whittle OBE, Jake, Matt, Felix and Jay.
27 February 2014
In his hometown, author Nathaniel Rich takes a murder mystery tour where the cops are the bad guys...
Written and read by Nathaniel Rich Edited & produced by Barney Rowntree
What's the best thing about Louisiana's finest city? The jazz? Nope. It's the bread made with love, care and a whole lot of contamination. Nathaniel Rich reveals the secret of sandwiches in our second 'Letter from New Orleans' by the celebrated author.
Read by Nathaniel Rich Edited & produced by Barney Rowntree
Port regular Nathaniel Rich introduces the first of his Letters From New Orleans collection, serialised in Port. In this first letter, written for our inaugural issue, Nathaniel takes us to post-Katrina New Orleans where life may have changed, but the attitude towards it remains resolute…
The last issue of Port considered the future of the printed magazine, talking to the editors of longstanding publications like the New York Times Magazine and Vanity Fair. Magazines are coming to terms today with how print and digital complement each other, but in the online world, is the role of the editor under threat? Do we now live in an algo-world shaped by the intelligence of anonymous processes rather than the emotional decisions of humans? Will algorithms play a role in how we write and consume news?
Part One: Kevin Slavin, Assistant Professor and founder of Playful Systems Group at MIT explains how, increasingly, modern life is affected by algorithms and computations that leave no signature on our conscious, and why, some writers are no longer writing with a human reader in mind…
Part two: Frederick Fischer, CEO of Tame explains that social media has managed to separate content from the news brands, and how the power has shifted from editors to the developers, changing the role of the modern journalist completely.
Part three: Luke Lewis, editor of Buzzfeed UK explains how the website 'predicts' what content will be popular with readers...
Produced by Phil Smith
Music:
Artist: Jamieo Brown Track: I Said Label: Motema year: 2013
Artist: Gabriel Prokofiev & Peter Gregson Track: Tuff Strum (Louis D'Heudieres Remix) Label: Nonclassical Year: 2012
Artist: New Musik Track: Warp Label: Epic year: 1982
Artist: Hello Skinny Track: Remember Year: 2012
Artist: Thundercat Track: The Life Aquatic Label: Brainfeeder Year: 2013
Artist: Metro Area Track: Machine Vibes Label: Environ Year: 2002
Artist: Suzanne Vega Track: Tom's Diner Label: A&M Year: 1987
Artist: Laurel Halo Track: Hour Logic Label: Hippos In Tanks Year: 2011
In 1963, photographer Dan Budnik sat behind Martin Luther King Jr. as he delivered his most famous speech. 50 years later, he sat down with Port’s Barney Rowntree to discuss the stories behind his images documenting the American Civil Rights struggle, including the pivotal Selma to Montgomery march of 1965, which will be included in his Kickstarter book project Marching To The Freedom Dream, to be published by Trolley.
Click for more information on the project, or visit www.danbudnik.com
Audio produced & edited Barney Rowntree
Music
Artist: Mahalia Jackson Title: ‘Trouble of the World’ Label: Couch and Mason Partners Artist: J.B. Lenoir Title: ‘Alabama March Blues’ Label: L+R Records Artist: J.B. Lenoir Title: ‘Alabama March’ Label: L+R Records
Artist: CFCF Track: Exercise 4 Label: Dummy recordings
31 July 2013
Prologue: Senior editor Matt Willey introduces this month's podcast on Willard Asylum for the Chronic Insane, opened in 1869 on Seneca Lake, New York State. It's mission, to "Treat the chronically insane with gentleness and understanding". Nearly 50'000 patients lived at Willard during its 127 year history and roughly half died there.
When it closed its doors in 1995, workers stumbled upon a discovery that shed an unknown light on the lives of Willard's patients...
Karen Miller, a psychiatrist and poet who's spent the last several years researching the histories of Willard's former patients, talks to former employees Sally Dawley and Peg Ellsworth, who started working at Willard's in 1948. Miller explains how Willard, the first psychiatric hospital in New York, was home to more than 4'000 patients at one time during the 1920s and 30s, and the cultural attitude to mental illness at the time.
We also meet photographer Jon Crispin has been tasked with documenting the suitcases of patients, found in the attic of the abandoned hospital by a member of its former staff. Each case contains the only personal belongings of its owner, brought in when committed, and kept after their death...
Credits:
Produced by Barney Rowntree
Jon Crispin, photographer Karen Leslie Miller, psychiatrist and a poet Sally Dawley, former Willard employee Peg Ellsworth, therapy aide at Willard Reading, William Kherbek
Port opening credits by Jean-Gabriel Becker, Sounds And Sons
Music credits: Artist: Anenon Title: Eighty-Four Label: Non Projects
Artist: Danny Paul Grody Title: Four years Label: Root Strata
Artist: Ikebana Title: Ends Label: Flau
Artist: Brave Timbers Title: All the things you couldn’t say Label: Second language music
Artist: Brave Timbers Title: More like the oak than the willow Label: Second language music
Artist: CFCF Title: Exercises 1 (Entry) Label: Dummy
1 June 2013
Prologue: Senior editor Matt Willey introduces this week’s theme – dubbing in French cinema. Since the 1930s, France has remained one of several European countries that choose to dub foreign films with the voices of their own, French-speaking actors. It might get bad press here in the UK, but in France, dubbing is considered an art form…
Part One: The French Bruce Willis. When the French see Bruce Willis onscreen, they hear Patrick Poivey. From Moonlighting to Die Hard, Patrick has dubbed the action hero for almost 30 years. He explains how his career as one of the most recognised voices in France grew from idle days spent in Paris…
Part Two: Francoise Cadol is the French Angelina. As the voice of Lara Croft Francoise’s work voicing other actresses has attracted fame in its own right. With her own fan club, Francoise explains the phenomenon of having people turn around to ask for your autograph when ordering a coffee…
Part Three:In Paris, where acting schools thrive, so too do dubbing schools. But do actors really need to learn how to double? And is dubbing having an adverse effect on the foreign-language skills of France’s primary and secondary school students?
Credits: Produced by Barney Rowntree
Port opening credits by Jean-Gabriel Becker, Sounds And Sons
Music credits: Artist: Brambles Title: To speak of solitude label: Serein Artist: Sébastien Tellier Title: La Ballade Du Georges Label: Lucky Number Music Limited Artist: Hauschka Title: Cube Label Fat Cat records Artist: Sébastien Tellier Title: Le Long De La Riviere Tendre Label: Lucky Number Music Limited
8 May 2013
Prologue: Port senior producer Matt Willey introduces the second Port Podcast on the theme of Resolution in Film.
Part One: Neil Brand is a London based pianist composer and writer. Best known as an accompanist for silent film, he talked to us about the importance of resolution for film music...
Credits:
Produced by Barney Rowntree
Port opening credits by Jean-Gabriel Becker, Sounds And Sons
Music credits:
Artist: Brambles Title: Such Owls as You Album: Charcoal Label: Serein
Artist: Bernard Herrmann Title: Main Title Album: Sisters OST Label: Southern Cross
10 April 2013
Prologue: Senior editor Matt Willey introduces the first Port podcast on the role of silence in films.
Part One: Silence is a vital element within film, but one which we rarely give thought to. We hear from writer George Michelson Foy on how the noisy experience of modern living led him in search of the acoustic dream – absolute silence.
Part Two: Acclaimed sound designer and editor Paul Davies explains how he conducts tension using near silence, room tone and drones rather than a traditional musical cue in his films, which include Steve McQueen's "Hunger" and Lynne Ramsey's "We Need To Talk About Kevin".
Credits:
Produced by Barney Rowntree
Port opening credits by Jean-Gabriel Becker, Sounds And Sons
Music credits:
Song: Jamais Artist: Charlotte Gainsbourg Label: Because Music
Song: Cube Artist: Hauschka Label: Fat Cat Records
Song: Dreams of Stairs Artist: Taylor Deupree Label: 12K
Song: In the Androgynous Dark Artist: Brambles Label: Serein
Song: Side A Artist: David Lynch and Alan R. Splet Label: Sacred Bones Records
Song: Right up Rooster Artist: Padang Food Tigers Label:Under the Spire