I love how Gabriel Spitzer delves into the various issues affected by the loss of the village. He packs a lot of information into this piece and uses the personal stories of villagers and natural sound to enhance the piece. Really interesting!
I admire what the producer did with this piece. After Lavinia's death, the story also became about him and trying to make sense of things. It's very somber - basically just his and Lavinia's voices - and you can hear their loss expressed in very different ways. I aired it on a Memorial Day show with a lighter, historical piece about war and it was a nice contrast.
I enjoyed this piece. I loved the personal reminiscences of the women. It felt very intimate and natural. I did not hear it originally on NPR, and I knew nothing about the WASPS, so it was a nice little introduction. I aired it for my Memorial Day show. It's a timeless piece. Quality and sound are excellent. The 22 minute length works well for a "themed" show, but I would prefer to lose the All Things Considered intro and outro.
This is the story of the Soul Savers' recollections of the days during and after Hurricane Katrina. The three men speaking have incredibly compelling stories. The interview is nicely mixed and makes you want to listen despite being a half hour long with no narration and no natural sound. Music adds to the piece nicely. I think the news reports at the beginning and ending are meant to give the piece context. But I would have loved it to be fleshed out with natural sound and really use the power of audio to add to the voices.
I thoroughly enjoyed this piece - especially hearing from Maxey herself. She's got this wonderful voice and such a relaxed way of speaking and a great laugh. It's a nice historical piece - reading old newspaper accounts and official city documents adds to Maxey's memories and Chicago development historians. It's an interesting tale, too, of fighting for what you want.
I think that the things the three women had to say about their visits to North Korea were, on the whole, interesting and valuable to hear. But it was a bit like listening to an interview without the interviewer so you miss the connection that often can provide energy and life to the interview.
I prefer sound and a story arc, so I felt like it was too long to keep my attention. This is not a piece to air for a distracted audience - you have to want to pay attention.
Irshad Manji is a thoughtful and provocative thinker and an engaging speaker. I really enjoyed this piece. Although I wouldn't define this as a documentary - it seems to be a recording of her lecture - if you have a show that features arts/ideas/politics/religion, I would recommend airing it.
Comments by Ahndi Fridell
Comment for "Moving the Village"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on June 28, 2006 at 09:09 AM | Permalink
Review of Moving the Village
I love how Gabriel Spitzer delves into the various issues affected by the loss of the village. He packs a lot of information into this piece and uses the personal stories of villagers and natural sound to enhance the piece. Really interesting!
Comment for "The Cost of War"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on May 31, 2006 at 04:29 PM | Permalink
Review of The Cost of War
I admire what the producer did with this piece. After Lavinia's death, the story also became about him and trying to make sense of things. It's very somber - basically just his and Lavinia's voices - and you can hear their loss expressed in very different ways. I aired it on a Memorial Day show with a lighter, historical piece about war and it was a nice contrast.
Comment for "The WASPs: Women Pilots of WWII"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on May 31, 2006 at 04:16 PM | Permalink
Review of The WASPs: Women Pilots of WWII
I enjoyed this piece. I loved the personal reminiscences of the women. It felt very intimate and natural. I did not hear it originally on NPR, and I knew nothing about the WASPS, so it was a nice little introduction. I aired it for my Memorial Day show. It's a timeless piece. Quality and sound are excellent. The 22 minute length works well for a "themed" show, but I would prefer to lose the All Things Considered intro and outro.
Comment for "Soul Savers in The Big Easy"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on April 09, 2006 at 05:20 AM | Permalink
Review of Soul Savers in The Big Easy
This is the story of the Soul Savers' recollections of the days during and after Hurricane Katrina. The three men speaking have incredibly compelling stories. The interview is nicely mixed and makes you want to listen despite being a half hour long with no narration and no natural sound. Music adds to the piece nicely. I think the news reports at the beginning and ending are meant to give the piece context. But I would have loved it to be fleshed out with natural sound and really use the power of audio to add to the voices.
Comment for "Maxey's Mansion"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on March 01, 2006 at 07:50 AM | Permalink
Review of Maxey's Mansion
I thoroughly enjoyed this piece - especially hearing from Maxey herself. She's got this wonderful voice and such a relaxed way of speaking and a great laugh. It's a nice historical piece - reading old newspaper accounts and official city documents adds to Maxey's memories and Chicago development historians. It's an interesting tale, too, of fighting for what you want.
Comment for "Three women who visited North Korea"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on February 26, 2006 at 05:04 PM | Permalink
Review of Three women who visited North Korea
I think that the things the three women had to say about their visits to North Korea were, on the whole, interesting and valuable to hear. But it was a bit like listening to an interview without the interviewer so you miss the connection that often can provide energy and life to the interview.
I prefer sound and a story arc, so I felt like it was too long to keep my attention. This is not a piece to air for a distracted audience - you have to want to pay attention.
Comment for "RN Documentary: Irshad Manji"
Ahndi Fridell
Posted on February 22, 2006 at 07:50 AM | Permalink
Review of RN Documentary: Irshad Manji
Irshad Manji is a thoughtful and provocative thinker and an engaging speaker. I really enjoyed this piece. Although I wouldn't define this as a documentary - it seems to be a recording of her lecture - if you have a show that features arts/ideas/politics/religion, I would recommend airing it.