Research- Mic Positions and Point of Listening/Audition

Mic Positions

The distance the performer is from the microphone during recording can have an effect on the intimacy of the sound. Here are some positioning tips from the Savoy Hill website (which seems quite a useful tool for radio drama):

1. Closest to the microphone (as close as possible - beware of blasting and popping) - used for: monologue & voice in the mind.

2. Intimate conversation (a step away from position no 1). 

3. Conversation (stand far away enough from the microphone so that your outstretched fist is level with it) - MOST RADIO DRAMA DIALOGUE HAPPENS IN POSITION THREE

NOTE: SHIFT from POSITION THREE to POSITION TWO, and back again. This demands technical acting skill. It must fit with the dialogue situation - the intimate climax of a scene?, telling a secret?, wanting to move to an objective.

4. Across the 'room' (to 10 feet away) - opens out the dialogue to a larger space & making an approach 'through the door' to characters in POSITION 3.

Savoy Hill. No Date. Microphone positions - five in total - from closest to moves off. [online]. Available from: http://www.savoyhill.co.uk/technique/micropositions.html [Accessed 24 March 2013].

Point of listening

Here is a link to information on point of listening/audition. Due to the nature of our drama we don't really need to worry about clever use of point of audition to tell the story; our story will be heard from a fly on the wall point of audition throughout, apart from the scenes at the airport when archie is thinkng.

I have drawn up a rough sketch of the points of audition which will be updated and put in with the recording plan.

http://www.savoyhill.co.uk/pointoflistening/pointoflistening.htm

Savoy Hill. No Date. Point-of-listening in radio plays.[online]. Available from: http://www.savoyhill.co.uk/pointoflistening/pointoflistening.htm [Accessed 23 March].