Podcard - Givemas Day Eleven

With families stretched across the globe this holiday season, many have had to face the reality of another special occasion apart. Voicemails, video calls, and postcards sent overseas, we’re all holding onto that something that will reconnect us with our most near and dear. Audio Producer Anna Frey Taylor has created the perfect project to help us do just that.

Podcard is a “single edition personalised podcast for someone you love.” Created through online audio submissions from friends and family, Anna creates a professionally produced “audiobook of memories,” to help you celebrate your loved ones.

We spoke with Anna to discuss how meaningful she’s found Podcard to be and what it means to connect in a world stretched so far apart. 

Founder Anna Frey Taylor

It’s such a pleasure to chat with you Anna! As we head into December, how are you finding the end of another year?

I love this time of year. I enjoy the feeling of winding down and having a chance to reflect. Like everyone, I’m worn out by the pandemic, but I’ve been fortunate to be able to still work and stay healthy this year, so there’s a lot to be feeling thankful for right now. 

With such uncertainty over our lives in the last two years, how have you personally stayed connected to those you care about most?

Phone chats while walking in the park and lots of texting on WhatsApp are my favourite ways to connect.

It was so touching to hear how Podcard originated as a gift for your Grandmother Marjorie’s 100th birthday back in 2019. How is Marjorie going and do you have a special present you lined up for her this time around?

Sadly, we lost my grandmother in July. She was 102 years old and lived a wonderfully full life, so we are doing OK but it was still a shock -- I know it sounds silly to say when she was 102 years old, but I think part of me really believed she’d live forever. 

Anna and her grandmother Marjorie Taylor. Photograph by Gavin Green.

Her funeral took place during lockdown and I wasn’t able to attend because of covid restrictions. But we played part of her podcard during the service, which was a beautiful way for our extended family to still have a presence at the service. 

Through your project, you must have listened to hundreds of stories of families across multiple countries. What is the key message you find most people want to get across in their Podcards?

Every message, no matter its form, is an expression of love and affection. Podcard offers people a platform where they can say the things that they feel but rarely say, so generally people just take the opportunity to tell their loved one how much they mean to them.

Editing such large amounts of audio must mean you hear very specific details about people’s lives and their relationship histories. Are there some really impactful messages and stories that you often think back to?

For the most part, the stories we hear aren’t epic tales but that doesn’t mean they’re not hugely significant. The stories we treasure at Podcard are the humble stories of daily life and human connection - a bushwalk with a friend, driving through the night to arrive at a relative’s place, walking home from school in the hot sun. 

For an outsider like me, the stories don’t always appear to be remarkable. But for the people who lived them, they are profound -- these are the stories and people that have shaped their lives. Listening to these ‘small’ stories told with great care has always felt like a huge privilege.

I imagine many of your Podcard requests might be quite moving. Have you had many submissions that surprised you and made you chuckle?

It’s often the incidental sounds that sit around the messages that intrigue me the most. Recently, a message came in from an older couple who recorded a beautiful story for their adult child. 

But at the conclusion of the message, neither of them could work out how to end the recording, so the final 30 seconds was just them bickering and laughing about the fact neither of them could find the off button. It was hilarious. They reminded me of my own parents. 

Anna editing a Podcard at her desk. Photo by Gavin Green.

When you receive a submission, how do you start compiling the special messages? Is there a narrative you try to create in ordering, or does it happen rather naturally?

We use traditional audio storytelling techniques to shape each of our podcards. And the final order of the messages is determined by a number of different sound factors, including tone, audio quality, momentum and mood. Getting the overall sound of a podcard just right is a real art!

Whilst you’ve made over 1000 audio messages for other people’s loved ones, have you had the chance to create any more for your own?

Yes, I have! In September, I made one for my husband for his 35th birthday. We were stuck in lockdown, so I thought I’d surprise him with a podcard given it was truly the last thing he’d expect to receive from me! It was filled with messages from his closest friends and our family, and he absolutely loved it.

Podcard art by Alice Lindstrom

Some of the sample audio grabs you have on your website really showcase a real authenticity to them. Have you found that people come across more genuinely through audio compared to other mediums?

For me, audio has always been a much more approachable medium than video – when you don’t need to worry about the camera, you can just relax and have fun. That’s why with audio you’re able to capture such incredible moments of connection.

As an audio producer, what is it about the medium of audio that you find to be so captivating in expressing human emotion and connection?

There is a reason oral storytelling is one of our most enduring forms of communication – it’s all in the human voice. If you listen closely when someone speaks you can hear everything about that person: their physicality, their outlook in life, the ways the world may have bruised them. The human voice carries it all – there’s simply no better medium than audio for communicating emotion! 

You can learn more about Podcard and order your own special message by heading to their website here.

WORDS: NATALIE WILLIAMS
PHOTOGRAPHY: GAVIN GREEN