Everybody gather around the wireless, it’s time to stare at a speaker!

Radio plays hold a very special place in our cultural history. They were the first live communal entertainment streamed directly into homes. Weirdly, nobody can agree when the first radio play was broadcast, but it was definitely in the 1920s, and since then thousands if not millions of hours of fiction have been beamed directly into the ears of listeners.

Some stories are meant to be experienced in the room. Perhaps… around the campfire?

A Solo Show is maybe the closest modern audiences will ever get to feeling like cavemen, gathering around of an evening to hear an urgent tale of paramount importance.

It’s just one storyteller and a (hopefully) packed venue. Except the storyteller isn’t telling a story, they’re living it. The audience are flies on the wall, watching this individual relive moments of their life the way we all do when tucked in bed at night. Alone.

with Iris Prize LGBT+ Film Festival hitting Cardiff this week, I felt it was a good time to go over what a short film is, seeing as there’s going to be so many of them showing this week.

Go check them out!

Or, if you’re reading this in the future, you should be able to head to Channel 4 to see a selection of their best submissions.

Do you ever look at someone and wonder, “what is going on inside their head?” There are few narrative mediums more personal than the diary. As an audience, you’re literally inside the protagonists head. You feel what they feel, you do what they do.

It’s a story. A short story. Not a short, short story. But also, not a long short story. Understand?

High-End TV (HETV) is an expression which essentially translates to ‘big budget limited series’. And when I say big budget, I’m talking Hollywood blockbuster levels of funding.

HOW are you going to tell your story?

Every medium has its strengths and weaknesses. Blockbuster films were once a no-brainer for profit and reach, but depleting ticket sales and streaming releases are raising questions about the form’s longevity. High-End TV (HETV) is undergoing a similar peak and collapse, and TV soaps are fighting for survival every day.