1. Introduce yourself and what you do.
Sound Engineer and Film Maker in Arts and Culture
2. How did you get to where you are currently and is it any different to what you expected when you started out?
Definitely different in that I had no idea what I wanted to do until I came to Brookes! I went into a music degree at Brookes not really know what jobs were available in the industry. The music department’s links with industry got me a job with a contemporary music promoter called Oxford Contemporary Music and I was there for 15 years, why on earth it is being closed I have no idea, culture needs all the help it can get in this country at the moment and the department has been underfunded since I was there more than 20 years ago and has done great things with virtually no money in relative terms, consider what it could do if properly funded. I gradually developed a freelance career alongside that as a stage manager, sound engineer, production manager and tour manager for live music. I tour managed groups like Penguin Cafe Orchestra and Kronos Quartet and artists like Max Richter and Michael Nyman. I now co-run a company providing live sound and film making to arts and culture organisations as well as generating our own documentary content.
3. What have been the barriers or difficulties in getting there?
Money! The arts in this country is massively under-funded and under-resourced. I have many advantages though which shouldn’t be advantages but even so it’s hard to make a decent living in some parts of the funded arts over the last few years.
4. What are your career highlights so far
There’s been a few and I feel very luck for that, essentially I work with music and people that I love and can, to some extent, choose the work I do. Particular high points have been: Seeing a wonderful artist I mix live sound for, Bex Burch overcoming a difficult day to play and absolutely beautiful set at Paradiso in Amsterdam, discovering an amazing band from Inner Mongolia, Anda Union, playing late night on a stage in Womadelaide festival in Australia and then having the opportunity to present them to an audience in Oxford. Watching Kronos Quartet performing arrangements of old blues records towards the end of the period when the original members were all in the group whilst tucked into a Victorian pulpit side of stage in a beautiful church in Prague.
5. What do you wish could change about the industry?
Money and support. The UK doesn’t value or support the arts in the way that many other countries do and the industry is loosing good people and presenting shows poorly as a result.
6. Any tips about networking or collaborating in the industry?
Get out and talk to people. I started my career by asking people if I could shadow them. Put yourself in a position to be useful, to always look out for what you can do to be helpful and people will give you jobs.
7. What would you change about your journey if anything?
I would spend more time with my family when my children were young. I had to tour and be away a lot and work very long hours because that’s where the work was but I regret having to do it quite so much.
8. Where do you see yourself in 5 – 10 years time? Do you have a plan?
We’re moving away from renting equipment and sound engineers out and expanding our work in recording and filming, the plan is to make more films about the arts and we’ve got some great projects in development.
9. If you have ever felt imposter syndrome can you tell us more about it?
Every day. It doesn’t go away. I’ve worked across many different areas of arts and culture and because I’ve done lots of different things I’ve never felt comfortable in my abilities to do any of them. I have learned to cope better with it as I’ve got older, having clients book you back helps! I came to the realisation a few years ago that to some extent it’s not for you to say if you are an imposter or whether you’re worthy, look around you at the evidence, are you getting good feedback from clients and peers, are you learning, are you getting better at what your doing? Also try and find a good mentor or just someone you can talk to about the work, your career, your worries, perhaps even anxieties. The main thing to remember is that if you’re worrying about whether you’re doing a good enough job you’re already a step ahead of the people who don’t care (of which there are more than there should be in this line of work).
10. What advice would you give to your younger self?
“Ask ‘stupid’ questions. As you get older it gets harder.”
Links
Email: tim@timhandproduction.co.uk
Website https://tim-hand-production.co.uk
Photograph taken by Ian Wallman.