Sound Stories: Billie-Rose Hamilton

A conversation with a member of the Forever Audio Sound team, Billie-Rose Hamilton about animation, sound design, experimentation and finding your path in audio.

Did you always know you wanted to work in audio?

For the longest time I wanted to do music. I studied music production at uni and realised that maybe music wasn’t a career for me. I took a few modules to branch out a bit - audio for games and location and post audio. This opened my eyes to other audio based careers. I realised my love was in film more than music and loads of my favourite scenes were favourites because of the sound design! Out of uni I did some work experience and ended up working as a Runner at (ENVY) a post production company in central London and that's where it all started.

You’ve worked across short films, animation and podcasts. Which type of project excites you most and why?

I think animation sound design is a strong contender here. 

Animation you have nothing to start with and have to create everything, unlike live action which comes with PFX and room tones, in animation it's your sonic world to create from the ground up. It can be more pressure but when you’ve found your rhythm with it it can be so much fun! 

Do you feel representation in the industry is changing?
I feel like there is some change. I see a little more diversity in studios and I hear more under-represented voices standing forward in the industry, not just women but people from all LGBTQ+, race, class, backgrounds. I think we are still a long way off though. It's easy to become habituated with the way things are and a lot of people don’t like rocking the boat, but some ships are old and antiquated….. 

What do you think studios and production companies can do to encourage more women into technical roles?

I think it's important for studios and companies to listen and support those voices and help to elevate people already within our industry. When doing this they elevate voices, and visibly back them in a meaningful way. It's important to send a message that these voices matter and are truly valued, not included as a gesture of tokenism, but as essential contributors. 

It's also about creating a healthy environment at work where women and others are made to feel respected, motivated and even encouraged to pursue more technical roles. You want to inspire future generations - show them these roles are accessible and achievable.

What advice would you give to young women who are curious about a career in sound but aren’t sure where to start?

Go for it! 

Lots of facilities offer work experience or shadowing opportunities. Find communities, go to networking events, make friends, and ask to sit in. Not everyone will be helpful but it really is a named industry so be you, be bold and get yourself out there. 

You specialise in sound design. What do you love about creating sound from scratch?

I think for me it's the initial phases. The planning, spotting sessions, discussing where the target is and all the possibilities. Followed by the first rounds where everything is still open to change, it could all flip on its head yet. “Lets try this here ... nope… wait here? perfect”  The experimental phases - this is where the fun is. 

What has helped you build confidence in your technical skills?

Seeing people smarter than me get it wrong. Haha! 

Making mistakes when starting a task for the first time is always daunting but it's not about the mistake it's about how quickly you can rectify it! Getting things wrong and general troubleshooting are great ways to learn. Understanding “why” makes life a lot easier. 

What do you wish you’d known at the start of your career?

It's not a straightforward path like some careers, you’ll go up and down and all over. That’s okay, just absorb as much knowledge as you can along the way.

What excites you about the future of audio?

What's next? Who’d have thought Atmos would have been a thing 20 years ago? I wonder if we’ll start to feel audio or something wild.