Your Support Means More Stories

Story 09: Chris Bolton – “All You Need is a Wall”

 
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Nathan James has been obsessed with tunneling since he was a kid. In this short piece he recounts one of his early experiences in tunneling into a neighbor’s backyard. I produced this piece for the Third Coast Short Docs Competition and therefore the documentary uses sounds created by the band The Books as a condition of the contest. The piece also borrows its title from one of their songs.

I will be following up with a longer version of Nathan’s tunneling adventures in the coming months, so stay tuned.

Music at the beginning is the Saarees


Story 08 : Chris Bolton – My Morning Bus Ride

 
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In this sound collage of a morning’s journey, Chris shares his thoughts, imaginings and observations during his daily bus trip to work. Public transportation brings together nearly all walks of life and so the bus becomes an ideal setting to anonymously observe the sites, sounds and personalities of the city.

Music By Nathan Dalton


Story 07 : Claire Schoen – Survivors

 
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Survivors

In this chilling audio documentary by Claire Schoen, the survivors of solitary confinement tell of a concrete and steel room that goes by many names. Solitary confinement is a brand of torture which employs prolonged periods of sensory deprivation and isolation. It goes unchecked in the United States, despite our anti-torture campaigns and ideals. The mental and physical toll is evident in those who survive it. Producer Claire Schoen met nine former prisoners who describe what it looks, sounds and feels like to live in solitary confinement.

Explore more of Claire’s work here: http://claireschoenmedia.com/


Story 06 : Chris Bolton – Sea Monsters!

 
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Giant Squid

Kevin Herbinson, a semi-retired marine biologist, unravels the uncanny experience he had as a young man, waking up in a row boat on the coast of Chile to a blood red sea.

Wikipedia article on the Atacama Desert


Story 05: Chris Bolton – In which I Punch Out A Bully

 
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Barfight!In this audio-biographical exploration, I interview my three friends Jon, Nora and Avery, who were all with me at a small Portland bar called Valentines the night that a couple of bullies decided to take things too far.

Musical interludes borrowed from

Andrew Dougless Rothbard
and
Andrew Bird


Story 04 : Chris Bolton – The Underwater Birth Of Francis Henri

 
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Baby FrancisMy brother Andrew Bolton and his girlfriend Grace Jones (no not the angular pop singer from the 80s) were kind enough to let me interview them and record the water birth of their first child at their home in Portland, Oregon.

I produced this piece while attending the CDS Documentary Studies workshop at Duke University in August 2008.

Published in conjunction with Speakeasy DC.


Story 03 : Ryan Scammell – The Rabbi

 
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The RabbiEvery once in a while a person achieves just enough altitude in his/her life and, if only for a brief moment, is given a panoramic view of the world in relation to his or her place in it. This story is about a band, a Rabbi, and a twenty year old who, without any warning, finds himself just above the trees.

Ryan Scammell is a writer living in Brooklyn, where he produces audio stories and films for his website www.writinginsound.com


Story 02 : Chris Bolton – For Those About to Rock!

 
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ACDCWe invited ACDC to come to this party back in 2001. It was a silly idea. Avery and I left a note on their tour bus with our phone numbers and crude drawings. We’d just moved to Portland, OR, and we were impressed with all the cool kids and happenings in town and we desperately wanted to make an impression. Imagine our surprise when we actually got a call from Angus Young, and he told us they’d stop by.

Musical shenanigans by yours truly.


Story 01 : Chris Bolton – The Story of Uncle John

 
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CoffinThis is the Bartelby-esk story of a grown man who lived in a wooden box for a time in the late 1990s. My good friend from highschool, Carolyn, tells the story of how her uncle went from living in a boat, to a trailer, and finally a coffin shaped box.

This is the first episode of Storylife, so please let me know what you think!

All music is by me and Garageband.