Why Micro-podcasting?

Short-form audio as a format

The idea for BCAP was established after listening to an episode of the podcast, 99% Invisible on the American short-form audio project, Audio Flux. Really, it is Audio Flux to which we are most fundamentally indebted, at least regarding the core format:

Precisely 3 minute, highly-crafted audio works, curated as collections, distributed as podcasts

The idea of setting scope very small whilst aiming for a higher-degree of polish, then grouping works for distribution seemed like a great recipe for a creative collaborative project: it lowers the barrier to participation and then gives the final product a greater degree of substance when shared.

Collaborative creativity

Our audio works are typically envisioned and then crafted by a single person, however this does not mean they are made in isolation. We actively encourage discussing ideas, sharing knowledge and pitching for feedback on works between members of the community.

Keeping BCAP a community driven venture is essential to our mission. When creativity occurs within the context of community a number of incredible things things happen:

• Accountability - it's far harder to put off doing something if you have committed to presenting or supporting the development of something. And turning up is half the battle!
• Quality - surrounding yourself with positive people is incredibly powerful. Seeing what others achieve allows us to imagine creating things we never believed were possible.
• Support - knowledge and experience can be shared. Not just technical or practical but also lived experiences. You expose yourself to perspectives you may never have otherwise heard.
• Friendship - connecting with new people even in a city as busy as Bristol can be hard. Finding a shared interest is the number one way to fill your world up with like-minded folk.

A "physical-first" project

Whilst these effects can be achieved remotely, we believe that there is something vital in sharing a physical presence with your community. Technology can indeed make organising things incredibly efficient, however humans are subtle creatures and nothing can compete with occasionally meeting someone face-to-face.

BCAP takes an accessible, low-barrier yet high-prestige art-form and seeks to facilitate a physical-first community around it. Regular meet ups are organised across the year to support the process of developing audio works and each podcast released to the wider public is celebrated with a low-key premier and wrap party.

This grounding in the physical world is the key way in which we diverge from a project such as Audio Flux which due to it's international nature is necessarily digital-first.

And it is this commitment to keeping the foundations of this project and community in the physical world that leads to the central, broad theme of our content - all works should be at least loosely based in Bristol. We are people who meet in Bristol, telling stories related to Bristol and sharing them with the world.

For more specific details on our content guidance, see our Contribute page