An Interview with Alex Williamson & Sam Hodgson from ‘Earthsounds’ on Apple TV+

Dr. Bernie Krause, soundscape ecologist, recording a sonic snapshot of the Sugarloaf Ridge State Park in California, in “Earthsounds,” now streaming on Apple TV+.

Alex Williamson and Sam Hodgson are a pair of accomplished producers that have teamed up to bring the world one unique documentary on Apple TV+, Earthsounds. Which explores the symphony of sound the world creates that we sometimes miss, and we here at NTG were fortunate enough to sit down with both of them to discuss the crafting of this fascinating series.
 
John Betancourt: What inspired each of you to bring this incredible documentary to life?
 
Alex Williamson: So, with natural history, we're always looking for fresh ways to tell stories and fresh ways into the subject. And the idea was to try and explore the natural world through sound, which felt fresh, it felt like it hadn't been done before. And the simple concept was, the natural world is buzzing with millions of different sounds, but our human hearing can only capture a fraction of them. So, using new technology, which felt like a really good fit for Apple TV+, which is a tech company mixed with kind of TV, we're turning new tech to be able to capture stories and capture sounds that are beyond our human hearing. So, sounds that are too high for us to hear, too low for us to hear, too tiny or too fast. So, using new tech, the idea was we could capture a whole world of new secret conversations and sounds. And what's cool about it is that when you start to listen into nature, you realize that the animals are doing some pretty weird stuff with sound and not just communicating with it.
 
They're navigating with it, they are finding mates with it, they're fighting with sound, there's even a spider uses sound as a kind of sedative. They're using it in weird ways. But they're also, they're creating it in weird ways. So, there are shrimp that explode, there's a little Amazonian bird uses its feathers like a violin bow. So, they're using sound in weird and crazy ways. And they're producing it in even weirder ways. So, the concept was for the audience to hear our planet like never before. And we over the course of four years captured 3000 hours of sound from 20 countries and all seven continents. So, our sound teams have been literally around the world recording our planet and the animals on it, hopefully, so that the audience can hear for the first time the whole story.
 
Sam Hodgson: What’s exciting about it is, is often you know, we had we had amazing access, we were able to work with scientists to get amazing access to new stories. And one of my one of my favorites was up in Alaska, we were able to work with the University of Alaska to put some tiny microphones on recording devices on humpback whales for their bubble netting. What that did was enable us to see for the first time, what the humpback whales are doing as they bubble net feed as they create these bubble curtains but also hear what they're doing. And it revealed that behavior in a completely new way, we now know that the whale that blows the bubble is also the whale that blasts out the feeding call, which freaks all the fish out into the center of the bubble curtain. So, it's about revelation and experiencing the world differently through sound, as Alex said.
 
John Betancourt: Alex, as you mentioned, it’s been a four-year labor of love. So, what does it mean to each of you to finally have it out in the world?
 
Sam Hodgson: You know, we’re just very proud of it as a series and, it has been a labor of love. We got the series commissioned, then COVID hit and we had a period where we couldn't get out filming and then for the whole team in the office, figuring out different lock downs and figuring out local crew and how we would record these, so there was a lot going on behind the scenes, shall we say. But watching the shows on Apple TV+ now we're just incredibly proud of, of how they look, but also how they sound. And as you know, as Alex was saying, we're always looking for new ways to experience the natural world and I think we were surprised by how incredible some of the sounds were. And we've got the sounds of walrus up in the Arctic, which just sound like -- you cannot believe an animal produces sounds like that. It's got to be heard to be believed so, I feel proud that we've been able to showcase these amazing natural sounds.
 
Alex Williamson: Yeah, it's the project I'm most proud of having ever been a part of. It's been four years over COVID, and it's been my creative focus. And to get it out in the world is fantastic. And it's about presenting the audience, our natural planet in in a really fresh way. And I think what's interesting, as well as some of the amazing stories and having Tom Hiddleston narrate it, who's a great narrator and brings the stories to life… it's a fun watch. It's a fast watch, its action packed. But it's also got a serious message to it. And it allows the audience to kind of really, we designed it so that it will plunge the audience into these worlds of sound and take you on a journey into sound. So, you drift through the soundscapes, and it feels immersive. But through it, you learn how animals sound, but also how each place on the planet has a unique, precious, and fragile soundscape. And what I'm most proud about it, I think, is that you realize that sound is a very powerful indicator about the health of the planet as well as it being kind of a fun action-packed show. And that soundscape is changing faster than you believe. So, I think it really, it's a great fun watch, but also has a more profound message to it, which is about the keeping our beautiful, fragile, and precious planet safe and secure.
 
John Betancourt: Ultimately, what do you hope audiences walk away with after they've had a chance to experience this show?
 
Alex Williamson: Well, I think well… our planet is cool. And “Oh my god, I had no idea animals made those sounds. And I didn't know nature could be that amazing.” And like for me, we've made TV natural history shows together on and off for about 15 years. And what's cool about this one is it feels different. And there's so many natural history shows out there in the marketplace, and they all feel and have a similar kind of vibe to them. And I hope that you know, all the work that, we always try and strive to be different, but this one really does feel like “wow.” I just… there are so many weird belching sea anonames, exploding shrimp, body popping elephant seals, it’s a crazy world out there. And, and you've got to hear it to believe it. So yeah, it feels. Yeah, we sort of say there's more to nature than meets the eye. And really, this show really lands that it's kind of a funny, quirky, brilliant, beautiful planet.
 
Sam Hodgson: Basically, I started off as a radio producer. So, I've always been sort of sound focused. So, for me, it's been lovely to… our motto on the show was “audio first.” So, from everything we did, we were thinking about sound first and the pictures later and even the way we shot it, we tried to keep the camera moving as sort of drifting on the airways, we worked with, we worked with a Flow Motion, a seamless cinematographer who creates these sort of sound journeys through different soundscapes so, so it's really got a strong visual flavor, but, but it was all driven by the audio, how do we how do we take the audience on an acoustic journey through these landscapes? And so yeah, so it's been a fantastically fun and rich project to work on.
 
Alex Williamson: When we originally pitched it, the feedback was, this sounds like a radio show. And so, we spent a lot of time once we got into it, thinking how are we going to get the visuals to work? Since we know the audio is gonna sound great. So, coming up with that fresh visual style was something we're really proud of.
 
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
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