Q&A with Jason Lew from QCODE's Birds of Empire

We featured Birds of Empire in the December 5th Edition of Podcast Delivery and we were lucky to get some of Jason Lew's time to discuss what went into creating such a vast and expansive world for your ears.

SO: Let’s jump right into it. What inspired you to create Birds of Empire?

JL: Fantasy was a huge influence on me growing up and continues to be a space I am drawn to as a storyteller. I love complex mythologies and alternate worlds and the project started almost as a challenge to myself to see if I could mint one that combine a lot of my passions and obsessions.

A lot of kids fantasized about winning the world series but I spent my time trying to imagine what it was like to walk the streets of ancient Alexandria or feudal Japan. The idea to set the story so far in the future at a time when humanity was cycling back through this style of living felt really exciting to me.

From there I just filled it with as many of the tropes and themes I love to explore and the kinds of characters I’m drawn to: Outsiders, misfits, unlikely heroes.

SO: How did you go about world-building specifically for audio in Birds of Empire?

JL: World-building for the show was definitely the biggest challenge and joy of the process. Every tribe has to have a foundational set of shared values and histories. Specificity is what makes great storytelling so I really had to make sure that the details were there and that they all connected to a larger history within the world.

Early on I would spend a lot of time just trying to get a rubric for what was and what wasn’t the world. Once I got a handle on that, things started to flow a bit more. It was sort of like learning a new language, super tough at first but thrilling when you get it.

SO: Was there anything in particular that you did with listeners in mind?

JL: I had a lot of fun figuring out some audio-only conventions for the medium. Yafa, one of our main characters is blind and a storyteller. I thought of him a bit like Tiresias the blind prophet of Greek myth. It certainly influenced character traits and storytelling devices.

SO: Any sort of challenges faced when writing for a podcast with a multi-season arc?

JL: The challenges of writing a podcast weren’t that different from any multi-season story in my case. That is to say, it’s always hard and messy and really exciting. No two projects are alike and this one took a bit of time to really bloom, but it was really rewarding when it came together.

I’m looking forward to going on the journey with these characters.

SO: I was lucky enough to check out the artwork for the show and it’s stunning. How did that play into developing the characters for Birds of Empire?

JL: We were very lucky to rope the talents of some incredible artists into our world. It didn’t influence season one, as it came after we had wrapped, but it has absolutely inspired me as I’m working on season 2. It’s so thrilling to see someone’s interpretation of the characters and world and to bring it to life after spending so much time with no visuals.

SO: What advice would you give to aspiring fantasy writers?

JL: I don’t know that I’d have advice specific to fantasy writers, as this is my first formal foray into the genre. But one bit of advice I like to pass on to writers early in their journeys who want to make scripted work, is to take an acting class. Actors are the conduits for your story and you have to know some basics about how they approach their craft since you are going to lay the foundation for their process.

Knowing how to make scenes active and alive and exciting for an actor is how you end up with great work. A composer doesn’t have to a virtuoso piano player to write music, but they need to know how music is played and what goes into the process. Writing for actors is no different.

SO: What has been the most rewarding part of creating Birds of Empire?

JL: The most rewarding part of the process was collaborating with all of the incredible artists that I was blessed to get to work with. From all the amazing actors to the producers and designers and assistants, it was a dream from start to finish. One of the most rewarding experiences of my career.

SO: What lessons have you learned from making such an immersive and expansive podcast?

JL: I learned a lot of lessons from creating a podcast that I’ll take with me into future collaborations. The most important I think is to not neglect the power of sound design when imagining a scene or a world or a show.

SO: What was it like mixing episodes in spatial audio with Dolby ATMOS?

JL: I’m a HUGE audio nerd so getting to mix in Atmos was a geek fever dream for me. I would not shut up about it to everyone in my life while I was doing it.

I’m always looking for new and exciting ways to evoke emotions and experiences in my storytelling and I think so much magic happens in the mix.

Atmos let us really deepen the storytelling through listener experience which was really incredible. I still get jumpy when I listen back to the episodes and I can feel the world swirling around me and can place sounds in space.

SO: What do you hope listeners will take away from Birds of Empire?

JL: I hope that listeners take away some moment of human connection with our characters and can see themselves reflected in the world.

Growing up Chinese-American here in the states, I rarely ever saw myself reflected in the major mythologies of our culture, so I hope that everyone can find themselves in our project and have a moment where they feel seen or understood in a way they didn’t before.

That’s always my goal with anything I set out to create.

SO: How would you like to see fantasy podcasts at large take things to the next level?

JL:  The way I’d like to see fantasy as a genre go to the next level is for it to be more inclusive in its representation and points of view. I would love to see more stories from BIPOC creators like myself and so many of the collaborators on this project.

I think as a genre it’s been traditionally a bit narrow in its inclusivity and I’m really happy to see that opening up. I hope that we can be a meaningful part of that process.

SO: What podcasts are you listening to these days?

JL:  I listen to pretty much everything QCODE does and was a huge fan of their shows before I got the privilege of creating with them. Outside of that I listen to a lot of basketball podcasts. I’m a huge NBA fan so I have to stay up on all the news and narratives in the league.

Jason Lew isn't on any socials but QCODE can be found on Twitter and Instagram, as well as in a fresh edition of Podcast Delivery.

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