Type | Podcast network |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Availability | International |
Founded | 2019 by Rob Herting |
Key people |
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Established | 2018 |
Affiliation(s) |
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Official website | qcodemedia |
Language | English |
QCode (sometimes stylized as QCODE) is a podcast network and audio production studio based in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded by Rob Herting in 2018 as a partnership between the production company Automatik and the management firm Grandview. The company focuses on producing scripted, narrative podcasts.
QCode was founded in 2018 by Rob Herting, a former agent at the Creative Arts Agency. [1] [2] The network was founded as a partnership, with Automatik as the production company and Grandview as the management firm. [1] Sandra Yee Ling, previously an executive producer at Automatik, is the vice president of production at QCode. [3] The company's head of music is pianist and composer Deron Johnson. [3] Michele Zárate, formerly of Sonar Entertainment, is the director of development, and Tess Ryan is one of the company's producers. [3] Steve Wilson, formerly from Apple, is the company's chief strategy officer. [4] David Henning is also on staff. [1]
In 2020 QCode raised $6.4 million in funding by Sonos with participation by venture-capital firm C Ventures to scale up production to more than fifteen original podcasts every year. [5] [6] In 2021, QCode announced plans to launch QCode+ with Apple Inc. QCode+ will be a subscription based service that will offer twelve original shows with no ads and bonus material. [7]
The company uses the Dolby Atmos audio standard, which was not supported yet by most podcast apps in 2021. [8] The company also uses binaural recordings to create 3D audio effects, which is becoming increasingly popular among podcast networks like iHeartMedia or the Paragon Collective. [8] Madeline Wells of SFGate , discussed the company's use of surround sound in their podcast The Left Right Game saying that "the sound is so good — don’t listen to this while driving or the jump-scares could get dangerous," and that the sound production creates a "riveting companion" when going on walks. [9] Similarly, Andrew Liptak of The Verge cautioned against driving a car while listening to Carrier because the surround sound can be overwhelming at times and some sound effects—such as a truck honking its horn—can be alarming if operating a vehicle. [10]
The company launched its first podcast— Blackout —in 2019, which starred Rami Malek. [11] Herting's goal is to create new stories in the podcasting medium that have not been done in film or television. [12] The actors and producers at QCode have a history of working in film and television, and the podcasts created by the company could easily be adapted into films or television series. [11] [13] Miranda Sawyer of The Guardian , noted that—in contrast to small indie productions—well funded audio production companies like QCode have a history of "making queer relationships straight, and (you guessed it) employing big Hollywood celebrities as actors." [14] Rashika Rao of Radio Drama Revival had a similar complaint after listening to The Left Right Game saying, "I think a fundamental misunderstanding is that podcasting is TV lite." [15] Rao went on to address the fact that large audio production companies like QCode have chosen to hire from the film and television industry rather than support independent podcasts that might have better ideas. [15]
In May 2021, "Hold Still Vincent" a podcast dramatizing the 1982 murder of Vincent Chin, a Chinese American engineer, was removed from audio platforms by QCode after Chin’s family members and an activist involved in the case said they were not consulted about the project. The six episodes of “Hold Still, Vincent” were originally released May 26. A day later, journalist and activist Helen Zia, a central figure in the civil-rights movement sparked by Chin’s murder, posted on social media that neither she nor his estate were contacted about the podcast. [16] [17] Annie Tan, a cousin of Vincent Chin wrote on Twitter “I tried listening to the ‘Hold Still, Vincent’ Chin podcast (honestly the title is triggering to me as a cousin), and the disclaimer in the beginning that events were fictionalized for dramatic effects made me stop playing,” Tan wrote in part. “And it’s hard for me to say this because I want people to know my cousin Vincent Chin’s story. But I just don’t get it.”
Title | Release Date | Genre |
---|---|---|
The Foxes of Hydesville [18] | April 20, 2023 | Supernatural |
Peepkins [19] | TBA | Children's Fiction |
Last Known Position [19] | December 20, 2021 | Sci-Fi |
The Burned Photo [19] | September 30, 2021 | Supernatural |
Classified [19] | August 7, 2021 | Thriller |
Edith! [20] | June 21, 2021 | Political satire, Biographical podcast |
Electric Easy [19] | July 19, 2021 | Sci-Fi |
Ronstadt | June 1, 2021 | Horror podcast, comedy |
Hold Still Vincent | May 25, 2021 | True Crime |
Bad Vibes | March 29, 2021 | Horror podcast, anthology series |
Soft Voice | March 17, 2021 | Black comedy, thriller |
Unwanted | February 10, 2021 | Black comedy |
From Now | December 10, 2020 | Science fiction |
Hank the Cowdog | September 14, 2020 | Mystery fiction, Children's fiction |
Dirty Diana | July 13, 2020 | Erotic drama |
Borrasca | May 25, 2020 | Horror podcast |
The Left Right Game | March 23, 2020 | Science fiction, horror podcast |
Gaslight | November 18, 2019 | Horror podcast |
Ghost Tape | October 26, 2019 | Horror podcast |
The Edge of Sleep | September 23, 2019 | Science fiction, horror podcast |
Carrier | July 15, 2019 | Horror podcast |
Blackout | March 19, 2019 | Horror podcast |
Award | Date | Category | Recipient | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ambies | 2021 | Podcast of the Year | Dirty Diana | Nominated | [21] |
Best Fiction Podcast | Dirty Diana | Nominated | |||
Best Production and Sound Design | Dirty Diana | Nominated | |||
Best Scriptwriting, Fiction | Dirty Diana | Won | |||
Best Scriptwriting, Fiction | The Left Right Game | Nominated | |||
Best Production and Sound Design | The Left Right Game | Won | |||
Best Performer in Audio Fiction | The Left Right Game - Tessa Thompson | Won | |||
Best Fiction Podcast | The Left Right Game | Nominated | |||
iHeart Radio Podcast Awards | 2021 | Innovator Award | QCode | Won | [22] |
Kids & Family Podcast | Hank The Cowdog | Nominated | |||
Fiction Podcast | Borrasca | Nominated | |||
Fiction Podcast | The Left Right Game | Nominated | |||
Fiction Podcast | Dirty Diana | Nominated |
A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosing. Podcasts are primarily an audio medium, with some programs offering a supplemental video component. Streaming applications and podcasting services provide a convenient and integrated way to manage a personal consumption queue across many podcast sources and playback devices. There are also podcast search engines, which help users find and share podcast episodes.
Spotify is a Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 551 million monthly active users, including 220 million paying subscribers, as of June 2023. Spotify is listed on the New York Stock Exchange in the form of American depositary receipts.
A music streaming service is a type of streaming media service that focuses primarily on music, and sometimes other forms of digital audio content such as podcasts. These services are usually subscription-based services allowing users to stream digital copyright restricted songs on-demand from a centralized library provided by the service. Some services may offer free tiers with limitations, such as advertising and limits on use. They typically incorporate a recommendation engine to help users discover other songs they may enjoy based on their listening history and other factors, as well as the ability to create and share public playlists with other users.
Wondery is an American podcast network and publisher of numerous award-winning podcasts, including Dirty John, Dr. Death, and The Shrink Next Door. Wondery was founded in 2016 by entrepreneur and media executive Hernan Lopez. The company was launched with backing from 20th Century Fox. In late 2020, it was announced that Wondery had been purchased and is now owned by Amazon Music.
Apple Podcasts is an audio streaming service and media player application developed by Apple Inc. for playing podcasts. Apple began supporting podcasts with iTunes 4.9 released in June 2005 and launched its first standalone mobile app in 2012. The app was later pre-installed with iOS beginning October 2014. The Apple Podcasts directory features more than two million shows. Apple Podcasts is available on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, CarPlay, Microsoft Windows operating systems, and on Amazon Alexa devices.
Borrasca is a fiction podcast written and created by Rebecca Klingel, and produced by and starring Cole Sprouse, adapted from the novella by CK Walker. It debuted on May 25, 2020, and released episodes weekly on Mondays through July 14, 2020. It is a production of the audio fiction production company QCODE.
Dirty Diana is an audio drama podcast produced by QCode about a woman who hosts an erotic website. A sex-positive exploration of a woman's troubled marriage, it stars Demi Moore and Claes Bang.
The Ambies are a series of awards given in the podcast industry. They are awarded by the Podcast Academy in two overall categories: Show Recognition and Talent Recognition. The winners, who receive a gold statue holding a microphone and wearing headphones, are selected by a vote from Podcast Academy members. The awards and the Podcast Academy were established in 2020 with the inaugural ceremony held on May 16, 2021, hosted by Cameron Esposito.
The Left Right Game is a 2020 science fiction horror podcast written by Jack Anderson, based on his series "Has anyone heard of the Left/Right Game?" originally posted on the r/nosleep subreddit in 2017. It is produced by QCODE, Automatik, and Tessa Thompson.
Blowback is a podcast about American history and foreign policy hosted by Noah Kulwin and Brendan James.
In Strange Woods is an American musical fiction podcast produced by Atypical Artists and created by Jeff Luppino-Esposito, Brett Ryback, and Matt Sav. The series is told in the style of a true crime documentary with an original folk-pop score.
Last Known Position is an American mystery thriller television series based on the homonymous podcast, both created by Lucas Passmore. It stars Gina Rodriguez, who also voice-acted in the podcast. It premiered on Amazon Prime Video.
Darkest Night is a horror and science fiction podcast hosted by Lee Pace produced by the Paragon Collective and AMC's streaming service Shudder. The podcast debuted in 2016 and ended in 2018 and used binaural recording to create 3D audio effects. The show follows the experiences of a research assistant at a company experimenting with recreating the memories of the dead.
If I Go Missing the Witches Did It is a horror podcast written by Pia Wilson and starring both Gabourey Sidibe and Sarah Natochenny. The podcast consisted of nine episodes and was produced by Realm.
Earth Break is a science fiction podcast produced by Skylark Media and starring Jenny Slate.
Edith! is a historical fiction podcast produced by QCode and Crooked Media starring Rosamund Pike about Edith Wilson.
The Edge of Sleep is a thriller podcast produced by QCode and starring Markiplier.
Hank the Cowdog is a scripted podcast written and directed by Jeff Nichols and produced by QCode. The five episode series stars Matthew McConaughey. The show is an adaptation of the Hank the Cowdog story called "Lost in the Dark Unchanted Forest".