Lory Martinez

Where are you based and what do you do?

I'm based in Paris, France and I work as an independent producer and consultant for podcast productions in Spanish, French and English. This past September I started my own production company, Studio Ochenta, a podcast studio dedicated to raising voices across cultures through the production, translation, and adaptation of podcasts in multiple languages. We work with clients across Europe, the UK and the US. It's been great to work with other indie producers around the world on multilingual projects (some of which are also AIR members)! 

There's something so powerful about a great story, it has no limits.

A piece of yours (in any medium!) that you would like to share?

I'd like to share Mija Podcast, Ochenta's first multilingual production and one that is dear to me because it is a fiction podcast based on my own family's immigration journey from Colombia to the United States. I wrote it and adapted it to Spanish and French with a team of fellow indie producers in New York, Paris and Bogota, Colombia. It was the first time my family could listen to my audio work in Spanish, and it made it all the more special because it was an homage to them. It also reached #1 on the Apple podcast fiction charts in Spain and France and was featured on NPR's All Things Considered!

What draws you to storytelling?

I've always loved telling stories. I grew up listening to stories about my family back in Colombia, their lives, their hopes, their dreams. It's why I'm constantly drawn to the narrative format in my audio work. There's something so powerful about a great story, it has no limits. It doesn't need a passport to cross borders, it just needs to be told, and that's the best part about being an audio storyteller:  We get to be the ones to tell those stories!

What’s playing on your radio/audio streaming service right now?

I alternate between music and podcasts. I listen to ChilledCow Youtube radio quite a bit. It's relaxing lounge music that calms the nerves during this crazy time. I also really enjoy listening to Richard's Famous Food podcast. It's funny and weird and a great way to fill the silence between editing and writing. They just did a crossover with one of my favorite shows: Everything is Alive. Definitely worth a listen. 

Hard-at-work-on-a-project snack of choice?

I'm not really a snacker but my desk is never without a big mug of Colombian coffee.