No Fixed Mix is our home-grown initiative aimed at improving the gender balance in technical sound roles.

The inaugural No Fixed Mix programme held in 2019, welcomed five aspiring sound engineers into String and Tins’ studios. It included three workshops that focused on the audio industry - production, sound design and music - and was aimed at any woman seeking a career in sound design.

Within five years, we have expanded the programme to reflect the growing variety of projects that the studio is working on, incorporating longform work into the updated course curriculum. In addition to this, we have been lucky enough to welcome guest speakers including the foley team at Molinare, Kath Pollard, Kate Davies and Natahsa Haycocks, who have shared their experiences and offered valuable insights into the industry. In 2023 we were fortunate enough to go on an educational field trip to Dolby which was one of the highlights. Each year we encourage participants to complete assignments which help to develop their showreels and review CVs to give them the best possible chance in kick-starting their careers.

Thanks to the generous support of HHB Communications, Avid, NUGEN Audio, Native Instruments and Krotos, successful applicants have been provided with a free 12-month subscription licence to Avid Pro Tools Studio™, the industry standard DAW (worth £299), NUGEN’s Focus Bundle (worth £139), iZotope Music Production Suite 6 (£579) and one year subscription for Krotos Studio (worth £119.88) so that they can continue to develop their audio post-production skills.

Applications for 2024’s programme have now closed. We look forward to opening the programme again in 2025.

Olivia Endersby

String and Tins