Forest 404: A BBC sci-fi thriller

Forest 404: 9-part thriller, 9-part talk, 9-part soundscape and exclusive bonus documentary

Can you feel loss for something you've never known?

Meet Pan. She lives a few centuries from now, in a future beyond a data crash that wiped out most records of life from before the 23rd century: The Cataclysm. Her job is to sort through the old sound recordings that survived from before the crash - from The Slow Times. When winters were still cold. When the USA still had people in it.

All day she listens to sounds from The Slow Times, and she decides which noises live, and which can just...finally die. Deleted to make space. Because data costs.

But when she finds an old recording of a rainforest, she has no idea what it is. Because forests no longer exist. And the sound of it haunts her - she is compelled to hunt down the truth about how the forests of the old world died. But the agents of new world have other ideas...

A sci-fi thriller starring Pearl Mackie (Doctor Who), Tanya Moodie (Sherlock, Motherland) and Pippa Haywood (Green Wing, Bodyguard).

Each episode is accompanied by a talk which looks at the issues raised by the drama, featuring a diverse range of speakers: musicians, bio-futurists, anthropologists and tree-climbers. They explore questions ranging from 'Why should I listen to trees?' to 'Would you vote for an AI government?' and 'What is death in the digital age?'

Each episode also comes with an immersive soundscape of natural world environments, mixed in binaural sound for a 3D headphone experience. You can hear the sound of the Sumatran rainforest, the songs of whales, a chorus of frogs, and a full playout of Bonobo's specially-composed theme music.

Lastly, this release includes an exclusive bonus documentary episode, which looks at the making of the series, featuring interviews with writer Timothy X Atack and director Becky Ripley. It also shares the findings of The Forest 404 Experiment: a related project in collaboration with Exeter University and the Open University, about the effects that different natural sounds have on our moods and mental health.

Credits: Pan - Pearl Mackie Daria - Tanya Moodie Theia - Pippa Haywood With theme music by Bonobo Directed by Becky Ripley

Track listing: 1. Episode 1: Life in the Fast Times 2. Talk 1: Why should I listen to trees? 3. Soundscape 1: Rainforest Symphony 4. Episode 2: The Fumetown Priest 5. Talk 2: How is the sound of the world changing? 6. Soundscape 2: Frog Chorus 7. Episode 3: Into the Inner 8. Talk 3: Could I live in darkness? 9. Soundscape 3: Whale Songs 10. Episode 4: Of Earthly Delights 11. Talk 4: Why do trees live so long 12. Soundscape 4: Woodland Walk 13. Episode 5: Last Days of the Slow World 14. Talk 5: Will we all become cyborgs? 15. Soundscape 5: Theia's Hometown 16. Episode 6: A New Leaf 17. Talk 6: What is death in the digital age? 18. Soundscape 6: Pan's Dwindling 19. Episode 7: Dreams of the Autopilot 20. Talk 7: Would you vote for an AI government? 21. Soundscape 7: Daria's Nightmare 22. Episode 8: Future Conditional 23. Talk 8: How will humans die out? 24. Soundscape 8: The Memory Transfer 25. Episode 9: Enigmata 26. Talk 9: Love Letter to the Forest... 27. Soundscape 9: Bonobo's Theme 28. Exclusive bonus 'making of' documentary

© 2021 BBC Digital Audio (Lydbog): 9781529134124

Udgivelsesdato

Lydbog: 21. januar 2021