Audio Production Awards back to in-person event for 2021

AudioUK has announced that this year’s Audio Production Awards (APAs), sponsored by Audible, will once again be an in-person event to be held on Wednesday 24th November.

The awards will be held at the BFI on London’s South Bank, as in the years preceding 2020, when the awards were held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The APAs, organised by AudioUK, and sponsored by Audible, celebrate the craft skills behind all forms of Audio production - podcasts, radio, audiobooks and more.

The Awards are open to all Audio producers, from podcasters, to audiobooks, to BBC and commercial radio and community stations, to sound designers, as well as production companies working across all forms of Audio.

There will be awards for the best Audio producer in comedy, arts, factual, entertainment, sports, news and more, as well as a range of best presenter and narrator awards, plus the Production Company of the Year award. Once again, the Grassroots Production award will celebrate producers, teams and organisations working close to their communities, and this category will be free to enter, recognising the particular challenges faced in that part of the sector.

In addition, there will be a new award for Best Gaming Sound Producer, recognising the importance of audio in computer games and gaming apps. There will also be the new AudioUK Award given to a truly outstanding individual, collective or moment.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, every category is open to all forms of Audio, which includes podcasts, radio (on-air or online), audiobooks and all other non-broadcast audio. Productions of any budget range are eligible, and our panel of experienced judges will take into account the differing circumstances of production across the qualifying period.

Entry fees have been capped for the fourth year in a row, reflecting the challenging circumstances many still find themselves in. We have also introduced a number of pay what you can entry places for freelances, who would otherwise find the entry fee prohibitive.

The APAs, which will accept entries from noon on the 18th August, until noon on Friday 24th September, are open to production talent from across the whole of the UK, with the entry fee frozen at £35+VAT for AudioUK members and £45+VAT for non-members. AudioUK will also be providing a limited number of ‘pay what you can’ entries for freelancers, for whom the entry fee would mean they could not enter otherwise. This can be applied for by emailing: sophie@audioproductionawards.co.uk

Chloe Straw, Managing Director of AudioUK, said:

“We’re really pleased to be able to bring the APAs back as an in-person event at the BFI. We have considered carefully the implications of doing so, and feel that, on balance, an in-person event is something that is important to the Audio production industry at this time. For those unable to attend, we will be providing ways to join in with the event from home. We look forward to a special evening to get everyone back together and celebrate our diverse and vibrant audio community”