Mediaworks
Mediaworks leased 4500m2 in an undeveloped warehouse which would house their eight radio brands together for the first time. Previously spread across four different locations, the new site provides the opportunity for Mediaworks people to influence and characterise their workplace through time – amplified by the environment and culture.
The building, a 1970’s storage warehouse, offered a non-corporate and esoteric appeal Mediaworks were searching for to support 16 studios, 400+ workplace staff and state-of-the-art technical infrastructure to unify their broadcast performance and ultimately enable video recording for the migration to live televised brand content.
The warehouse required a new mezzanine level to achieve occupancy with an arrangement that formed a cityscape with ‘hoods’ in-between, using the broadcast studios as bumpers between brands. Studios are paired and stacked, each characterised with a feature treatment, a visual manifestation of sound which creates energy and drama.
The design is inspired by music as a soulful medium and reflects a nostalgic love for new and old. The journey begins in reception and courses through the fitout where the concrete and steel aesthetic is contrasted by soft absorptive materials. The narrative continues with a futuristic soundbar as a reception desk and a mid-century record player as a hub kitchen.
We partnered with Autex to design bespoke treatments; three abstract expressions of sound Anechoic (mustard), Noise (crimson) and Beats (khaki). The acoustic material, ideal for providing high-performance sound absorption was custom ‘retro’ coloured and lent itself to production as flat patterns – crafted to fold like origami to create distinct shapes with very little wastage. Raw exposed galvanised steel and warm natural timber pair to create a language of technical precision and soulful comfort. Exposed services and steel wall frames offer the impression of circuitry transmitting signals through the ‘amplifier’, re-energised with timber and retro styled partitioning.
Key to the functionality is the studio and production suite requirements to perform at an industry-leading level. With the migration to video-radio, the design focusses on the layout first to achieve optimum video recording, with acoustics and production support wrapped around it. The construction and treatment within are intentionally light in colour for video recording. Adapted infrastructure and integrated lighting enables tailoring to brand preferences. In collaboration with Tim Webber Design, custom studio desks achieve a refined furniture system – the focal point in the new studio environment and which can be replicated across other studios, and adapted as MediaWorks evolve.
“We hunted the globe for the best-integrated technologies and have pushed the boundaries on what will be a once-in-a-lifetime project that we are all so very proud of. Watching each station and show go to air in their flash new studios has been incredibly rewarding. The feedback we have received from our colleagues and the added smiles behind the mic have elevated our shows to a whole new level”, - Mike Heard, Solution Architect, Mediaworks
