Interview Notes and Transcript.

Participating in an interview with my friend was both refreshing and therapeutic for me. We previously talked about our vulnerabilities in order to support each other. We discussed what it means for someone to live with anxiety and how one does or does not cope with it on a day to day basis. As expected, her experiences and coping mechanisms differed to mine. What was really interesting was how we identified that if left untreated and unregulated it can escalate to the point where it can dramatically impact one's life. We spoke about how we felt in those instances and what triggers we have. Some of them we knew appeared ridiculous and seemed illogical. We also spoke about how sometimes we need to let go of whatever is causing us to suffer and to not let anxiety have a hold over us, therefore we would be free. We also spoke about how we could be our own worst enemy at times and that the only person who can help and fix what we go through is ultimately ourselves.

On reflection I would argue that listening to her talk about her past experiences, how she lives and manages her anxiety, whilst sharing my own experiences, was more beneficial than the previous research I had accumulated because it was from a place of truth and authenticity. I was fortunate enough to receive genuine material that would support my own perspective.

Selecting which parts of the interview to use for the project proved to be more challenging than expected. Not just as an animator but as a human being, to be allowed into the private life of an individual and for that person to share their vulnerability is a privilege and therefore commands respect. I couldn’t help but feel everything that I had recorded was within its own right valuable and heartfelt. Unfortunately the reality was I had a timescale to adhere to and therefore I went through the entire interview trying to narrow down the statements which I believed were essential to the project. At this point there was no right or wrong choice, it was about using my intuition to navigate through the audio whilst editing.

Brief notes from interview: