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tape · 8 / 8 archive — vol.iv
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ep.01 act.i

stories that take their time.

a studio for documentary film, sound and the printed page — made slowly, on purpose.

01 chapter ma media — est. 2018 · beirut / lisbon / tokyo begin ↓
01 — manifesto

we make work that takes its time.

a studio for documentary film,

sound, and the printed page —

we believe in long deadlines,

good lighting, slow editing,

and that a story should be

told only when it's earned.

—— mufaddal, founder a working note · est. 2018
slow is a stance, not a speed. — a working principle
01 doc.

Concrete & Static

A nine-month chronicle of brutalist housing estates in post-war Osaka — and the families that stayed.

client
Japan Society
year
2024
role
direction · edit
format
doc. film, 78 min
02 snd.

Long Night Radio

Twelve nocturnal conversations recorded across the Levantine coastline — a podcast series broadcast on tape and stream.

client
Beirut Cultural Trust
year
2023
role
production · sound
format
podcast, 12 ep
03 bk.

Tideline

A coastal diary of disappearing fishing villages — two years on the road, 240 pages, one foldout map.

client
KOSMOS Press
year
2024
role
writing · design
format
photo book, 240pp
04 aud.

The Quiet Channel

A four-part audio essay on silence as architecture — from monastery vestibules to a closed-down department store.

client
BBC Sounds
year
2023
role
writing · narration
format
audio doc, 4×42 min
05 brand.

Ink & Atom

A short on Korean letterpress masters in an age of generative tools — shot in Seoul, finished in Lisbon.

client
Hyundai Card
year
2025
role
direction · edit
format
brand film, 14 min
06 inst.

Salt Theater

A sound installation built from market recordings of the Gulf — exhibited inside a salt-clad pavilion.

client
Sharjah Biennial
year
2024
role
sound · curation
format
installation, 6 weeks
07 mot.

Pages, Pacing

An opening title sequence for a new modern-classics imprint — kinetic type set against archival paper grain.

client
Penguin Modern
year
2025
role
motion · type
format
title seq., 6×30s
08 ftr.

Halfway Light

A long-form investigation into the last rural cinemas of southern France — written, photographed, and laid out by the studio.

client
Le Monde Magazine
year
2023
role
reporting · design
format
feature, 18pp
  1. 00

    Documentary Film

    Long-form, short-form, and the increasingly rare middle. We script, direct, shoot, and edit in-house, on long schedules, with small crews.

    • direction
    • cinematography
    • edit
    • post-sound
    I
  2. 00

    Sound & Podcast

    Audio essays, narrative series, and broadcast-grade docs. Recorded on location whenever the room is worth it — and it usually is.

    • field recording
    • narrative
    • mix
    • distribution
    II
  3. 00

    Editorial & Books

    Long-reads, photo books, and the occasional zine. Written by us, designed by us, printed by people we trust on paper we can name.

    • writing
    • art direction
    • typesetting
    • print production
    III
  4. 00

    Brand Studio

    For a small number of clients each year, we take on full brand systems — voice, mark, motion, and the long tail of templates and stationery.

    • identity
    • voice
    • motion
    • guidelines
    IV
  5. 00

    Live & Installation

    Rooms, screenings, and listening sessions. Where a piece can't sit on a screen, we build a place for it to live for a season.

    • spatial sound
    • curation
    • screening
    • print companion
    V
04 — process

five stages. no shortcuts. about nine months, usually.

  1. 01 — listen

    we hold the question, not the brief.

    Long preliminary conversations — coffee, a notebook, no laptop. We don't sign anything for a month.

    ≈ 3–5 weeks
    I
  2. 02 — map

    a thirty-page document, honest about time.

    References, sources, a real schedule, a real budget. We tell you what we won't do as clearly as what we will.

    ≈ 2 weeks
    II
  3. 03 — make

    field work, drafts, and the unhurried part.

    Most of the calendar lives here. Travel, interviews, transcripts, contact sheets, first cuts. We share weekly.

    ≈ 4–6 months
    III
  4. 04 — cut

    editing as writing — read aloud, let it sit.

    We give the work room to breathe between drafts. A piece is finished when it stops fighting back.

    ≈ 6–10 weeks
    IV
  5. 05 — release

    a considered launch. festival, press, or post.

    Print run, festival circuit, broadcast slot, or a quiet upload — whatever the piece is actually asking for.

    ≈ 2–4 weeks
    V
05 — contact

we take on four projects a year. spring 2026 has one slot left.

hello @ mamedia .studio act.vi · fin.

— or, if it's easier —

signal · @mamedia.01 · are.na / ma-media · letterbox