Challenge

Every story in Verhaal Onbekend is different. One episode is tense and gripping, the next vulnerable and quiet. That variation demands an audio approach that moves with the storyteller without drawing attention to itself. The music and sound design need to carry the story, not steer it.

We record in our own studios, where the storytellers share their story out loud for the first time with presenter and creative producer Valentine van der Lande. That requires an environment where people feel safe, because only then does the openness emerge that makes this podcast so special. In post-production, we search for the right balance between intimacy and space, between silence and music, so the listener stays close to the storyteller without the production getting in the way.

The biggest challenge may well be consistency: delivering a new episode every week that meets the same high standard, while no two stories are alike.

Result

Verhaal Onbekend has quickly grown into one of the most listened-to podcast series in the Netherlands, with a consistent presence at the top of the Apple Podcasts and Spotify charts. But the numbers don't tell the whole story. The real strength of the series lies in what listeners do with it: they share episodes, discuss them afterwards, and sign up to tell their own story.

By consistently investing in the quality of sound, music and post-production, a listening experience emerges that feels intimate yet sounds professional. It is a collaboration in which the Rake Media team leads the editorial and creative direction while Big Orange shapes the auditory world around it. That division works, because both parties share the same belief: the storyteller's story always comes first.

Credits

Producer: Rake Media

Creative producer: Valentine van der Lande

Editor at large: Annegriet Wietsma

Storyline: Loes de Groen, Lotteke Boogert, Milou van Hirtum

Recordings, sound design & music: Big Orange