Why do some sounds stay with us for decades while others disappear the moment we hear them? Why do some listeners build vivid mental movies from sound while others experience none at all? And if no two people hear a story in quite the same way, what exactly are audio makers creating?

Through a series of playful listening experiments, misheard lyrics, and behind-the-scenes conversations from the making of the Autistic Culture Podcast Network, Dr. Angela Kingdon and Simon Scott invite audiences to explore the hidden assumptions embedded in audio storytelling.

Drawing on neurodivergent ways of perceiving sound, language, memory, and imagination, this session asks whether the most important creative decision in audio isn't what we put into a story, but what listeners bring to it.

Come prepared to listen, compare notes, and discover that the person sitting next to you may have heard something completely different.

Dr. Angela Kingdon and Simon Scott are the co-founders of the Autistic Culture Podcast Network, a global network of more than 25 autistic-led podcasts exploring identity, creativity, health, hobbies, and culture. Angela is a communications researcher, author, and podcast host whose work examines autistic culture through the lenses of psychology, media, and storytelling. Simon is an audio producer and editor whose work focuses on crafting accessible, emotionally engaging listening experiences. Together they explore how neurodivergent ways of perceiving, processing, and creating can challenge conventional assumptions about audio storytelling.
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