The Storycast Podcast is a creation of host Russell Silva – a writer, video director, entrepreneur, podcaster, music nut, and father of two. He ran around with a cassette recorder starting at age four (and still has the amazing tapes.) He holds a BA in Filmic Arts & minor in Political Science from Eastern Washington University where he obsessed about audio incessantly. Russell has been podcasting since 2010 and his own eardrums absorb hours of podcasts per day. His favorite shows are This American Life, 99 Percent Invisible, The Memory Palace, Love + Radio, and Radiolab. His heroes are Ira Glass, Roman Mars, and Nate DiMeo.
When he’s not podcasting, he’s changing a diaper (or two) as a work-from-home dad of a toddler and an infant. He also co-owns marketing agency Blu Room Creative where he serves as Director of Multimedia. Additionally, he is the owner of startup Life’s Flix, a crowd-sourced video editing service for weddings and special events. So, between kids, multiple businesses, and mowing the lawn, Russell escapes to his home office at all hours of the day and night to squeeze out a 20+ minute show each month, in a labor of love for his hobby and passion of podcasting.
Russell’s current show The Storycast Podcast is an edited narrative that tells a trio of stories wrapped in an intriguing, changing weekly theme. The show, which began in November 2015, aims to tell stories – from many mediums and formats – from the perspective of a personal journal. The show uses research, music, sociology, and great storytelling to find new truths about life, ever forging creative connections.
From 2010-2012, Russell co-hosted his first podcast The Penny and Ben Show – a weekly unscripted relationship advice show billed as “dating advice from the single girl and her hitched, male friend.” The show started as a way to “find love” for his very single co-host (and pen-named) Penny, and chronicled her dating life until her eventual marriage to a Welshman she met on a business trip. The Penny and Ben Show was as much whimsical as it was informative, and taught Russell basic podcasting, marketing, and hosting skills.
Then, from 2012-2014, Russell co-hosted another weekly unscripted podcast called Spokast – a “ramble-fest” set against the backdrop of the town of Spokane, WA. Russell and his co-host Blake interviewed interesting people, made ill-advised jokes, waxed philosophical, and imbibed frequently. The show was heralded as “that drunken, amazing ‘ramblefest’ you’d have in college with your friends.” Spokast taught Russell invaluable technical mixing skills and the value of a diverse, rich collection of topical material.
Russell’s ultimate goal with The Storycast Podcast is to further develop the show artistically and technically. He would love to grow its content by adding additional contributing producers, incorporating more interviews, and even joining a podcasting collective network. But for now, another diaper calls...
Happy listening