Behind the scenes at BIMM University Berlin Germany: Femxle Producers Society
Societies are a part of any university experience and that is no different at any BIMM University Berlin college! Joining a society is a fantastic way to expand your network, develop new skills and explore a whole different world outside the classroom.
Femxle Producers Society is made for just that very purpose and has become a place of support and empowerment for members across the BIMM University Berlin community. With the founding members graduating in Summer this year, they are now on the hunt for committee members excited about continuing to build on their work. Curious to know what it’s like to run a society at BIMM University Berlin? We sat down with its Vice-president, Ariane, to hear all about it.
So, Ariane, tell us about yourself!
My name is Ariane, I’m from The Hague in the Netherlands and I’m currently in my last year of studying Music Production. Besides being a music producer, I’m also a songwriter and singer. Together with Amanda, Orla and Sariana, we started Femxle Producers Society during the summer of 2021.
What does the society do?
Femxle Producers Society is for all gender minorities in music production (so not only women!). With this society we wanted to create a safe space to meet like-minded people to collaborate and share experiences with. We do this by organising live and online events but also by creating supportive community spaces, like through our WhatsApp group and Instagram page.
We do want to make clear that we are not music production teachers; we simply want to guide and encourage students and help them find what they are looking for, even if we can’t provide it ourselves.
We strive for our society to be open and inclusive to everyone who needs it by supporting and helping each other, encouraging collaboration and, of course, having fun!
What kind of events have you hosted and which one was your favourite?
We have hosted both in-person and online events all throughout the year, including workshops and feedback/collaboration sessions.
I’d say one of my favourite events was during Freshers Week when we hosted an introduction event where we listened to everyone’s music and gave compliments and feedback. The goal was for everyone to get to know each other through their music and I think we succeeded at that!
The workshops have also been fun. During these we pair everyone up and have them work together on a song using samples we provide. It’s especially fun to put people together who don’t know each other yet and see what kind of song they end up creating.
Why did you decide to set up the society?
We really felt like BIMM needed a safe space for gender minority music producers to meet and share their experiences. This was definitely confirmed by how popular our first events were! We noticed how important having a place like this is, as we also had a lot of students from the Songwriting course join who didn’t even realise they were producers as well. Most of them only joined to be able to find a producer to work with. To them, music production was something they felt like they weren’t skilled enough at (even though that is how everyone starts), which seemed to discourage a lot of them.
I personally also have found it hard to feel confident as a music producer, as I always felt like I had to work twice as hard to prove myself. This wasn’t even because of experiences I’ve had, but purely because I felt outnumbered. For example, it took me years to be able to actually call myself a music producer, and only last year I felt comfortable enough to actually put it in my Instagram bio (and at that point I had been producing for years!).
With Femxle Producers Society we hope we can create an inspiring environment where members will encourage and help each other, so they won’t spend years not realising how talented they truly are.
What’s been your experience of running a society at BIMM University Berlin?
I definitely learned a lot when setting up this society! For example, how to properly organise an event (brainstorming the idea, planning the event, and making sure you think everything through) but also how to pitch ideas to the other committee members and also to BIMM itself. Doing this also made me more comfortable in front of groups (even though I’d still rather be behind the scenes), and I learned how to negotiate and express exactly what I needed.
I also realised that teamwork is really important if you want to be successful and thankfully everyone in the committee got along really well – we usually were on the same page when making decisions.
For me, the best part is that we are able to provide students with a safe space where they could ask for help or advice of any kind. I was also really happy to see the creativity and experimentation during the workshops and we hope that this also continues outside of the society.
Overall it has been a good experience, even though I have to add that running a society is something you should take seriously. You definitely have to commit to it and put a lot of work into it. Being with a great team of like-minded people will definitely make this easier and more fun.
Would you encourage students to set up a society? What advice would you give them?
Yes I would! However, as I said, you do have to be committed to your society if you want everything to work out well. I’d definitely say that having like-minded people on board is essential. I’m not sure if we would’ve succeeded if this wasn’t the case.
That is also what I would give as advice: find those people who have the same passion as you and make sure you communicate everything well. We have done this by having at least one meeting a week and taking notes during that, so even if someone couldn’t attend the meeting, they would still know what we discussed. When making decisions we also make sure everyone has the ability to give their opinion and we try to find solutions that work for everyone (thankfully we usually agree!).
We do think that setting up a society is a great learning experience, even if it ends up not working out in the end. During this process I have learned so many things in a short period of time that I might not have learned otherwise. So, I’d say it’s definitely worth the try!
You’re all graduating this year. What are your plans post-BIMM University Berlin and what does that mean for Femxle Producers Society?
Yes that’s right. For me, after BIMM University Berlin I am going to do an internship at a studio and I hope to continue all of my collaborations that I had to postpone because of the assessments. In the future I would love to start a songwriting/music production company with hopefully a lot of femxle representation! I’d love to be able to help artists with their music and to create a safe environment for them to develop it in.
In terms of the society this means that this, sadly, will be the first and last year that us 4 are part of the committee. However, we do not want this to be the end of the society, as we believe that there is a need for a community like this at BIMM! We really think running a society is a great experience to have, and as this society is already quite established it might be less daunting than starting a new society from scratch.
Right now, we would love to take in a few students so we can show you everything you need to know to successfully run a society. And lastly, we won’t just leave you with it, as all four of us are willing to guide you so you feel ready or next year!
How can people get in touch with you if they are interested in taking over the reins at Femxle Producer Society?
Reach out to us via Instagram or email! We’d love to tell you more.
Thanks so much to Ariane for sharing her experience with us! Running Femxle Producers Society has clearly been a very enriching experience that has supported her career plans post-BIMM University Berlin. It just goes to show that effort you put in, will always have great returns.
If you are a student at BIMM University Berlin interested in guiding Femxle Producers Society into the future, don’t hesitate to reach out to them via Instagram or email. Or, if this has inspired you to set up a society dedicated to something else, reach out to our Student Support Team! They would love to hear from you.
Want to become part of the exciting student community at BIMM University Berlin? Join us for one of our Open House events, book a Virtual Open Day or contact our Admissions Team via admissions@bimm-university.de or via phone at +49 (0) 30 311 99 186 (Berlin) and +49 (0) 40 874 09 632 (Hamburg).
