Cara Ehlenfeldt ’19 has built a career around helping podcasts sound—and run—their best. And, recently, that work has started to earn wider recognition.
After earning an MA in Sound Arts and Industries (SAI), Ehlenfeldt spent a few years freelancing for narrative and fiction podcasts. That stretch included work on a Nickelodeon project and the audiobook series Phoebe Reads a Mystery.
In 2021, Ehlenfeldt joined Mumble Media as an editor and sound designer, becoming the company’s fourth (and first non-founder) employee.
Four years later, now a member‑owner and production lead, work shifts between creative projects and behind‑the‑scenes operations. Mumble Media’s structure—a co-op owned g
overned by its employees—encourages this fluidity, allowing responsibilities to shift and expand over time.
Building a Career at a Co-op
Instead of having established C-suite leaders in place, Mumble Media elects team members to these roles every two years. Ehlenfeldt served in the rotating role of CEO before transitioning to the COO position, currently tracking trends and labor forecasting.
“Because I’m a member-owner, I get to participate in the running of the company,” Ehlenfeldt explains. “I came in with strong audio production skills, thanks to Northwestern, and I’ve now developed a secondary set of skills around how to run a business. ‘Should we take on this project?’ ‘How should we handle employee benefits this year?’ ‘What compromise would we make if we chose one option over another?’ Those are the kinds of questions I get to work through with the team.”
As COO, Ehlenfeldt works as head of production, running weekly production meetings and helping coordinate podcasts for clients like Mayo Clinic.
But a favorite project has been The Sleeping World, an Audible series of nature-focused sleepcasts that turns animal behavior and environments into calming sleepcasts.
Bringing The Sleeping World to Life
The Sleeping World started as a concept focused on sound and nature (called The Screaming World). But when the team submitted their idea to the Resonate Podcast Festival’s Pitch Party, an Audible producer noticed it and wanted to explore whether it could be reimagined as sleep content.
As co‑producer and project lead, Ehlenfeldt helped Audible and the Mumble Media team map out how the project could come together. What might it sound like? How could the animal sounds be creatively portrayed? How much scientific depth should be included?
Working through these early discussions brought back memories of critical conversations with peers and professors at Northwestern about nature sound design. “Field recordings are great when you have them, but that’s not always possible,” Ehlenfeldt explains. “We try hard to get the sound when we can, but we have to sometimes ask ourselves how much we’re going to use sounds of the animal recorded in a specific location vs. using Foley. Northwestern helped me feel prepared to go into those conversations with a very grounded approach.”
A New Idea Turns into an Award-Winning Series
Once The Sleeping World was greenlit, Ehlenfeldt worked with colleague Jake Young to research and write several episodes, including Coastal Foraging with a Brown Bear, Neighborhood Stroll with a Dog, and Rolling Under the Milky Way with a Dung Beetle.
In addition to writing, the work also involves editing scripts from other writers to ensure consistency across the series and directing recording sessions with the show’s narrator.
“It’s been a great experience because it allows me to stretch so many of my skills. I was able to bring in some of my writing and communication experiences from earlier in my career, and blend those with sound design and project management work.”
Most recently, this work is being recognized by industry peers. The Sleeping World was honored with two Signal Awards: the Listener’s Choice Sleep Podcast Award and Bronze Sleep Podcast Award for Singing with a Humpback Whale, a journey that takes the listener on a swim with a whale.
“This is one of those projects where it really feels like there’s a stronger connection between the work people hear and how instrumental we were in creating it,” Ehlenfeldt explains.
How SAI Shows Up in Sound Work
Previous freelance work experience, along with the SAI program’s blend of technical training and critical listening, laid the groundwork for juggling these many responsibilities and supporting multiple teams.
“There have been lots of points in my career already where I felt like my advanced technical training really helped me stand out among others doing similar work. Even if I wasn’t the engineer, I had a much clearer understanding of how to talk to the engineer and listen for certain things.”
The combination of hands-on technical work and big-picture thinking skills offered as part of the SAI program helps Ehlenfeldt be a better producer, with the ability to confidently plan for everything needed to bring a project to life.
“My education made me feel really prepared to take on this role. The program not only trains you to do audio work but also how to think about sound. Being a leader on this project, those skills served me well. I’ve been able to think critically, creatively, and intentionally about what we’re doing and why.”
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