Post production process research

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Audio Post Production Research Regarding LO2

Before I look into more detail about sound design and post production I want to research and define audio post production, what is involved and what the roles are involved. filmsound.org is a great site used to learn more about film sound. It contains articles and tips to improve your film sound skills.

One of the pages in this site called  “Post Audio FAQ’s” does a great job at defining audio post production and what is involved:

“POST AUDIO FAQ’s”

Frequently Asked Questions About Film & TV Post-Production

What is Audio Post-Production?

Audio Post-Production is the process of creating the soundtrack for a visual program of some kind. Ever since silent movies began to talk, filmmakers have been looking to control and improve the quality of the sound of their creation. As soon as creators realized there was a way to control and enhance the sound of their pictures, Audio Post was born, and has been a fact of life ever since. In Television, audio was originally “live”, like the visual program it was part of. As TV evolved, and the art form grew to include “videotaped” and “filmed” programming, the need for Audio Post increased. Nowadays, it would be difficult to find any feature film or television show that hasn’t been through audio post.

What is involved in Audio Post ?

Audio Post usually consists of several processes. Each different project may need some, or all of these processes in order to be complete. The processes are:

What does all that mean in English ?

It’s really pretty simple, once you know the breakdown::

  • Production Dialogue Editing – In order for the production audio recorded on the set or on location to be properly mixed, a Dialogue Editor needs to properly prepare it. This means locating the proper take from the recorded production audio, checking sync (so it actually works with the picture properly), and eliminate extraneous noise so the Mixer has clean dialogue to use during the Mix.

 

  • ADR [Automated Dialogue Replacement] – In cases where the production audio is too noisy, or otherwise unusable (bad line reading, airplane fly-by, etc.) theDialogue Editor will “cue” the line for ADR. This means replacing that line or lines of dialogue using theAutomated process of Dialogue Replacement. This process takes place on the ADR Stage, a specialized recording studio where the actor can record lines in sync with the picture.
  • Once a replacement line of dialogue has been recorded, the Dialogue or ADR Editor will check the sync carefully, editing the take if necessary to precisely match it to the picture, and prepare it for the Mixing Stage. This process is also known as “looping“.
  • Sound Effects Editing and Design – Ever wonder how they made the sound of Darth Vader’s helmet breath, or the Empire’s Tie Fighters, or that great train wreck sequence from “The Fugitive”? – Sound Effects Editorsand Sound Designers are how. The process of adding sound effects (backgrounds like: air, rivers, birds, traffic, and hard effects like: gunshots, door slams, body falls, etc.) has been the domain of sound effects editors for years. Although originally edited using 35mm magnetic film, recent years have seen the development of many different Digital Sound Editing systems. More and more projects are using digital technology because of the efficiency and quality it can bring to sound effects. Sound Designers use digital and analogue technology to create sound effects that have never been heard before, or to artistically create specific “mood” sounds to complement the director’s vision of the visuals.

 

  • Foley – Taking its name from Jack Foley, the Hollywood sound effects person generally regarded as the “father” of these effects, Foley effects are sounds that are created by recording human movement in sync with the picture. Different from the environmental backgrounds and hard effects that comprise edited sound effects, Foley effects are sounds like footsteps, prop movement, cloth rustling, etc. The players involved in this process are the Foley Mixer, who records the sounds, and theFoley Walkers who create those sounds. After the Foley Effects are recorded, the Foley Editor will make any slight timing adjustments necessary to ensure that they are exactly in sync with the final picture.

 

  • Music Composition – Music for film/TV falls into three general categories: Score, Source and Songs. TheComposer is the individual hired with the responsibility to prepare the dramatic underscore. Source music is that music we hear coming from an on screen or off screen device of some kind; some examples are radio source music, phonograph records, TV show themes, when seen on a TV set in the shot, and many other similar variations. Source music may be original, or licensed from a number of libraries that specialize in the creation of “generic” music. Songs may occupy either function, depending on the dramatic intent of the director. Using “Pulp Fiction” as an example, Director Quentin Tarantino hired a Music Supervisor (Karyn Rachtman, FYI) to “score” the picture using period music of the 1970’s almost exclusively. Most contemporary films use a combination of score and source music.

 

  • Music Editing – The Music Editor assists the Composer in the preparation of the dramatic underscore. Frequently working also with the Music Supervisor the Music Editor will take timings for the Composer, (usually during a spotting session )in order to notate the specific locations in the film where underscore or source music will punctuate the narrative. Once the underscore is recorded, and the source music gathered, the Music Editor will usually be the person who edits or supervises the final synchronization of all music elements prior to the mix.

 

  • Mixing (also called Dubbing) – The Mixers have the responsibility of balancing the various elements, i.e., – the Dialogue (and ADR), Music, Sound Effects, and Foley Effects, in the final mix. The Dialogue Mixer, (also called the Lead Mixer or Gaffing Mixer) commands the mixing stage; his partners in the mix are the Effects Mixer and the Music Mixer. On large features, it is not uncommon to have an additional mixer handling just the Foley effects. On huge pictures with tight deadlines, it is possible that several teams of mixers are working simultaneously on numerous stages in order to complete the mix by the release date.

 Where does post-production begin ?

If you haven’t shot your film yet, it begins before you shoot – by selecting the finest production dialogue mixer you can afford. The little bit extra paid to a great production mixer can save you tenfold later in post-production.

 

What happens during the mix ? 

During the mix, the edited production dialogue and ADR, sound effects, Foley and Musical elements that will comprise the soundtrack are assembled in their edited form, and balanced by a number of mixers to become the final soundtrack. In New York, single-mixer sessions are more commonplace than in Hollywood, where two-mixer and three-mixer teams are the norm.

The mixers traditionally divide the chores between themselves: the Lead Mixer usually handles dialogue and ADR, and may also handle music in a two-man team. In that case, the Effects mixer will handle sound effects and Foley. In three-man teams, they usually split Dialogue, Effects and Music; sometimes the music mixer handles Foley, sometimes the effects mixer covers it.

To keep the mix from becoming overwhelming, each mixer is actually creating a small set of individual sub-mixes, called STEMS. These mix stems (dialogue, effects, Foley, music, adds, extras, etc) are easier to manipulate and update during the mix.” (filmsound.org)

The Process that FilmSound.Org is describing also matches the post-priduction role flow chart, that was shown to us in a lecture from Grant Bridgman in the 1st and 2nd year:

Screen-Shot-2015-12-17-at-14.19.22

The audio post production process in my project will work in a very similar way with some minor differences. In the section “what is involved in Audio post?” it simply says the different processes of audio post production. With the two films I am performing or undertaking different roles. For ‘All Ribbons End’ I will be undertaking all roles within audio post excluding music composition. With petal Child I will be undertaking a supervisory role as well as dialogue editing and mixing (dubbing). The rest of the post production will be completed by Sid including music composition, sound design and Foley.

My process will start also with production dialogue editing. This will be followed by any ADR, voice overs, dialogue recording that is required. On the two films there needs to become form of dialogue recording in the post production. All ribbons end needs the voice of a call operator and a bingo caller. Petal child requires the sound of someone shouting in an authoritative manor in the first scene. ADR may be required however due to strict time- restrains and actor’s availabilities this may not be possible. Therefore a lot of effort and attention to detail needs to be put in place to avoid the need for ADR.

This will then then be followed by Foley and then sound design. The reason Foley will be done  (for all ribbons end) is because some of the Foley needs to be processed as sound design e.g. put through a sound effects to replicate the sound of a phone call.

The film will then be mixed. This may involve bouncing each different section (output of each role) into different STEMs e.g. dialogue, Foley, sound design, music. Another stem will be atmospheres, this may not be a stem that is commonly used but I feel that creating an atmosphere stem makes it easier to control the level of background noise compared with everything else.

Film Sound theory

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Regarding LO1, LO2

One of the first places I looked for film sound theory research was Michel Chion’s book ‘Audio vision’. This is one of the most popular ‘go to’ books on this topic. Chion believes that sound and image form one entity: “A kind of symbolic contract that the audio-viewer enters into, agreeing to think of sound and image as forming a single entity.” (Chion 1994, p.216).

When we watch a film, we are also listening to it. Sound is just as important if not more important than the visuals of a film. It has the power to portray various emotions in ways that visuals cannot. Therefore it by completing the sound for this project, I am generating emotion and adding value to the visual entity that has been created. “It can be said that sound’s greatest influence on film is manifested at the heart of the image itself. The clearer treble you hear, the faster your perception of sound and the keener your sensation of presentence.” (Chion, 1994)

This backs up what I have just said, regarding how sound ‘adds’ to the image. By having good, clean and audible the audience will perceive the sound quicker, making it have more of an impact and being more powerful on the sensation the audience receives.

“In a film image that contains movement many other things in frame may remain fixed. But sound by its very nature necessarily implies a displacement or agitation, however minimal. Sound dies have means to suggest stasis, but only in limited cases. One could say that “fixed sound” is that which entails no variations whatever as it is heard. This characteristic is only found in certain sounds of artificial origin: a telephone dial tone, or the hum of a speaker.” (Chion, 1994, 10)

This is something to consider when it comes to post production. Sound is constantly moving and is not ‘fixed’ in a film unless it’s for a specific reason. Sound can add movement to still shots. If we take a background ambience for example, and it contained a still ambient noise it would sound displaced, even though we are presenting a moving ‘displaced sound’. However in post production for this project I will be using slight forms of ‘fixed sounds’ For example, in ‘All ribbons end’ there is a phone call. A fixed hum (background hiss) will be used to tell the audience that the person is still on the phone. Without this sound, the there would be a large silence would might confuse the audience.

“During filming it is the voice that is collected in sound recording- which therefore is almost always voice recording- and it is the voice recording that is isolated in the sound mix like a solo instrument- for which the other sounds (music and noise) are merely the accompaniment.” (Chion, 1994, 6)

I think that Chion is highlighting the importance of dialogue recording in a film. The dialogue or voice is telling the story. It is how the film directly communicates to us. If the dialogue isn’t to a high standard and the rest of the sound was, we would still notice that the dialogue wasn’t right. If we can’t understand what is being said it ruins the film regardless of how good the music, the atmospheres, the sound design is.

Chion suggests: “In current practice the mixing of soundtracks consists essentially in the art of smoothing rough edges by degrees of intensity.” (Chion, 1994, 42) By having ‘rough edges’ sounds sound out of place. For example a take from a shot that transitions badly into another take (and

All Ribbons End Location sound

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Location Sound recording.

The challenges and issues we had on the location sound of Petal Child really helped, as what i learn on that could be used to improve on the shoot of All Ribbons end. Firstly, I was a lot more prepared, and the recent practice from the previous shoot meant i was more confident at doing it. I rebooked into some research, specifically from Ric Viers and Lecture slides from Grant Bridgman to refresh my knowledge.

Ric Viers wrote in his book ‘The Sound effects bible’ Ten commandments a sound recordist should follow for a professional recording. The commandments are as followed:

“Thou Shalt Have a Pre-Roll and Post-Roll of Two Seconds on Each Recording.

Thou Shalt Record More Than You Need.

Thou Shalt Slate Every Take with as Much Information as Possible.

Thou Shalt Check Thy Levels Often.

Thou Shalt Listen to Thy Work by Always Wearing Headphones.

Thou Shalt Eliminate All Background Noise.

Thou Shalt Not Interrupt a Take.

Thou Shalt Point the Microphone at the Sound.

Thou Shalt Check Thy Equipment Before Going Into the Field.

Thou Shalt Remember the Copyright Laws to Keep Them Unbroken”

Last year we had a number of guest lectures from Grant Bridgeman, an industry expert with regard to sound for visual, and specialising in location sound recording. Therefore it seems a good idea to refer back to the lecture he gave last year.

Grant started by explain the definition of location sound: “The art of capturing sound on location (generally dialogue) without compromising the image.” (Bridgeman, 2014)

Grant then explains the importance of concentrating more on recording the dialogue than everything else. This is mainly because any other sounds made, can be recreated. However the actors voices can’t, (unless they use ADR, which isn’t time or cost efficient) therefore it is important to get clean quality dialogue.

He then explained the importance of the location you are recording in. His slide asked the questions:

• Is it quiet ?

• Is it controllable ?

– Why is this a problem ? – Editing

• Planes, Trains & Automobiles

• Reverberation

– Why is this a problem ?

• Wind Noise – can be prevented

Grant then went into the features/details/things to think about with regards to some of the equipment.

“Equipment 1 – Shotgun

• Shot gun (or short gun) Mic and Boom

Pole

– Sounds Open (Natural)

– Very sensitive

– Directional – (on axis)

– Wind Protection

– Phantom Power (+48V)

– Handling Noise

Equipment 2 – Personal Mic

• Personal Mic’s. (Tie Clip / Lavaliere / Wire)

– Sounds “closer” (too close?)

– Wires can be restrictive to movement

– In View / Hidden ?

– Clothes Rustle / Movement Noise

– (Radio mic’s too)

– More prone to wind noise…

Equipment 3 – Recorder

• Sound to Camera or Separate Recorder

• To make the best of having two microphones record

them to two channels.

• Allows comparison

• Stops a single problem ruining both audio tracks.

• Place the personal mic at the sternum

• Keep the boom mic pointing at the dialogue

• (aim the mic ‘at the chin’ of the person speaking)

• Don’t play back both mic’s at the same time!

• Phasing – Picture editors often don’t know this. ”

After considering these points, i decided to use a boom microphone and personal microphones. The boom mic is effective if the actors are moving around a lot, as personal mics will pick up clothes noise. However in big wide shots, it difficult to get a boom close to the mouth of the actors.

Grant also talks about sound levels. Sound levels are really important because if levels are too quite, there will be alot of background noise, however if it is too quite, it will be prone to distortion.

Grant also mentioned a technique of using a boom microphone pointed away from the actors, and a personal mic blended together, so that the sound of the radio mic doesn’t sound like its so close, however this could not be implemented due to being a one man recording team.

The equipment I used included:

Zoom H6 recorder

Zoom H4 recorder

Sennheiser MKH416 Rifle Mic and boom pole

Rode NTG-2 boom mic and Mic stand

Radio microphones

The zoom H6 recorder was the main recorder used in the location sound recording process. Ideally I would have used the Sound devices 633 mixer/recorder (industry standard for location recording) however availability of equipment was very limited. The issues with the H6 recorder is the manoeuvrability when using multiple inputs and being the boom op at the same time; and the headphone amplifier on the device (which made it extremely difficult to monitor the sound. However these issues were overcome by. The manoeuvrability problem was overcome by creating a ‘makeshift’ recorder bag, much like the sound devices 633 would have come in. This mean I could monitor, record and boom more efficiently. The headphone amp issue was over come by referencing in different headphones, constantly check levels and checking sound files on a computer after each shoot. The zoom H4 recorder (stereo microphone) was used to capturer a stereo ambience of the bingo hall.

Radio clip microphones where used throughout the whole shoot to capture quality dialogue. They were also used as ‘backup’ room microphones in shots that had no dialouge. The Sennheiser rifle microphone was used as the main source of capturing dialouge, breaths and movement noises.

One challenge was recording the phone call live during the shooting. This was the preferred method of recording the phone call from the director to capture the best/more natural performance. (ADR can sometimes sound unnatural and lack performance.) Originally the plan was to record both the actor and actress in the same room and record the dialogue of the actress by using a radio clip mic. However this would then cause problems later in the dialouge edit. Therefore the actress was recorded in a separate room. I set up a boom mic on a microphone stand and placed a radio clip mic on the subject. We then made a real live phone call for the takes so the subjects could hear each others performances. An extra pair of headphones was given to the director so he could all hear both subject’s performances. This was very effective in isolated the different dialouge tracks.

Originally I was recruiting help with the location sound recording. This would have meant extra effort could have been put in when booming and checking levels/monitoring (especially as the headphone amps weren’t very good.) However it was unfortunate that the person i had to help me pulled out due to other commitments. Overall it was a fairly easy shoot with little issues.

References

Ament, Vanessa Theme. The Foley Grail. Amsterdam: Focal Press/Elsevier, 2009. Print.

Chion, Michel, Claudia Gorbman, and Walter Murch. Audio-Vision. New York: Columbia University Press, 1994. Print.

Cook, Frank D. Pro Tools 101. Boston, MA: Course Technology, 2011. Print.

Lyver, Des. Basics Of Video Sound. Oxford [England]: Focal Press, 1999. Print.

Purcell, John. Dialogue Editing For Motion Pictures. Amsterdam: Focal Press, 2007. Print.

Viers, Ric. The Sound Effects Bible. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions, 2008. Print.

Weis, Elisabeth, and John Belton. Film Sound. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985. Print.

Location Visit

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Yesterday I visited some of the locations i will be shooting at for the next film i’m working on, ‘when the ribbon ends’. The reason behind this visit was to research the ‘sound’ of the environment i will be working at. This will prepare me for issues i may have regards to the sound of the environment.

The first location was a hexagonal hall. The first impressions was the loud radiator sound and reverberation of the room. Due to the reverberation i will need to use close mics (radio mics) on my subjects, as well as get in as close as possible with the boom microphone. On a lot of my shoots i have used hidden microphones, however due to the sound and openness of the room this will not be possible. The second issue was the radiator. This makes a loud buzzing sound and CANT BE TURNED OFF. This could potentially cause an issue, however it is a constant buzz and doesn’t make a lot of varied sounds. Therefore its likely that post production will get rid of this sound, or be masked by the background sound. (this scene is a bingo scene so we can have lots of people talking in the background). The crew are however, filming away from the radiator so hopefully the sound won’t leak that much.

The second location was a small bed and breakfast. My first impressions were great, the house was hidden away from the roads and i didn’t hear a plane go by. The kitchen in which they were filming in was silent, until the fridge started buzzing. Therefore we will need to make sure that gets switched off during recording. The second issue was that there was a boiler in one of the bedrooms that makes a bit of noise. However we will not be filming in that room and when the door is shut the sound is killed.

The third location is outside the Holiday Inn on the Brayford. This is a very busy environment with lots of people, near a main road and with train crossing alarms near by. However there is next to no dialogue in the scene, therefore wont be an issue as the soundtrack can be completely rebuilt in necessary.

Mark Hills Guest Lecture

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This week we were fortunate enough to receive a guest Lecture from Mark Hills, a Lincoln University Media Production Graduate and sound engineer in a highly reputable audio post-production house in Soho, London called Soho Square Studios. Soho Square studios are a Dolby approved studio and focus on audio post production for Advertisement, animations, feature films, and voice recordings for games.

Mark began the lecture talking a bit about his background and how he got to where he is now. He explained how similarly to most sound designers he fell in love with electronic music at an early age. He took media at A-Levels and then became a Lincoln University Media Production Undergraduate in 2007.

I won’t go too much in to detail about his background as he has personally blogged about it, this can be found here: https://audioproduction.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/2015/10/09/mark-hills-class-of-2010-sound-designer-soho-square-studios/

Mark then talked about the challenges of getting into this industry and being able to work in a studio like Soho Square Studios. He explained the importance of ‘running’ and how although we have (will have) degrees, we will still be expected to start from the bottom as runners. He explained how its better to go for a running job at a smaller studio with around 10-15 people, as the opportunity to grow, learn and promotion is higher. Whereas the larger companies, you could find yourself being a runner for many years and not get anywhere.

He also gave us a little advice for our CVs. He said that the studio aren’t that interested in how many student films you’ve worked on, what they want to know is, if you have a degree; and have some real work experience. What he meant by that is customer focused work experience e.g. working in a pub. The studio likes this as it shows you can deal with and work well with clients.

The Lecture gave a great insight to what its like working in an ins try we are all passionate about, but also gave us all a bit of a reality check in regards to the amount of work it takes to get to his position. This was a slightly different approach than most guest lectures give however i felt like it was good for us to get a bit of a reality check to push us more to where we want to go. 

The day after this lecture myself and another AP student, Matt Jones actually went  to London and visited Soho Square Studios to interview Mark and His manager Tom Mackewn for research in our R&D case study module. We arrived at the Studio and got to see Mark in action, finishing up a session, where we were quite impressed by the speed of his Pro tools skills. He then gave us a tour of some of the studio rooms and showed us a few bits of his previous work.

When we interviewed  Mark, we had to ask questions about his role as and engineer and what he does day to day etc. If was interested to find out how the working hours were 9-6 monday to friday, as most creative industries involve working unsociable hours. he also talked about how they don’t have ‘official lunch breaks’ and work around their daily schedules to fit in lunch. He also talked about some of the perks of the job. That of which he said how he loved being able to do a hobby for a job and that you get to work with some amazing high status people.

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