Directed by Danny Madden, Euphonia follows a bored, K-Mart employed high school boy, Will (Will Madden) who for some reason or another hates every minute of his white, suburban existence. The film, which was well done, is a must watch for any sound recordist or designer and that’s why we’re so interested in it here at S&P.
As the minutes pass closer to the all conclusive fade to black, Will’s days of hanging out with his friend (Bejnamin Papac) and trading notes with a female classmate (Maria Decotis) become bleak. So he turns to what any teenage boy does to fill his loneliness-porn (kidding, but just a suggestion, Will). Nope, he actually buys a sound recording device, a Zoom H2, to be exact and starts to capture the audio world around him. Now consumed with his newly found obsession it eventually becomes so intense it slips him into a world of discontent.
Shot outside Atlanta, Georgia with a near zero dollar budget, Danny Madden, created a plot through sound imagery that’s engrained with inventiveness and passion. Though Will is center stage, the real characters are the sounds that begin to take over his life. Besides directing and writing the project, Madden also cut the film and looked to Steve Bissinger for additional sound re-recording and theory. We were able to sit down with the two storytellers to see what it was like creating a character we could only hear.
Re-recording mixer, Howard Bargroff, AMPS, was nominated alongside production sound mixer John Mooney for their effort on BBC’s Sherlock. Known for his work on Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, amongst others, S&P asked Howard to take us behind the scenes and unlock the mystery of his final mix for the Emmy considered episode, A Scandal in Belgravia.
S&P: Sherlock landed you your first Emmy nomination. Pretty cool, huh? Bargroff :Very cool. And totally unexpected. I’m still reeling a bit from the news.
S&P: What made you and production sound mixer, John Mooney, decide to submit A Scandal In Belgravia over the other episodes of season 2? Bargroff :That episode had the most thinking time. And a real conscious effort was made to shape the tone of the piece. It was felt that we would keep sound fairly minimal apart from key moments. Hopefully, that made the big scenes feel more impactful, and helped to sell the shape of the drama.
Sounddogs.com recently updated their website. It’s not a complete overhaul, but it’s a bit cleaner and a little less kludge for users to get around. If you haven’t heard of them or been to this site, they offer a pretty good sound effects library for your production needs.
The content creation community is embracing this new audio format, and more than 25 feature films have been announced or already mixed in 7.1–and a majority of them are in 3D. Discover how 7.1 brings a more exciting sensory experience to 2D and gives content creators even more control over audio placement for 3D movies. Also learn from experts in the cinema industry how they envision the future of surround sound.
Panelists
Kinson Tsang, supervising sound designer, Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen and The Lost Bladesman
Rohan Sippy, director, Dum Maaro Dum
Erik Aadahl, supervising sound editor, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Kung Fu Panda 2, and Megamind
Michael Semanick, rerecording mixer, Cars 2 and Toy Story 3
Eric Brevig, director, Yogi Bear and Journey to the Center of the Earth
The Cinema Audio Society has put together a fantastic seminar for anyone who wants to learn the newest rules, procedures and techniques in film and TV workflows. The days events and selected speakers are listed below. Be sure to RSVP if you can!
THE DIGITAL GAMEPLAN Successful Workflow Approaches on Set thru Post!
What: CAS Seminar Event When: Saturday, January 8, 2011 — Free admission Where: Sony Studios, 10202 W. Washington, Culver City- Cary Grant Theatre Parking: Enter at Madison Gate Who Is Invited: ALL CAS MEMBERS, MPSE, SMPTE, AES, IA LOCALS 700 EDITORS, 695 SOUND, 600 CAMERA, DGA, PRODUCERS, FACILITIES, MANUFACTURERS, FILM STUDENTS and those involved in the motion picture film and television industry. RSVP: To CASseminars@cinemaaudiosociety.org (You may still attend without an RSVP)
SEMINAR # 1: 10 am – 11:45 am Workflow Procedures for Getting the Most out of Digital Cameras.
Speakers will discuss proper workflows for using Panavison (Mike Kovacevich), Arri Alexa (Stephan Ukas-Bradley), RED (Michael Cioni) & Panasonic (Tommy Mack), Production Audio (Robert Kennedy) Reality (Josh Rizzo) on thru the Pro Tools and Avid (Scott Wood).
A “Workflow White Paper for the Pros” will be handed out to the audiences at both seminars
SEMINAR #2: 12:00 noon – 1:45pm Digital Workflow Approaches from Production thru the Post Process.
Avid Media Composer and Pro Tools experts, including Scott Wood from Avid Professional Services, will discuss standard workflows for HD projects from production through post.
Navigating the digital highway: (Moderator, John Coffey)
These two seminars offer a basic end to end understanding, which will allow people to more clearly see how their decisions affect the rest of the workflow pipeline. It is for all those along the entire chain of Camera, Production Sound & the Post Production Picture and Sound Departments. Hear it from the experts! Be prepared for the higher expectations as the technology continues to evolve.
Current camera, sound and editorial equipment will be on display in the lobby for your hands-on experience. You may attend one or both seminars. Other topics may include how to stay in total sync throughout your production with a focus on 3D and HD issues, dual system sound, proper codecs, bit depth, file formats, metadata, cross resolving, sample rates, track naming, polyphonic, monophonic, audio to the camera, impedance, signal quality, tri-level sync, off-sets, new media, deliverables, commercial compliance, a wireless spectrum update and more!
Directed by Danny Madden, Euphonia follows a bored, K-Mart employed high school boy, Will (Will Madden) who for some reason or another hates every minute of his white, suburban existence. The film, which was well done, is a must watch for any sound recordist or designer and that’s why we’re so interested in it here at S&P.
Re-recording mixer, Howard Bargroff, AMPS, was nominated alongside production sound mixer John Mooney for their effort on BBC’s Sherlock. Known for his work on Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, amongst others, S&P asked Howard to take us behind the scenes and unlock the mystery of his final mix for the Emmy considered episode, A Scandal in Belgravia.
