FALL-2012 CAS QUARTERLY by Cinema Audio Society

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BEST SOUND MIXING PRODUCTION SOUND MIXER

SIMON HAYES amps RE-RECORDING MIXERS

ANDY NELSON MARK PATERSON

BEST SOUND EDITING SUPERVISING SOUND EDITORS

JOHN WARHURST LEE WALPOLE

universalpicturesawards.com

FEATURES Congrats to the Emmy Winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 CAS Career Achievement Award Recipient. . . . . . . . . . . 21 Chris Newman, CAS to be honored

CAS Filmmaker Award Recipient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Jonathan Demme to be honored

Dolby Atmos Seminar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Redefining surround sound

New Recorder/Mixers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Comparing the 664 and Nomad Lite

Technicolor at Paramount. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 CAS members take the tour

DEPARTMENTS President’s Letter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Updating our awards

From the Editors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Technically Speaking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 XLR cables and balanced lines

A Sound Discussion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Plug-in loudness meters put to the test

Been There Done That. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 CAS members check in

The Lighter Side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

42 Cover: Loudness meters in action

CAS QUARTERLY

FALL 2012

THE PRESIDENT’S LETTER

Welcome to the fall edition! I am very excited to report to you that your CAS Board of Directors has been extremely busy these last few months. I have asked all of our Directors to participate on the various committees we have set up to offer our membership many new and exciting activities from which to choose. The goal is to use our brain trust, our varied experience and knowledge, and to pool our resources to come up with ideas to help the CAS grow and to service our membership. We have several committees actively working now to help us achieve our goal of expanding the reach of the Cinema Audio Society. Some of those committees include Membership, Seminars, Awards Revisions, Awards Category Revisions, Family Activities, Website Revisions, and International Branch Research. We have such an active Board, it makes me very happy to bring news to the entire membership. We have held a few seminars recently, which were very well attended. You can check them out inside these pages. One of the main missions of the CAS is to bring new technology and information to the membership, and we have more plans for similar tours and lectures coming next year. Keep an eye out also for our “Annual Production Parade of Sound Carts Seminar,” which drew big crowds last year. Also, several of our members offer lecture demonstrations to colleges, high schools and lower schools on many sound-related subjects. The next generation of sound artists benefit greatly from the sharing we do. When I was handed the gavel two years ago, I said that ‘giving back to the community’ was a priority. I see that happening now, and it is very inspiring to young people. Our social media presence has grown as well. Our brand-new website is looking good and expanding its functionality. It is designed to be the ‘hub’ of our organization and is taking shape nicely. We have a new Facebook page, Twitter page, as well as a new YouTube channel being prepared for launch soon. I hope also, that you are enjoying our expanding screening schedule, which you can refer to on the website as well. Your membership has value! Stay tuned for this year’s CAS election coverage as well. Again, many thanks to our hardworking Web Committee. Regarding the awards season, we have many changes now in place which have been forming this past year as part of the platform of advancements for the CAS. Along with scoring mixers, we have now added ADR and Foley mixers as team members for some of our six award categories. Recognizing sound artists is a priority for us, and we now have the ability to expand our roster of nominees. Make sure you go to the website and check out the rules of entry, submission forms, and the timelines which contain all the information you will need. Our Production and Post Production Technical Achievement Awards will once again be a highlight for us, and information will be posted soon. Also, we have reworked our award categories to now include Feature Film Animation, alongside Live Action. Plus our TV categories have been expanded to include one-hour and half-hour program categories. Be sure to mark your calendar for the 49th Annual CAS Awards on February 16, 2013. Once again, we will be holding our high-profile event at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles. This year, we are honoring production mixer Chris Newman, CAS with our Career Achievement Award. We are planning another fun evening, and I look forward to seeing you all there!

David E. Fluhr, CAS President of the Cinema Audio Society 4

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cinema audio society mission statement

To educate and inform the general public and the motion picture and television industry that effective sound is achieved by a creative, artistic and technical blending of diverse sound elements. To provide the motion picture and television industry with a progressive society of master craftsmen specialized in the art of creative cinematic sound recording. To advance the specialized field of cinematic sound recording by exchange of ideas, methods, and information. To advance the art of auditory appreciation, and to philanthropically support those causes dedicated to the sense of hearing. To institute and maintain high standards of conduct and craftsmanship among our members. To aid the motion picture and television industry in the selection and training of qualified personnel in the unique field of cinematic sound recording. To achieve for our members deserved recognition as major contributors to the field of motion picture and television entertainment.

CAS fall 2012

NEW MEMBERS Active Beau Borders, CAS Jeremy Peirson, CAS Aron Siegel, CAS April Tucker, CAS

Associate Paul Andrew Lawrence Jacob Trmrian

Student Fernanda Camargo Edward Dreher Jhi-Yeon Oh

FROM THE EDITORS...

As we all gear up for the holiday season, we bring you the fall CAS Quarterly. In this issue, the CAS is proud to announce this year’s Career Achievement Award recipient, production mixer Chris Newman! Congratulate Chris in person at this year’s awards ceremony, which will be handing out awards in some new categories. Check out “The President’s Letter” for more information. Also at the event will be our CAS Filmmaker Award recipient, Academy Award®-winning director Jonathan Demme! Wow yourself by checking out his bio in this issue. Review two recent CAS events: the Dolby Atmos seminar and the tour of the new post-production sound facility Technicolor at Paramount. In his “A Sound Discussion” column, Matt Foglia, CAS puts four plug-in loudness meters to the test, given the CALM Act implementation date of December 13, while Will Hansen, CAS gives us an overview of two new, equally priced, location recorder/mixers: the Sound Devices’ 664 and Zaxcom’s Nomad Lite. G. John Garrett, CAS gives a little background info on the advent of balanced lines and the XLR connector in his “Technically Speaking” column. And, of course, you can check up on the happenings of your fellow members in the “Been There Done That” and “The Lighter Side” sections. The Quarterly is produced as a service to our members on a voluntary basis. If you are a member and would like to contribute an article—whether already completed or needing some extra help—please let us know, as we really appreciate those taking the time to contribute. Additionally, we greatly appreciate, and want, your feedback and suggestions—so send them in! Email us at CASquarterly@CinemaAudioSociety.org. Finally, don’t forget that our sponsors are professionals like you who understand the business and needs of our industry. We encourage your commitment to them.

OFFICERS

President: David E. Fluhr, CAS Vice President: Mark Ulano, CAS Secretary: David J. Bondelevitch, CAS Treasurer: Peter R. Damski, CAS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Deb Adair, CAS John Coffey, CAS Edward J. Greene, CAS Tomlinson Holman, CAS Skip Lievsay, CAS Paul Vik Marshall, CAS

Scott Millan, CAS Walter Murch, CAS Lisa Piñero, CAS Randy Thom, CAS Jeff Wexler, CAS

ALTERNATES

Bob Beemer, CAS Phillip W. Palmer, CAS Sherry Klein, CAS Glen Trew, CAS OFFICE MANAGER

Patti Fluhr EDITORS

Peter Damski Matt Foglia PUBLISHER

Peter Damski, CAS

Matt Foglia, CAS

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49th ANNUAL CAS AWARDS TIMELINE • Nomination Ballot Voting Begins Online Wed., Dec. 12, 2012 • Nomination Ballot Voting Ends Online 5 p.m., Fri., Jan. 4, 2013 • Final Five Nominees announced Thu., Jan. 10, 2013 • Final Voting Begins Online Wed., Jan. 23, 2013 • Final Voting Ends Online 5 p.m., Fri., Feb. 8, 2013 • 49th Annual CAS Awards Sat., Feb. 16, 2013, in the Crystal Ballroom of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel – Los Angeles, California

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XLR Cables,

a Twisted Tale

Here’s a look inside an assembly that’s so common, you may have never given it much thought: The balanced line cable with XLR connectors. The XLR connector was invented by James Cannon and was originally just called the “X series” connector. Later, a locking version, “XL,” came along and still later, in 1958, a female connector with resilient material between connector pins, hence XLR. Later, Switchcraft made their version (an improvement in some respects, with an internal strain relief and a captive setscrew to fix the connector to the shell). And lastly, Neutrik, who has improved their own design a number of times to the point that some of the current models can be assembled without tools altogether. One can find XLR connectors in configurations from 2-7 pins, but most common in the sound department are 3-pin XLRs and 4-pin XLRs for intercom or DC power. Always check the circuit you’re connecting to, but pin 1 is almost always ground. In balanced audio, pin 2 is the + wire and pin 3 is the - wire. Which brings us to balanced lines. Balancing an audio signal (originally with transformers) increases the distance the signal can be transmitted without further amplification. Balanced lines also help in rejecting common mode noise, as it sums to zero at the next stage, which is usually a transformer or differential input IC. But there was still a problem; electromagnetically or inductively coupled noise didn’t always affect both wires equally, as they were separated by some space. Also, because electromagnetic waves vary over space, the instantaneous voltage of the interfering signal would be different on each of the balanced signal wires.

by G. J ohn Gar r et t , CAS

Twisting balanced wires creates better common mode rejection and general electromagnetic interference protection. This was first done by Alexander Graham Bell in 1881 with telephone transmission wires. When electric trolleys came about, the telephone company had fits with the electromagnetic interference caused by sparking and arcing connections that radiated off the trolley catenary wires. The trolley lines were relatively long, as were the telephone lines, which acted as big antennas. This caused Bell to begin using balanced lines. Then, at every pole, he would switch the position of the two wires, crossing them over each other at the insulators. This “slow twist” improved the common mode performance of the phone circuit because, over several miles, the positive and negative phase wires were more equally exposed to the interference.

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Now here’s the part that bends my mind a little. The higher the twist rate in a wire, the more often the positive and negative wires trade places, which makes for higher and higher interference frequency protection. This happens because the two separate signal wires, more or less, occupy the same mathematical point in space, where the instantaneous voltages, including interfering ones, sum to zero. Yet they are separate wires and, at the input to that differential amplifier or transformer at the signal termination, there is full signal and zero interference! Modern XLR cabling also has a metallic braid or foil shield that keeps electrostatic noise out of the circuit. This shield is most often connected to pin 1 of the XLR, which is the circuit ground in a piece of gear, while the connector shell connects to the chassis ground. Some knowledge of the circuit is helpful in knowing whether connecting the XLR shell to pin 1 will induce noise into the circuit. In some cases, connecting the shield at the source end, and disconnecting it at the termination end, is the best way to avoid ground loops and noise. Moving forward, common copper telephone (or Bell) wire has a twist rate of about seven turns per foot. Beyond that, it was determined to not give any additional benefit for classic Plain Old Telephone (POTS) telephony, whose upper frequency limit on unequalized

lines is about 3kHz. Today, we have high-speed data running down our cables, and CAT 5 and CAT 6 cable are being used more and more in professional audio applications. How is that possible? First, by using much higher twist rates. And second, by using different twist rates inside cable bundles. The former technique results in better bandwidth and the second gives better crosstalk performance between pairs, since they are tightly coupled over long distances. That’s why, when you cut open a piece of CAT 5 cable or other multi-pair data cable, you will find some pairs twisted more than others. That’s how we can run analog audio, NTSC video and AES audio in CAT 5 cable. CAT 5 is a great transmission line for AES, as its impedance at AES data rates is right in the middle of the spec. I just wired mix engines and patchbays for some Logitek broadcast consoles exclusively with multi-pair Bell wire cables and optical interconnects, and have built several facilities using Dan Braverman’s cool StudioHub system of CAT 5 and pre-made breakout cables: http://www .studiohub.com/ Maybe you didn’t realize there was so much history and science inside your XLR cables, but knowing the above can help you make quiet, long run sends of analog or digital audio easier to accomplish with twisted pairs! •

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LOUDNESS Metering Plug-Ins by Mat t Foglia , CAS

I knew it was coming, and the email finally hit my inbox: “Matt—The network has some new audio specs dealing with loudness that we’ll be using for the upcoming season. Please see the attachment.” By now, those of us mixing for broadcast who weren’t required to abide by the regulations stated in the CALM Act, have probably received word that we now have to, given the federal implementation date of December 13, 2012. With this new requirement, it was time to check out some metering options. When I was mixing in NYC around 2006, I remember purchasing our first hardware loudness meter, the Dolby LM100. With the increases in computer processing power, plug-ins are now able to accurately deliver loudness readings. Given that premise, and the fact that I don’t have a couple of grand to invest in a hardware meter, I decided to do some research to see what plug-ins are available, given their increased measuring accuracy and modest price points. Here, I’ll discuss four meters priced between $80 and $800: VSonics’ VMeter ($79 stereo, $129 surround), Nugen Audio’s VisLM ($299 for the “C” compact version, $449 for the “H” version with history logging), Waves’ WLM ($400), and of course, Dolby’s Media Meter 2 ($799). My approach for how to analyze these plug-ins comes from my being a little suspect of how some companies model metering plug-ins. For example, Pro Tools comes with a metering plug-in that looks like a VU meter—and says “VU” in the corner—but really doesn’t react like a VU. This becomes very confusing for folks, such as students, who think it’s a VU and 12

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try to use it as their VU reference when mixing—because it’s wrong. This being my experience, I decided to view the reaction of all plug-ins at the same time. Of note, I didn’t come across Nugen’s VisLM until one of my graduate students directed me to it after I’d done my initial observations. So, the VisLM was analyzed separately and less comparatively (deadlines, you know). All of the plug-ins have demos of varying lengths available on their respective websites, except for Dolby. Dolby, as expected, was very accommodating and supplied a trial for me to explore. For broadcast, I usually mix with the dialogue in the -2 to 0 VU range and am, typically, pretty light with dialogue and

Snapshot 1

2Mix compression. Given the typical ITU-R BS.1770 LKFS level of -24, I knew that I’d need to lower my 2Mix output a couple of dB prior to the meter—which I inserted across a Pro Tools Master Fader (as Master Fader inserts are post-fader). Of note, when I used to mix shows requiring the LM100, I used to turn up my overall studio monitor level 3 dB (to 82 dBSPL instead of 79 dBSPL). Since my ears were so accustomed to hearing mixes at a certain sound pressure level, this

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Snapshot 2

Snapshot 3

Snapshot 4 14

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allowed my ears to think my levels were the same as a non-LM100 show, even though the VU meters were reading a couple of dB lower to accommodate loudness readings. The first show I put up was a series I mix that has VO, clips of people doing stupid things and comedians commenting on said stupid things. I lowered the output 4 dB for this episode in order to hit the target -24. In Snapshot 1, we see the three meters all displaying similar Short Term and Long Term/ Infinite loudness readings. As the counter shows, this is about 36 minutes into a network hour program (about 43 minutes total for this episode). This is what I was really curious about; are they all accurate. Using the Dolby MM2 as the standard, we see that they are. Now, just like any new car can get you from A to B, we often pay for features that we feel are important (performance, fuel economy, towing capacity, etc.). As you’d expect, this fact of business holds true here. For instance, on the Dolby Media Meter, we see a “Dialogue Range” reading—displaying the quietest and loudest dialogue levels that have been played, up to that moment, measured using LKFS. The Waves’ WLM has a “Range” display, but is measured in LU instead of LKFS, hence the different readings. Looking at that big red line graph on the MM2, you are shown the True Peak values across the program and, looking closer, you see numerous other levels graphed across the program in different colors, including Short and Long Term dialogue levels and Short and Long Term overall levels. The WLM displays how many “overs” and “unders” were present—with values being within a constant or user assignable range. This can also be viewed using the “Automation Warning” feature which gives you a volume automation-type reading of where the “overs” and “unders” occurred within the program.

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All three meters display (or can display) True Peak, as seen here. An interesting feature of the VMeter is that you can, essentially, “build” a meter to display whatever you’d like, as you can combine any of the available scales. Here, I’ve combined Short Term, Long Term, True Peak and a VU (that is actually accurate!) for good measure. Any of these can be removed or repositioned—or you could add a couple other scales to this such as a K-System K-12 meter. The WLM and DMM2 can also output logs of your loudness readings, should that be a requirement. Note these are just a few of the available features. Continuing on, the second show I checked is a heavily edited, dynamic, MTV show containing a lot of clips of people screaming as they hurt themselves crashing and falling. I lowered the overall level of this program 3 dB to get within range. As you can see in Snapshot 2, the readings weren’t always totally in sync. Here, all of the Long Term values are the same (-24), but the three Short Terms were different. Note how the WLM gives a nice, green checkmark in the Long Term menu, indicating that I’m hitting the target range (doing the same when hitting the Short Term target, as seen in Snapshot 1). On the VMeter, we see the Short Term -27 value in green, not indicating that I’m hitting the target, but letting me know that I’ve gone below the warning area buffer of +/-2 LKFS (exceeding the buffer displays the value in red). To me, these are very helpful displays when mixing. Note that the True Peak values of the DMM2 and the WLM are -11 while the VMeter is -12. The final show I ran through the meters was an HBO boxing documentary that I mixed a couple of years back, choosing to also lower its output 3 dB. In Snapshot 3, we see the VMeter Short Term value of -21 displayed in red, since it exceeded the buffer. Long Term values differ, but note that the WLM gives a reading to the tenth of a dB and has chosen to round up to -24 instead of down to -25 given its reading of -24.5 LUFS. As mentioned, I didn’t test the Nugen VisLM at the same time as the other three, having been told about it afterward. For this plug-in, I played the same program as in example 1 and chose to display both the VisLM-C “Compact” version and the VisLM-H version with history and print out options (see Snapshot 4). These meters, too, have multiple viewing options and lots of features. The VisLM-H (on the right) provides a graphic display with a window that can span from 10 seconds to 24 hours (part of the “History” aspect). The Compact version limits some of these

features. As you can see, with the “H” version, we have some similar graphing as the WLM and DMM2. All of the plug-ins were very easy to get started with, given that I was doing a very basic overall comparison of loudness levels. They all have a number of presets covering ITU, EBU, ATSC standards. You can get very deep with the feature sets of some of these, especially the Dolby Media Meter 2. However, they all “did the job”—if “the job” is to provide accurate Long Term and Short Term loudness readings while mixing. Of note, there are other plug-in loudness meters out there such as the tc electronic LM2 Radar Loudness Meter ($199 for 2 channel, $599 for 6 channel), the Steinberg SLM 128 Loudness Meter (VST3 only for Cubase and Nuendo; free, but only measures EBU R-128) and the VST only ToneBoosters TB EBULoudness plug-in (in addition to EBU, it measures ITU-R and ATSC, 15 euros), to name a few. If you’re in the market for a loudness meter (and you very well may be if you’re mixing for broadcast), give some of these a test run for yourself and see what meets your needs. • Dolby Media Meter 2: www.Dolby.com Waves’ WLM: www.Waves.com Nugen Audio’s VisLM: www.NugenAudio.com VSonics’ VMeter: www.VSonics.com

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The CAS congratulates the following mixers for receiving a Primetime Emmy Award at this year’s gala held September 15, 2012

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CAS to Honor

Chris Newman, CAS with

Career Achievement Award

CAS President David E. Fluhr announced that the organization will honor producPhoto: A.M.P.A.S. tion sound mixer Chris Newman, CAS with the Cinema Audio Society’s highest accolade, the CAS Career Achievement Award, to be presented at the 49th CAS Awards on February 16, 2013, at the Crystal Ballroom of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel Los Angeles. “The Cinema Audio Society has a long tradition of honoring talent, excellence, integrity, and contributions to the craft of sound mixing,” said Fluhr. “I am delighted the Board of Directors has chosen to honor Chris Newman with this award.” Former CAS President Richard Lightstone added, “Chris Newman is the gold standard of production sound mixers. Mr. Newman held himself and all he worked with to the highest standards and his tracks were fastidiously clean but always carried the emotion of the scene photographed. Whenever a sound mixer thinks he has a new way of doing something, you can bet that Chris Newman did it first.” Newman has previously received the CAS Award for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Feature Film for The English Patient. Newman is also a three-time Oscar® winner. In a career that spans more than 40 years, Newman has been the production sound mixer on more than 85 feature films,

by Dor ot hea Sa r g e nt including Medium Cool, The French Connection, The Godfather, Nell, Thunderheart, Tender Mercies, The Silence of the Lambs, Sophie’s Choice, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Primary Colors, The Manchurian Candidate, Chorus Line, Man on the Moon, Philadelphia, and Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead. In addition to his CAS win, Newman has been nominated eight times for the Oscar with wins for The English Patient, Amadeus and The Exorcist, and has been recognized by BAFTA with eight nominations with wins for Fame and Amadeus. Prior to working on feature films, Chris spent a decade working on documentaries including working for Ted Yates’ NBC unit in Southeast Asia in 1966. Having taught sound and filmmaking in Europe, Brazil, Mexico, and at NYU and Columbia University, Chris currently teaches both sound and production at The School of Visual Arts in New York. As the 31st recipient of the Cinema Audio Society’s highest honor, Mr. Newman joins an illustrious group of past honorees that include Ray Dolby, CAS; Robert Altman, Jack Solomon, CAS; John Bonner, Bill Varney, CAS; Don Rogers, CAS; Walter Murch, CAS; Jim Webb, CAS; Richard Portman, CAS; Tomlinson Holman, CAS; Mike Minkler, CAS; Ed Greene, CAS; Dennis Sands, CAS; Dennis L. Maitland, Sr., CAS; Randy Thom, CAS; Jeffrey S. Wexler, CAS and Scott Millan, CAS.•

C A S Q U A R T E R L Y F A L L 2 0 1 2

CAS to Fete Jonathan Demme with the Filmmaker

Academy Award®-winning director Jonathan Demme will receive the Cinema Audio Society Filmmaker Award at the 49th CAS Awards on February 16, 2013, at the Crystal Ballroom of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel Los Angeles. In making this announcement, CAS President David E. Fluhr said, “We are thrilled to be honoring Jonathan Demme. Jonathan’s career spans 40 years as a director, producer and writer, and includes both film and television and illustrates an incredible talent for both narrative films and documentaries. Following in a tradition of synergy between our two honorees, Demme as the Filmmaker honoree and Chris Newman, CAS as the Career Achievement honoree, have had a long working relationship and on Demme’s multiple Oscar® winner The Silence of the Lambs, both were rewarded with golden statues. He is indeed a perfect choice and we are honored to have him as our CAS Filmmaker honoree.” Starting out with Roger Corman in 1971, Jonathan Demme has directed and/or produced more than 30 movies among them: Rachel Getting Married, Beloved, Swimming to Cambodia, Melvin and Howard and Crazy Mama. The Untitled Ibsen Project, based on André Gregory and Wallace Shawn’s adaptation of the Henrik Ibsen play Master Builder Solness, is now in post production. The film stars Wallace Shawn,

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André Gregory, Julie Hagerty and Lisa Joyce and was written for the screen by Wallace Shawn with the original stage production created by André Gregory. Demme’s portrait documentary Enzo Avitabile Music Life will premiere this year at the Venice Film Festival. Other new projects in the works include three forthcoming New Orleans portrait documentaries along the lines of I’m Carolyn Parker: The Good, the Mad, and the Beautiful. Demme’s most recent release was the third installment of his performance trilogy with Neil Young, Neil Young Journeys. Besides The Silence of the Lambs, Demme and Newman worked together on Demme’s Philadelphia, The Manchurian Candidate, Married to the Mob and Neil Young: Heart of Gold among others. Past CAS President Richard Lightstone commented, “The director looks to the sound mixer to be ‘his ears’ and to preserve the actor’s performance. In that special relationship between Jonathan Demme and Chris Newman, there is an extra ingredient in the creative process because they share the same language and understanding.” Demme will be the eighth CAS Filmmaker honoree. Past honorees have been: Quentin Tarantino, Gil Cates, Bill Condon, Paul Mazursky, Henry Selick, Taylor Hackford and Rob Marshall.•

CAS QUARTERLY

Award

OFFICIAL SELECTION AFI FILM FESTIVAL

WINNER

AUDIENCE FAVORITE CHILDREN’S FILM

MILL VALLEY FILM FESTIVAL

WINNER

VANITY FAIR INT’L AWARD FOR CINEMATIC EXCELLENCE

ROME INT’L FILM FESTIVAL

WINNER

OFFICIAL SELECTION

HOLLYWOOD FILM FESTIVAL

SAVANNAH FILM FESTIVAL

HOLLYWOOD ANIMATION AWARD

–CBS-TV, Bryan Erdy

Dolby Atmos:

Full Immersion in the Cinema World by Mar y Ann Skw er es/Bel ow The Line

Designed to help bring audiences back into theaters, Dolby Atmos is a fundamental shift in the way audio is not only Atmos is the most exciting innovation in cinema audio to be mixed, but also received inside theaters. It is a huge change introduced since surround sound. compared to the upgrade from 5.1 Redefining the surround sound to 7.1. Dolby Laboratories has been experience, it creates an immersive working with professionals throughsound field by placing additional out the movie industry on this nextspeakers overhead, giving filmmakgeneration surround sound format, ers a new tool for artistic expreswhich builds on 5.1 and 7.1 by sion and powerful storytelling. creating a hybrid channel-based and After having the opportunity to object-based mix. In addition, it hear the emerging technology, CAS places additional speakers overhead, President David Fluhr arranged for providing an upper hemisphere of a select group of CAS members sound that has been missing from to attend an Atmos seminar and films. reception hosted by Steve Venezia, Although the current channelCAS of Dolby Labs. “The most based system of sound can give the exciting thing about this advance sensation of movement, it doesn’t are the creative possibilities,” said Steve Venezia, CAS and CAS President David Fluhr. have precision of movement. “The Fluhr. “As sound artists, it opens Photo: Ana Gibert Photography fundamental shift in what’s hapthe door to do things that have never pening is that now we’re migrating been heard before ... and brings people more into the experience.” away from channels,” said Stuart Bowing of Dolby. “The ability to move the sound through the room with objects creates this precision movement which is referred to as a pan through array.” This layered approach to sound design gives filmmakers the ability to precisely match the audio to the action on screen by allowing them to control the placement and movement of distinct sounds in relation to the audience. A sound can be placed in any speaker including the overhead arrays. For instance, in a crowded-restaurant scene, individual conversations at various tables can be replayed through different speakers as point sources from different locations in the room, while still maintaining an underlying bed of ambiance to achieve an almost hyper-real effect. Although the developers of Atmos believe that channels are still useful and efficient in terms of consoles and ambiances, they wanted to get into the concept of objects. “An object is any sound that you want to be able to move The seminar attendees

C A S Q U A R T E R L Y F A L L 2 0 1 2

Steve Venezia describing the physical layout of Atmos.

The theater at the Dolby facilities in Burbank, California

independently of the traditional left surround array or right surround array,” explained Venezia. “You are going to be able to pan it through and actually isolate it in any one spot of the room, in any one speaker or move it independently around the room regardless of how the channels themselves relate.” An Atmos soundtrack includes a base layer of channels referred to as beds. A bed is a channel-based mix, much like a regular mix today, but without the objects married into those beds. Dolby has increased the channel base in terms of the number of channels supported. Legacy 5.1 and 7.1 are still supported, but they have added 9.1 by adding two overhead arrays, left overhead and right overhead. From an object standpoint, every speaker in the room is individually addressed, allowing the sound to be placed in any single speaker as well as moving and panning the sound through speakers around the room. The objects are delivered along with the bed-mix as a single soundtrack. “Along with every object channel, we carry positional metadata so that the cinema processor knows how to play that sound out—either where it is or how it wants to move,” Venezia explained. “In terms of what we are delivering today, we are able to deliver up to 128 simultaneous objects. That’s a self-imposed limit. If there’s a need to have more objects, the format’s certainly capable of growing.” With this new advance, Dolby enters the post-production chain at an earlier point, working with directors and sound designers to identify which audio elements are best suited for Atmos. Those elements are then kept separate from the surround beds and prepared as objects for placement in the format. To make the learning curve easier for mixers, Dolby will provide a Pro Tools plug-in for the familiar interface. David Gould demonstrated the plug-in, which has two madi connections, as well as 128 discreet outputs and an Ethernet connection leading into the render mastering unit (RMU). The plug-in is inserted on a mono Pro Tools track. It sends metadata about the placement and movement of the object to the RMU via the Ethernet connection. The RMU does the panning. The program contains a monitor application that depicts a three-dimensional representation of the room from different views and shows how an object moves around within the room. The program provides metering, feedback, and update information on room configuration, inputs, objects and bed channels. “The addition of height

brings interesting challenges from a mixing perspective,” Gould commented. “Suddenly, you have more than two controls. How do you actually integrate height?” To aid mixers, Dolby has incorporated both a height on-off mode, as well as height presets that make it easier to move objects around the room. Still under development, Dolby is integrating feedback as part of the ongoing process. Atmos is adaptable over a range of theater configurations independent of size, geometry or seating arrangement. The metadata, which dictates how the various audio elements behave during playback, is embedded in the Atmos record when it is created during print mastering. It creates a single delivery file for inclusion on a film’s DCP that incorporates all audio information including traditional surround sound deliverables. This metadata is read by a cinema processor that recognizes the room’s configuration, programmed into the processor at installation. It then renders the audio to optimize playback based on both the acoustic performance of that specific room and dimensionally as to where the mixer intended the sound to be placed within the room. It also preserves the director’s intent, giving theater-going audiences an experience that is faithful to the filmmaker’s vision. With the new format, Dolby is promoting higher quality surrounds. Manufacturers are working to come up with lighter, higher quality speakers, making it easier to install overheads. Assisting with quality control in the theaters, Dolby will calibrate the rooms. Once installed, the cinema processor will be able to recognize problems in a room and send out an email notification. The repairman will know what the problem is in advance. In addition, the system will have the ability to render around a problem such as a bad speaker. The technology is currently being tested at select theaters, such as the ETX room at the AMC Burbank and Disney’s El Capitan. The commercial cinema processor will be available next year. The seminar was held at the Dolby Theater in Burbank, which was used as a research room for Atmos. Already set up for surround sound, two more speakers near the screen and overhead arrays were added. Going by all they learned about optimizing a room during the experimentation process, Venezia admitted that the number of speakers in their theater was a bit of “overkill,” but to a room full of mixers, the audio was to definitely to die for. •

F A L L 2 0 1 2 C A S Q U A R T E R L Y

Comparing

Sound Devices’ 664 and Zaxcom’s Nomad Lite by Wi l l Hansen, C AS

Sound Devices’ 664 Zaxcom’s Nomad Lite

Recently, both Zaxcom and Sound Devices came out with new recorder/mixers. Zaxcom introduced the Nomad Lite and Sound Devices the 664, both with a list price of $3,995. In addition to the same price point, both also have similar feature sets: Both have six analog inputs via XLR, can record up to 10 tracks, have timecode capabilities and can even record the timecode on mp3 files. Both also have a pl (private line) system with independent input for your slate mic, support for AES 42 and AES output and can record to CF and SD cards. The Nomad Lite can accept four more line-level inputs via the return for a total of 10 analog inputs. The Nomad has six output busses, all assignable pre or post fade. The 664 has four output busses with six direct outs and inputs 2-5 being post fade only. The 664 has three camera returns while the Nomad has two. The 664 has individual knobs for everything from fader to pans and input trims. The Nomad has six fader knobs and four virtual faders on the screen with all other parameters being accessed via the menu. This, I feel, is the main difference in the units, as the 664 is an analog mixer and the Nomad is a digital mixer. Personally, I like to have a knob or a fader for every input. It’s a limitation to have to try to control the level of four mics with one menu knob. On the other hand, I also feel it’s a limitation to only be able to route certain inputs post fade to an output because of the analog routing capabilities. I like the freedom to route everything anywhere. Even though these days, 99% of the time, my output routing is post fade on all busses, I really do like the pl feature on these machines, as I’ve missed being able to tell my boom op when they’re off axis during a take.... Now, here is where things get really interesting and lead to a vast difference in capabilities. With the 664, you can add

a CL-6 and the direct outputs turn into another six analog inputs for a total of 12 inputs and 16 recordable tracks— for an extra $1,495. This just blows my mind when I think about it. Ten years ago, I bought my first recorder, an HHB PortaDAT. It was a two-channel recorder with timecode. No mixer. I bought it used for $2,800. Talk about a bang for your buck, right? That’s roughly $350 a track. With the Nomad, once you upgrade the unit to a Nomad 12, a number of things change. You get 12 record tracks, 18 mix busses, Automix for 10 tracks, eight AES inputs, USB recording to an external drive and, finally, the doozy, Zaxnet. Zaxnet is the single most impressive feature set I’ve ever seen and, honestly, it took me a few months to really appreciate and understand its full capabilities. I dare say that it is the most valuable tool for simplifying your life on set, period. That being said, I think that it is only truly fulfilled if you run an entire Zaxcom system. Meaning you run with a Zaxcom recorder, wires and IFBs. Without getting into the detail of its capabilities, which I think could be an article in and of itself, I’ll say that it’s the reason why we all debate, back-and-forth, over which system is superior. The fact is, it’s a comparison that just doesn’t work. One is an analog mixer and one is a digital mixer. Both systems have their own pros and cons. I have yet to make up my mind and am torn between being able to go to work with a tried-andtested way of being able to turn knobs and push faders or to venture into the land of amazing flexibility and simplification. I think it’s up to the individual to decide for his or her own self which technique best suits how they like to get the job done. The one thing that I have always loved about being in the sound business is that there are many different routes to the same location. • C A S Q U A R T E R L Y F A L L 2 0 1 2

CAS Visits at Paramount by J ason Cox/Bel ow The Line Sound director and re-recording mixer Scott Millan, CAS and re-recording mixer Anna Behlmer field questions from the group.

Members of the Cinema Audio Society were invited to tour the new post-production sound facility, Technicolor at Paramount, recently. Theatrical sound director Scott Millan, CAS guided the majority of the tour, with help from some of the mixers and editors who have been able to use this facility as a catalyst for their work. “It’s not often we get to see something of this level be built from the ground up,” CAS President David Fluhr said. The top-notch facility features eight mix stages of various sizes, including two large theaters, custom designed with six sound editorial workstations. These rooms feature Euphonix System 5 consoles with Eucon hybrid protocol and are capable of mixing multiple sound formats, including IMAX.

Each of the rooms is designed to be completely compatible with every other room. There are also three ADR stages, two of which are designed to be exactly the same. There is one Foley stage, sound design and editorial suites, and DVD audio and restoration rooms. Each of the rooms is designed to be completely compatible

Scott Millan (left) with CAS President David E. Fluhr The machine room Photos by Ana Gibert Photography 30

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CAS QUARTERLY

with every other room. “What’s so amazing is that, from the small to the medium to the large, these rooms are as consistent as anything I’ve ever seen before,” Greg P. Russell, CAS said. “We’ve worked at a number of facilities through the years—multiple stages—and everywhere you go they’ve got a little different tone. So what’s phenomenal is to be able to work in multiple formats in multiple rooms and have it be absolutely perfect.” Keeping everything at the same technological level, giving each studio the same capabilities, allows the facility to expand and contract at a moment’s notice. Connectivity is an important theme at this facility, and it reaches beyond the walls of the building. In addition to ensuring that the rooms were able to interact on every level, Technicolor at Paramount can also access its proprietary Technicolor Production Network at 10 GB/second. This system allows those at Technicolor at Paramount to access files at other Technicolor facilities around the world or around the corner at Sunset Gower. “Really, at the end of the day, it costs what it costs to build a building, it costs what it costs to install the consoles,” Millan said. “Really, the only place left to push now is back on the employees—it’s on labor—which means we have to perpetuate excellence, try to push this craft forward, so that we don’t allow it to be the lowest common denominator.”•

From left: VP of Facilities Kevin Spears, VP of Sound Operations Doug Kent, and re-recording mixer Greg P. Russell, CAS

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN ALL CATEGORIES INCLUDING

BEST PICTURE BEST SOUND MIXING SCOTT MILLAN GREG P. RUSSELL STUART WILSON

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CAS QUARTERLY

FALL 2012

all of our brothers and sisters a happy holiday season and a healthy, prosperous new year.

Eric Batut CAS is mixing Season 5 of Fringe. Boom operator is Millar Montgomery

and sound assistant is Simon Bright.

I started the year in New Orleans on Now You See Me, directed by Louis Leterrier. Our amazing cast included Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Melanie Laurent, Woody Harrelson, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman. We got out of town before the serious heat and finished a few days in New York. With little time off, I started a Ben Stiller-directed and starring remake of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. After a few months filming, followed by a month and a half hiatus, we were off to Iceland for five weeks. Thanks go to Paul Ledford CAS for passing on useful info before I got there. It was a great experience and a beautiful place to visit. –Danny Michael CAS

David Barr-Yaffe CAS is currently mixing the new ABC Alyssa Milano series, Mistresses, with Billy “Big Helper” King and Alexandra Gallo waving the sticks. Finishing the first 13 episodes in December, they will then move on to Season 2 of Perception for TNT. Wishing

Hey everyone! Devendra Cleary CAS here ... This fall is off to a great start! This summer included sitting in and doing some 2nd units for Tom Stasinis CAS on Major Crimes, as well as the occasional commercial spot. The playback baton on Glee has passed to Jeff Zimmerman and I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to mix some of their 2nd units thanks to Phillip W. Palmer CAS. Currently, on the Fox lot mixing the halfhour midseason comedy The Goodwin Games with David Raymond on boom and Rene Defranesch doing utility. It’s a great group of producers, cast and crew! David BarrYaffe CAS ... you hold a special place in my heart. Expect something in the mail shortly.

Philip Perkins CAS recorded SFX for Ken Block’s Gymkhana 5: Ultimate Urban Playground, recorded the VO for Judith Lit’s After Winter, Spring (PBS), mixed Nadia Shihab’s Amal’s Garden, Shakti Butler’s Cracking the Codes and Emiko Omori’s Chris Marker: An Unsent Letter (PBS) as well as SFX and mix for Susan Stern’s Trashman, about ’60s underground comic artist Spain Rodriguez.

Thomas Curley CAS mixed Raze in Los Angeles, The Spectacular Now in Athens, Georgia, with boom operator Matt Robinson this summer, and day-played on Lovelace and Stand Up Guys. He is now mixing Electric Slide in Los Angeles with Keith Birchfiel and Sara Glaser-Evans. He continues to develop and refine his carbon fiber sound cart between each job. Steven Morrow CAS, along with boom

operator Craig Dollinger and utility boom operator Kevin Becker, have just wrapped up the remake of About Last Night for Screen Gems in Los Angeles. Currently, we’re working on a feature film drama called You’re Not You, also in Los Angeles. Needless to say, we’re extremely happy to be filming motion pictures in Los Angeles again! Hopefully, we can keep it rolling!

Frank Morrone CAS and Todd Beckett are mixing Last Resort on Stage 7 at Sony. Frank Morrone and Craig Hunter are mixing Raising Hope at RH Factor and Small Time for Joel

Surnow at RH Factor. Morrone and Eric Apps just wrapped on Copper for BBC America at Deluxe.

Warner Bros. Sound has had a very successful

summer and fall mixing some great feature films. Rob Lorenz’s feature directorial debut for Warner Bros. Pictures, Trouble with the Curve, mixed with the team of John Reitz and Gregg Rudloff. Alan Murray was the supervising sound editor. John and Gregg followed that with the critically acclaimed Ben Affleck film Argo on Re-recording Stage 10, with sound supervision by Erik Aadahl. John and Gregg, along with Tim Le Blanc are currently temping Pacific Rim for director Guillermo del Toro. Jon Taylor CAS and Dean Zupancic mixed the Jay Roach comedy The Campaign on Re-recording Stage 9, with Michael O’Farrell and team supervising the sound. They also mixed the highly anticipated Warner Bros. feature Gangster Squad for director Ruben Fleischer, from supervising sound editor Cameron Frankley. Taylor Hackford’s latest directorial project, Parker, was mixed on Re-recording Stage 12, with the team of Steve Pederson and Brad Sherman CAS for Sidney Kimmel Entertainment. Gregg Baxter was the supervising sound editor with sound designer Myron Nettinga. Steve and Brad also mixed Parental Guidance for director Andy Fickman. Rob Sephton and his talented crew provided the sound for this 20th Century Fox release. Brad Sherman went on to mix The Incredible Burt Wonderstone with mixer/supervising sound editor Elmo Weber. This Don Scardinodirected New Line feature comedy stars Steve Carell and Jim Carrey. On Re-recording Stage 5, Steve Maslow and Gregg Landaker mixed the New Line thriller Conjuring. Director James Wan brings his mastery of suspense to this film. Joe Dzuban is the supervising sound editor. Jack the Giant Killer brings big sound to Re-recording Stage 10 from sound supervisor Mark Mangini. The three-mixer team of Tim Le Blanc, Gregg Landaker and Rick Kline wrangled the mix of this giant film from Bryan Singer for New Line. Tim Le Blanc and Jeremy Peirson CAS mixed Looper on Warner Bros.’ Re-recording Stage 6. This Endgame Entertainment film, which Jeremy Peirson also supervised, is from acclaimed director Rian Johnson. The Summertime Entertainment animated feature Dorothy of Oz, with sound by supervising sound editor John Thomas, was mixed by David Fluhr CAS and Jeremy Peirson for directors Will Finn and Dan St. Pierre on Warner Bros. Re-recording Stage 6. Joel Dougherty handled sound supervision and mixing with Skip Lievsay CAS on the CBS Films release The Words, for directors Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal. Skip Lievsay is currently mixing the Warner Bros. feature Gravity, directed by Alfonso Cuarón at De Lane Lea in London. On the television side for one

hours, Arrow on Stage 1 with Dan Hiland CAS and Gary Rogers CAS, supervisor Mike Lawshe; The Carrie Diaries on Stage 2 with Todd Grace CAS and Ed Carr CAS; Cult on Stage 2 with Todd Grace and Ed Carr, supervisor Greg Gerlich; 666 Park Avenue on Stage 3 with Jeffrey Perkins and Eric Justen, supervisor Peter Austin; Elementary on Stage 3 with supervisor Jon Mete; Golden Boy on Stage 4 with Rick Norman and Ryan Davis, supervisors Jon Mete and Paul Curtis; Goodwin Games on Stage 4 with supervisor Charlie Crutcher. For half-hour comedies: Second Generation Wayans on Stage 7 with Kathy Oldham; Anger Management, Partners, and Friend Me on Stage 8 with Charlie McDaniel.

Michael Keller CAS and Mike Prestwood Smith are currently working on Marvel’s Iron Man 3 at TODD-AO Lantana Stage 2. Mark McNabb CAS with boom ops Jeff Norton and Paul Miller are on the new ABC hit The Neighbors and having a ball.

I’d like to express my thanks in particular to

Joe Foglia CAS, Steve Morantz CAS, Steve Weiss CAS, Beau Baker CAS and Phillip Palmer CAS

for those 2nd unit days on your respective shows. It made an otherwise very dry spell bearable. The rest of the year got busy mixing Season 5 on Sons of Anarchy and although very challenging, the show was loads of fun. It helps having a great crew with Josh Bower booming and Tanya Peel on 2nd boom/utility. I won’t get to fabricate any carts for a while as Justified invited me to mix Season 4. –Brett Grant Grierson CAS

From David Stephenson CAS: Hi all, I am shooting in Iceland at the moment on Thor II. We will complete the picture around Christmas with London locations and Shepperton Studios. I have my trusted crew, Gary Dodkin on boom and Lloyd Dudley assisting.

along with Doug Shamburger and Steve Sollars CAS, are working on the new CBS show Vegas, out at the Santa Clarita Studios.

Cowboys, mobsters, horses and beautiful (but loud) vintage automobiles!

Tamás Csaba CAS and his crew, Gabor Mate and Pal Szuros, are just finishing up another season of The Borgias.

Jim Fitzpatrick CAS recently finished mixing the 200th episode of Family Guy at Todd Hollywood, titled “Yug Ylimaf,” and warns you not to break your DVRs trying to play this episode backward! Season 7 of American Dad! and Season 4 of The Cleveland Show are underway. Jim will soon start work on American Winter at Post Haste Sound, a documentary feature film that follows the personal stories of families struggling in the aftermath of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. After completion of the AT&T-financed webisode Daybreak, and a well earned but short hiatus, Kenn Fuller CAS, Valeria Ghiran, Ron Hairston Jr., are very grateful to be working in Los Angeles on Season 2 of Touch for Fox. Many thanks to day players

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Jay Patterson CAS, C A S Q U A R T E R L Y f a l l 2 0 1 2

Wash and Wear

For those days when things get a little sticky, there’s a wireless transmitter that you can rinse off with a garden hose and put back to work. It might be a little hard to imagine a precision digital audio device as an industrial tool, but that’s the general idea behind the design of the new WM watertight transmitter. Behind its pretty face is the proven performance of Digital Hybrid Wireless® and a feature rich package that’s ready for the real world where you work.

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Daniel Quintana and Steven Klinghoffer CAS for their excellent day-playing. Hello CAS! On Warner Bros. Dub Stage 2, Todd Grace CAS and Ed Carr CAS are currently mixing their sixth season of Showtime’s Californication, the fifth season of The Mentalist, and mixing the final season of Gossip Girl. They have just completed the final mix and conform of the Beauty and the Beast pilot, and will be mixing two new CW shows, Cult and The Carrie Diaries. Besides this, they are often seen mixing margaritas ... when not working ... of course!

INCONSPICUOUS & INSPIRED CLARITY

Jamie Scarpuzza CAS, along with Ron Ayers and Neal Garon, just wrapped Low Winter Sun, a police-drama pilot for AMC. Laura King CAS has been busy at CBS Radford this season finishing the second season of Happily Divorced and The Exes for TV Land. Currently mixing the second season of Tim Allen’s Last Man Standing, with a large sound crew comprised of boom operators Vic Ortiz, Mike Steele, Rob Adams, utilities Joanna Copland, Gil Castro, Cheech (Ralph) Lopez and recordist John Hart. Due the creative directing of John Pasquin and the multi-headered set in the area of the foyer, which is loving referred to as the “Bermuda Triangle,” most shows require four to five boom operators working several scenes in front of the audience. By the way, John Cook CAS does a masterful job of post-mixing this show. Also, currently mixing the first season of Reba McEntire’s new show Malibu Country for ABC. Boom operators Matt McFadden and Vic Ortiz are joined by the rest of the crew, Joanna Copland, Gil Castro, utilities, and recordist John Hart. John Pritchett CAS and crew, Dave Roberts and Kay Colvin, are currently involved with Saving Mr. Banks, a Disney movie about how Walt Disney managed after many years to obtain the rights to make Mary Poppins from its cantankerous writer P.L. Travers. Tom Hanks plays Walt Disney with Emma Thompson as P.L. Travers. John and Dave recently finished The End of the World in New Orleans for Seth Rogen’s directorial debut. It’s a “madcap” tale of, obviously, the end of the world, but as an insane comedy starring, besides Seth, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, Emma Watson, Aziz Ansari, Jason Segel to name only a few. They all play themselves or rather, caricatures of themselves. John’s last picture out was The Amazing Spider-Man.

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I final-mixed the latest Gus Van Sant feaC A S Q U A R T E R L Y f a l l 2 0 1 2

ture called Promised Land with Leslie Shatz at Wildfire Studios. I’m also mixing Swedish director Lasse Hallström’s latest feature called Safe Haven with Michael Barry CAS at Wildfire Studios. –Colette Dahanne CAS

Gary D. Rogers CAS and Dan Hiland CAS finished Political Animals for the USA

Network. They are currently mixing the third season of The Walking Dead for the AMC Network, the second season of Hart of Dixie and the first season of Arrow for the CW Network, all on Dub Stage 1 at Warner Bros.

Steve Williams and director Allen Hughes. Up next for the team is Autumn Frost for Warner Bros. with director Zack Snyder. Kevin O’Connell and Elmo Weber are gearing up to start pre-dubs on Identity Thief in Studio 6. John Cook CAS and Ken Kobett CAS are currently mixing

Parks and Recreation, The Office, Men at Work, Last Man Standing, and Happy Endings as well as Warehouse in Studio A. Pete Reale and Todd Morrissey currently mixing Suits for USA in Studio G, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Chicago Fire, both for NBC. Nello Torri CAS and Alan Decker CAS are currently mixing Homeland for Showtime, Covert Affairs and Psych for the USA Network. Also, Grimm

With their considerable double-booming/matlaying skills and an endless sense of humor, Tim Cargioli and Elanor Rimassa made it possible for Jonathan Gaynor CAS to record New Line/Warner Bros.’s We’re the Millers, shooting in Wilmington, North Carolina, and Santa Fe, New Mexico. Although the great cast, lead by Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis liked to talk/laugh/scream etc., all at once, we managed to get most of it on one track or another. Special thanks to Elanor for mixing, while her boss performed a ridiculous walk-on as a DEA agent.

for NBC in Studio B. Elmo Ponsdomenech and Bill Freesh CAS in Studio 1 mixing Necessary Roughness for Sony TV; Emily Owens, M.D. for CBS; Suits for USA in Studio G for HBOCinemax. Peter Nusbaum CAS and Kevin Burns in Studio 5 mixing Go On for NBC; The Mindy Project for Fox; Guys with Kids for NBC and Malibu County for ABC. Joe DeAngelis and Robert Carr CAS will soon be mixing Do No Harm for NBC in Studio 2.

From Universal Studios Sound Department:

Ronan Hill CAS has just finished his third

wrapped up Broken City with sound supervisor

for HBO, with boom operator Simon Kerr and

Chris Jenkins and Frank Montaño3:25 in Studio 4 1season as production mixer on Game of Thrones Ktek shark_CAS3pg_12_mf_Layout 1 11/19/12 PM Page

sound assistant James Atkinson. Earlier in the year, the same crew worked on The Fall, 5 x 1-hour TV dramas for BBC, starring Gillian Anderson. The team is still celebrating their win at the Primetime Emmys for Game of Thrones’ Season 2’s “Blackwater.”

Gavin Fernandes CAS has been busy finishing the feature Jappeloup. After that, he does the two-part TV film Category 8 and then Betty and Coretta, the story of Martin Luther King Jr.’s and Malcolm X’s wives. Happy holidays to all! Mixer Michael Rayle CAS and boom operator Dan Giannattasio are currently working on Season 1 of NBC’s Revolution in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Sherry Klein CAS and Brian Harman CAS are mixing Season 5 of Sons of Anarchy

at Smart Post Stages in Burbank. Sherry Klein and Lisle Engle are in the final weeks mixing Season 6 of Burn Notice. Also at Larson, Lisle and Sherry mixed The Americans pilot for FX and due to start Sirens pilot for USA.

Glenn Berkovitz CAS took some time away from working earlier this year and is glad to be

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C A S Q U A R T E R L Y f a l l 2 0 1 2

back in the thick of it now. With boom operators Mychal Smith and Dave Stockton, they are the production sound team for Fox’s How to Live with Your Parents for the Rest of Your Life (a midseason show for ABC). The show is funny and hilarity often ensues. Please stay tuned.

David Macmillan CAS is recording Paranoia in Philadelphia with Linda Murphy

on boom. A great script and cast.

Last quarter, Steve Guercio CAS wrapped another season of Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Miami Dolphins, a co-production of HBO and NFL Films. He continues to mix on various projects for NFL Films during the 2012 season. In addition to that, he has been working with CBS’s 60 Minutes and CBS Sunday Morning.

Atlas Shrugged: Part 2 found a home on Santa Monica’s Lotus Post Stage 1, with Gary Coppola CAS and Stanley Johnston shoul-

dering the mixing duties and Paula Fairfield supervising. Also on Stage 1, Gary Coppola and Gary Gegan were pushing faders for The Marine: Homefront for WWE Entertainment. Michael Perricone CAS and Stanley Kastner CAS were busy on Stage 2 mixing Old Days,

helmed by and starring Smallville alum Michael Rosenbaum. Also on Stage 2, Kelley Vandever was mixing the thriller Silent Night for Anchor Bay Films. ADR is beginning for Jobs, starring Ashton Kutcher on Stage 4 with Eric Maldin at the board, and will hit Stage 1 later this year for the mix. Also on Stage 4, Chris Navarro CAS recorded ADR for Homefront.

Season 8 of Bones, splitting mixing duties between Smart Post Sound in Burbank and Post Haste Sound in Culver City to accommodate executives. Larry and Kevin are mixing Level Up for Cartoon Network at Smart Post as well. Larry also mixed 10 episodes of Boss with Ethan Beigel at Smart Post Sound and Todd-AO Burbank.

It’s that busy time of year again for Andy Hay CAS and his company Proper Post,

Brian R. Harman CAS is mixing Modern Family, The Neighbors, Ben and Kate, and Switched at Birth, with Dean Okrand at Smart Post Sound. Brian is also mixing the Philly Lawyer pilot, with Sherry Klein CAS at

with Sundance rapidly approaching. Mixing just wrapped at Todd-AO Burbank on Jeff Garlin’s comedy Dealin’ with Idiots, featuring the cast of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Up next is supervision/design/mixing for the thriller Coherence, from writer/director Jim Byrkit (Rango), followed by Brahmin Bulls from director/writer Mahesh Pailoor and starring Sendhil Ramamurthy (Heroes). Rounding out the year is supervision/design/mixing for Better Living Through Chemistry, starring Sam Rockwell and Olivia Wilde, followed by mixing V/H/S/2, the follow-up to the smash horror flick, V/H/S in theaters now. No sleep till Sundance!

Larry Benjamin CAS and Kevin Valentine are mixing Season 4 of The Good Wife and

Smart Post Sound.

Steve Weiss CAS mixed the reboot of The Munsters pilot at Universal and now, Season 3 of Body of Proof is shooting at the Disney

stages. Chris Tiffany is on boom with Dennis Carlin handling utility chores.

Michael Barry CAS has completed mixing on What Maise Knew for David Siegel and Scott McGehee at Parabolic Studios with Eliza Paley. Michael Barry has completed mixing on Greetings from Tim Buckley for Dan Algrant with David Patterson. Barry is currently mixing Safe Haven for Lasse

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Dahanne CAS.

The cast and crew of the CW show 90210 recently celebrated the filming of their 100th episode. Production mixer Michael Hoffman CAS has been there for every episode and would like to thank all the members of the sound department who have worked with him: Boom operators Dave Hadder, Jeff Williams, Tom Pinney and Kevin Maloney. Utility sound and second boom Phil Schwartz. Playback operators Rich Mercado, Andy Adams, Bud Raymond, Steven Grothe CAS, Jon Ailetcher CAS and especially the late and sorely missed Fred Johnston. Thank you also to all of the fill-in and day players who have visited the ZIP code these past five seasons. It’s been a busy one in 2012. Finished up Paramount Pictures’ Jack Reacher in Pittsburgh and have been parked in New Orleans since February. Three in a row starting with Summit Pictures’ Ender’s Game and then The Weinstein Company’s The Butler and currently on Homefront, which will finish up in mid-December. All shows were craftily boomed by Michael Piotrowski and swinging a second one with Steven Huerstel. Best to everyone from the BIG Easy! –Jay Meagher CAS

Joe Earle CAS and Doug Andham CAS have

been busy mixing three series for Ryan Murphy Television: Glee, American Horror Story: Asylum and The New Normal, on Stage 6 at the gorgeous new Technicolor at Paramount.

Hey everyone, we have been very busy this year finishing up the comedy The Watch earlier this year with Doug Cameron on boom and Jorge Del Valle, then Adam Mohundro as utility. Doug and I went on to another comedy with Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy, ID Theft, with Seth Gordon directing and James Patterson joining us as utility. After two months off, Doug and I went west where we are working on The Hangover Part III with Kevin Summers joining us as second boom and utility. This has been a traveling film with shooting in Los Angeles, the Mojave, Arizona and Las Vegas. It has been great to see and meet up with all of our West Coast sound friends. We will finish up around midDecember. –Whit Norris CAS

Darryl L. Frank CAS writes: I had a great time

this year at both the Emmys and the CAS Awards, hanging out with some old-time mixer friends. Just wrapped 50 to 1, a film about Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird, who came from unbelievable odds to win it all. Thanks to Steve Willer and Nigel Maxwell for all their hard work. Next up is a pilot for NBC, and then on to the final eight episodes of Breaking Bad. Good times.... C A S Q U A R T E R L Y f a l l 2 0 1 2

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Felipe Borrero CAS is presently working on the half-hour TV comedy The New Normal from Ryan Murphy, the creator of Glee and American Horror. Booming for him is Knox White, and Jessy Bender is the utility and second boom.

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I just started mixing Season 6 of Ax Men for The History Channel and am working on a new series for Nat Geo. Meanwhile, my oldest has been working at the Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor making people scream! –Bob Bronow CAS

Scott D. Stolz CAS, Chris Quilty, and Sean Byrnes have been busy getting Revenge on our second season of ABC Studios’ hit drama. We’re working with an amazing cast and crew, as we recreate life in The Hamptons. A busy 2012 summer season has transitioned into an even busier fall for Buck Robinson CAS. He started in June by mixing the feature film Dark Skies for Blumhouse Productions. Directed by Scott Stewart, the alien-abduction thriller was filmed in Los Angeles, and stars Keri Russell and Josh Hamilton. Cole Bluma was the boom operator, and Charlie German was the utility sound technician. The sound crew of Robinson, Bluma, and German then moved on to do a week of reshoots in Los Angeles for Blumhouse Productions’ futuristic drama Vigilandia, starring Ethan Hawke. Buck is currently production-mixing the Universal Pictures’ feature The Little Rascals for director Alex Zamm at Universal Studios in Los Angeles. Once again, Cole Bluma is booming the show and Charlie German is handling the utility sound duties. Buck would also like to express thanks to mixers Tom Stasinis CAS and Stacy Hill CAS for 2nd unit days on their respective TV shows, Major Crimes and Animal Practice.

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Paul Vik Marshall CAS and boom op Paul Leo Romo continue to stay busy working commercials. Some of the campaigns have included MasterCard, ALMAY, Rite Aid, Sonic and Taco Bell. Marshall has also been busy with his solar company, Solar On Set, and has just reached a milestone with his portable solar-charging station, The RayCatcher, having recently worked on its 200th commercial. Karol Urban CAS just completed mixing a series for National Geographic as well as providing additional mixing services on Bachelor Pad for ABC, with lead mixer April Tucker CAS. In addition, she is also continuing to provide mixing services to the FX Network at FOX and is slated to mix a few exciting features this winter. Production mixer Patrick Hanson CAS, boom Trevor Stott, and utility Colin Heath are hard at work on Season 4 of The Vampire Diaries in Atlanta, Georgia. C A S Q U A R T E R L Y f a l l 2 0 1 2

nny ss, Bryan Dembinski, Da Left to right: Kristian Ro d. lan in Ice Michael, CAS and Arni Ben While mixing Wreck It Ralph at Skywalker Sound this summer, CAS President David E. Fluhr had an impromptu lunch meeting with Gary Rydstrom, CAS, Tom Holman, CAS and Ben Burtt. Missing from the picture, as Gary Rydstrom demonstrates, is Walter Murch, CAS.

Tamás Csaba, CAS and his crew, Gabor Mate and Pat

Szuros, are just finishing up another season of The Borgias.

CAS and Jason

Sudeikis

or, Jonathan Gaynsiness in We’re the Millers. taking care of

than This explains Jona , Tim Gaynor’s boom op ed sense of en ht ig he Cargioli’s e Millers. th e hearing on We’r

CAS member G e kids, Lindsay & rald Beg’s Josh, and Spencer, in M assachusetts.

From left: Mixer Pud Cusack, CAS, utility Jay Collins, and boom operator Richard Bullock. The photo was taken on the USS Truxtun, a U.S. Navy destroyer off the coast of Norfolk, Virginia, for the upcoming Paul Greengrass film Captain Phillips, starring Tom Hanks. We had a blast working on the film. It was challenging but equally rewarding. 42

FALL 2012

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