Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1122868
Spadafora, who was married to Tim Sadler, part owner and Foley mixer at TAJ. Through that friendship, I met Mark and his wife Patrushkha, who offered to train me as a cable person months later. lnitially, Tim offered me a job at TAJ as a runner, I hated it! After speaking with Tim about my dislike of the job, he looked at me and said, "Let me see what I can do." He later offered me a paid internship in the sound department. [Which was] rare. It was during this time that I was trained in the ways of Foley mixing by Greg Orloff and Jimmy Ashwill. Clearly, it fit like a fine Italian-made leather glove. What was your experience like in your early career? I was lucky TAJ was very open-minded in regards to women mixing, though I eventually left because they promoted a man over me. I then addressed my inner desire to produce and also worked with Frank Oz for a bit. Then the infamous writers' strike happened! Like many, I was barely making it through, when the head engineer at TAJ called me and asked if I would consider coming back? I said, "Okay," in a reluctant voice, not letting on how desperate I really was at the time. (Laughs) As it turns out, the guy they had promoted over me, blew out several speakers, among other things, and was fired. So, I was now the new Foley mixer and stayed there until Disney took over the company. At that point, I and the crew went to Warner Bros. (WB) and the rest is history. Let's talk about the Warner Bros. days. Your body of work is so vast; what show was the most fun? Oh, that is so hard to say. I can't narrow it down, but I will say that the most satisfying job I ever did was The Matrix. OMG! Yes ma'am, that was a Foley extravaganza! They used so much Foley and that was just so gratifying. As for the WB days, throughout the years there was joy and pain as the company evolved. But all things being said, I am so proud of all of my work there and appreciative of the collaborative efforts put in by us all. Because the truth of the matter is that it is a finely choreographed dance between the mixer and the artists. If any of the steps are off or anyone misses a step, the entire team suffers and, consequently, the show suffers. Our team thrived to make each other shine and I think we did that. How do you see the industry going in regards to women and opportunities? I would say it is still a really rough road to walk because it is still very much a relationship-based business and people want to hire people they are comfortable with and that they know. So, unless you can get on that track, and let's be honest, that track consists of mostly white guys, and they are mostly comfortable with other white guys. I was very fortunate. I got in with people who did not have that mindset and, in a few cases, preferred working with women and would go to bat for me. I have had a studio head say to me, "Well, the only reason I am hiring you, is because the Foley team wants you," and to that I replied, "that's because I am good." To be honest, I don't know if that mindset has changed much. Especially with all the #MeToo and below-the-line post- production stuff. Sadly, I think the industry is slow to catch up with humanity. I spoke at a school in Finland and a young lady asked me if I think the industry is changing in regards to women. I said, "I am sorry, but I do not." Not in my lifetime, anyway. Women are on the dubbing stages, but not so much in Foley and ADR. And, sadly, I still think it will be a long time coming, if ever, before we see a dubbing stage completely staffed by women, unfortunately. In terms of your body of work and the legacy you hope to leave, what do you want people to know about you? I would say that for me, WE ARE ARTISTS! I think that is not widely known. There is such dedication and pride in the work that we do. And I think the fact that that is not known or acknowledged is a shame, I really do! I think it is just as worthy and important as other artistic efforts in the movie and television-making business. It was such a shock when I got on the executive committee at the Academy that people didn't know how much sound contributes and actually shapes and impacts the final product. That's shameful! It takes a village and no one thing is more important than the next. My body of work is an example of that. That is the most important thing I want them to know. If there were a Foley time capsule, what would you put in it and why? Oh boy! Let me see. A couple of things. I would probably put a DVD or video of one of the "Making Of" tutorials that we have done. And I guess one of my favorite films. I would put the "Making Of" because it shows what the process was and the various interviews showed how dedicated the people who worked in the Foley sector of the craft were, that we took it seriously. Also, it is indicative of the collective mindset of me and all of my immediate colleagues. In an industry that tends to think it is a silly way to make a living, we Foley mixers and artists take it very, very seriously. It was said to me by a fellow worker and friend that Foley injects soul into a project and that the sounds created are personal and give personality to each character and item, and that is so true! Now that you've had a moment to look in the proverbial "rear-view mirror," what would you do differently, if anything? I would probably have retired years ago! (Laughs) To be serious, I spent a lot of time trying to do other things because I felt that this wasn't enough. Maybe I should be a producer, so I wrote a script. Maybe I should try and be a dubbing mixer, maybe I should try this or that. I wasted a lot of energy on the "maybes" and I should have just focused and been happier where I was. I believe things would have been more soul soothing.