Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1178376
This panel discussed changes in approaches to audio workflows with the ongoing development of immersive sound formats. From the design side, IMMERSIVE AUDIO WORKFLOW: CONCEPT, EDITORIAL, DESIGN, AND MIX PRESENTED BY MPSE MODERATOR: Carolyn Giardina (The Hollywood Reporter) PANELISTS: Paula Fairfield, Caleb Hollenback (Formosa Group), Scott Kramer (Netflix), Tony Lamberti CAS (Sony Pictures Studio), Cheryl Ottenritter CAS (Ott House Audio), and Steve Ticknor (Sony Pictures Studio) OBSERVATIONS b y S t e p h e n F i t z m a u r i c e C A S Paula Fairfield noted that in essence, the job of a sound designer has stayed the same, "My job … is to run to the edges of the universe and bring back all the weird treasures." She emphasized that giving mixers separation of elements so that they can be panned or treated is important, and also that, while ambisonics are really interesting, at this stage, they are impractical due to the difficulty of separating sounds within an ambisonic recording and the burden the high channel count puts on the process. When asked what the biggest misconception people have about Dolby Atmos might be, Netflix's Scott Kramer responded the biggest misconception was that "it's hard." He emphasized that at Netflix, their goal is to try to be flexible and let "creatives be free to do whatever they need to do to get the job done." Tony Lamberti CAS, Cheryl Ottenritter CAS, and Steve Ticknor spoke to some of the challenges that surrounded conforming and moving mixes from room to room. Mix tech Caleb Hollenback spoke to the importance of having a clear idea of what deliverables would be necessary on episodic programming prior to starting work, as the process of reconfiguring mixes to create those deliverables as an afterthought can be time-consuming and expensive. Clockwise from left: Immersive Audio Workflow panel; Cheryl Ottenritter CAS; Steve Ticknor Paula Fairfield is flanked by Cheryl Ottenritter CAS, Tony Lamberti CAS, and Steve Ticknor while speaking on the Immersive Audio Workflow panel.