Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1351516
C A S Q U A R T E R L Y I S P R I N G 2 0 2 1 35 much controversy. It was on the set of the 1928 movie Beggars of Life. Director William A. Wellman called for a tracking shot of two actors walking down the street. The production sound mixer suggested hiding the mic in a plant pot. Wellman ignored the soundman's advice, ordering him to put the microphone on a broom-handle and walk alongside the actors just out of the frame. It was a year later that one of Hollywood's first female directors, Dorothy Arzner, instructed technicians to rig a microphone onto a fishing rod so that actress Clara Bow could move freely on set in The Wild Party. Though I thought I was a bit insane to commit to a "boom only " approach ahead of shooting, I researched other shows like the sitcom Call Me Kat and the soap opera Days of Our Lives. They use Fisher booms, as do many soap operas and sitcoms. The difference is they are mechanically operated (with expertise, of course), and we would have exteriors to contend with, walk and talks around objects, large speaking ensembles, stage shows with music and dialogue, and a warehouse with a three-second sound delay. The post producer on Diary of a Future President, Arturo Guzman, admits that he was initially "hes- itant" when I brought up the idea of making this into a boom show. But having assessed the approach after the first week, he admits he was "Blown away with the results and the sound that was captured. With the right operators on boom—and coordinating with the camera department when breaking frame— you were able to get the best sound." Our show simulated Miami, Florida, which meant, for instance, many E Fans on set for wind gags. The DP was intent on the landscape plants, curtains, and shadows moving as much as possible in most scenes. We also shot in converted warehouses with multiple sets built on three warehouse stages. The warehouse walls were baffled—but not the ceilings. On Stage 3, there were two permanent transformers that couldn't From top: Lori Dovi CAS recording in the cam- era car; mixing the action; Zone A credentials