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 41 JOHANNA STEIN I also talked with one of the producers I've been mixing with entirely during the pandemic, Johanna Stein, and asked if she would relate how things have been going from her side of the Zoom. I thought it would be interesting to see a client's take, and Johanna kindly sent the following. "As a writer-producer who moves from project to project, between live action and animation, I'm used to being fairly flexible with my working environments. But I won't lie—the prospect of continuing production on our CG action-adventure- musical series (Madagascar: A Little Wild) was pretty daunting. We were already operating on a very ambitious schedule, and going into lockdown we weren't sure we'd be able to keep up the pace. "As we discovered, the process of producing an animated show turns out to be very well-suited to remote collaboration. I still see our crew as much as I did before, only now I'm seeing them in their home offices with their pets, kids, spouses, roommates, and all of the occasional chaos (usually pretty charming) that ensues. I miss being in the same physical space with the team— there's something special about creative collaboration when you're all in the same room—but we've found a whole other level of camaraderie and intimacy, the kind you get from riding out a storm together. "Practically speaking, the biggest question for me was the sound. Would we be able to get records and mixes done to a level of quality that would be good enough to broadcast? The answer (thank HEAVENS!) was yes! The mix process takes a bit longer—we have to account for the 20- to 30-second delay that occurs whenever we want to play back a clip through Source-Live—but for me that probably works out to what my commute to the stage would have been. I wondered if I would need to upgrade my internet but, aside from the occasional drop-offs (due to my daughter accidentally tripping over my ethernet cable), my connection has been great. And the proof is in the finished episodes—they sound amazing. The quality of the final result has not been adversely affected at all. "And while I do miss the world-renowned snacks at Advantage Audio (my kitchen pales in comparison), there are some advantages to the remote setup. One is that the sessions are more accessible to the entire team. For example, last week I wanted to get some feedback on a complicated musical cue. I sent a group chat to our music supervisor Vivian de Aguiar, line producer Mercedes Salazar, and supervising producer Saul Blinkoff. They were all able drop into the session immediately and participate in the solution in real time, as opposed to our having had to play a literal game of telephone. And the virtual mixing stage was invaluable for me last summer when my father was ill and I had to be in Canada for a few months; I don't know that I would have been able to spend that much time with my parents had we not already had this process worked out." CONCLUSION Well, I kind of think that says it all. As Keith wondered about and Johanna spoke of directly, I think the solutions that our industry has been building together to get through this pandemic will be part of a new normal for us all. The AP sitting on Keith's conference call might just be a showrunner of the future who is totally comfortable with the remote mixing process because that's all they know! This opens up all sorts of questions like: Should I build my own stage? Do I need to be in LA to do this? Can I live somewhere cheaper, less dense? Do I need to commute for two hours today? Do I need to be on a stage to get new clients? And so forth. Lastly, in an aside during our interview, Jonathan Wales remarked on how "proud" he was of the industry during this time. He was referring to all the calls he's had with old friends and co-workers who, although working for different outfits, were all looking for similar solutions to keep their operations—and more broadly, the entire industry— afloat. The calls were all along the lines of "I'm trying this and this," "What are you doing?" and "How are the clients reacting?" It's nice to hear that in such a competitive field, we are still willing and happy to help our fellow post audio brethren. Stay safe out there and keep up the good work! Producer Johanna Stein