Summer 2021 – LOCAL695.ORG 25
as they got wet, but the producers made it clear we had
to move fast. Re-wiring would take too long. Two of our
leads were kids under eighteen, and we only had them for
limited hours. Time was precious and we had to respect
that.
We had several scenes that involved the cast getting
fully submerged and swimming in sets that were built
into large water tanks. Obviously, sound waves travel
differently in water, and while hydrophones exist, it didn't
make sense for our show to rent one for the opportunity
to simply record the sound of the underwater camera
operator moving around. While the cast was in the tank,
we would work on recording wild lines and voiceover for
other scenes. At least, that was the original plan. A few
days before the tank work was scheduled to begin, Jude
expressed a desire to capture sound underwater, specifically
a scream that was added. There was no way we could get
a hydrophone to Bangkok in that time frame, so I had
to come up with another solution. Luckily, I had played
around with a homemade hydrophone a few years earlier
on another project, so I already knew where to start. A
The makeshift hydrophone
Kea Peahu as Pili in Finding 'Ohana.
Photo: Jennifer Rose Clasen/Netflix © 2021
L to R: Katika "Art" Tubtim, Thanravipa "Noon" Pararoch, Boom Operator Frank Barlow, and Amanda Beggs
