Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1451070
C A S Q U A R T E R L Y I S P R I N G 2 0 2 2 39 mentioned was to transmit the Earwig program over a channel of Lectrosonics wireless and then hide both the Lectro receiver and a Comtek 216 transmitter on the cast somewhere. (In Matt's case, they utilized a purse that the cast member was wearing.) This allows for a much further transmission range for the Earwig program over the Lectro system and the distance between the Earwig and the Comtek transmitter itself never goes beyond a few feet. l As was the case on both An American Pickle and I Know This Much Is True, the actors being twinned had significant time gaps between both the A- and B-sides of the scene. In this case, running ambience mics will give post-production an option to lay a bed under the dialogue tracks as the ambience on set may have changed or may be entirely different between when the two parts of the scene were filmed. Both Geoff Maxwell and Damian Canelos mentioned using exterior ambience mics extensively on their projects. l Time and timing are critical to the success of a twin shot. If the director intends on holding a wide twin shot with both characters on screen having a back-and-forth dialogue, the timing of the dialogue between those characters cannot change once a preferred take is selected on the A-side. The B-side dialogue when filming the A-side acts as the placeholder for the second side of the scene. If the gaps in dialogue and pacing aren't worked out on the A-side, it becomes impossible to fix for the B-side and it may force the picture editor to cut out of the wide shot into an over-the-shoulder in order to reset the timing between characters. l Rehearsals, as much as a lot of AD's would love to forgo them, really do aid in the overall quality of what can be achieved. The actors may find themselves overlapping their A-side dialogue when filming the B-side in awkward ways during the first rehearsal. They'll need to work to align their performance to the timing that was established on the A-side. Having the earpiece ready for the cast when they return to set (or even a standard Comtek with headphones to listen to and practice the timing with) can be helpful for them. Some may find that they can rehearse their timing during hair and makeup touchups if their Earwig is in and the crew learns to give them space leading up to a rehearsal (if they appear to be talking to themselves). l Have a secondary plan simmering on the back burner. If there is a moment where all your gear is failing or the cast is just not responding well to the design of the audio setup, then having a simplified way of doing things becomes necessary. On a longer project or episodic series, one of the most critical relationships the sound department needs to develop and maintain is with the cast. If they tire of the limitations imposed by the design of the system, you've lost an important ally. It is the job of the mixer to support the director and cast through this process; not define the process itself. Remaining flexible is as much an important trait as being technically literate in the process when you're trying to get the best performance possible. As Antonio Arroyo said, "There is an inherent conflict between the technical and the organic." Finding a way to both allow the organic nature of performance and also satisfy the technical aspects of a twinning shot is a delicate dance that the mixer must do on set. l Television schedules are less likely to be able to afford to shoot with motion control for multiple setups every day because of the time that it takes and the additional costs to both labor and equipment. This may mean that there are only a handful of "hero shots" of the twins that they actually need and your focus can be on those particular twinning setups. l In terms of equipment and crew, each of the three mixers interviewed had their own methods. Geoff Maxwell on An American Pickle was largely able to piggyback off of the VTR playback and get by with a Comtek transmitter and Earwigs for the B-side a lot of the time and didn't need a Pro Tools operator. Damian Canelos on I Know This Much Is True always had a Pro Tools operator on set during twinning and was able to direct his crew through the scenes while focusing on mixing. Matt McLarty handled most of the Pro Tools himself from his mix cart and took on a lot of additional responsibility in cueing playback. Matt has the experience and confidence to do this successfully, where other production mixers may find taking on the Pro Tools task as a bit too much and hire an additional Pro Tools operator to reduce the workload. It's up to you, as the mixer, to decide as no single approach is better than another in all situations. Remaining flexible and keeping an open dialogue with the cast and director is key. l Lastly, make it your own. As seen from the article's examples, every show took a slightly different approach to working with twinned actors. Having conversations during prep as to what the expectations are will help you define the best approach. If your show is only planning on using twin shots to establish that there are twins and then cuts to traditional coverage, the job is a lot simpler than if they wish to hold longer shots with both characters on screen interacting.