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cover story The sound of Puss in Boots B By RANDI ALTMAN Oscar-winner Richard King takes on an animated film. URBANK — Richard King is no stranger to action films, with War of The Worlds, The Dark Knight and Inception just a few of the movies he has under his belt. So when you first hear that his latest project is the ani- mated Puss in Boots, you might be surprised. But then when you hear that Dream- Works' Puss in Boots is an action-adventure in its own right, it starts making sense. This 3D stereo offering, which is also a comedy, allowed sound designer King to flex even more of his sound muscles, and have a whole lot of fun while doing it. King, a three-time Oscar winner for sound editing on Master and Commander, The Dark Knight and Inception, says, "My approach on Puss in Boots was to treat it like a live-action movie and take every moment, as it was designed by the filmmakers and animators, and do what I could with sound to maximize those moments." He took time out to chat with Post while putting the finishing touches on the film's sound. The sound team treated the sword fight sequences as traditional and lethal sword duels. POST: This is your first animated film. Was this very different for you? Were you allowed more leeway because the sounds are not nec- essarily based in reality? RICHARD KING: "Traditional animation Richard King: "We've made the sound as relatable and believable as we could." has a very unique sonic vocabulary that is very distinct from live-action films. Dream- Works and some other companies have done a lot to bridge that gap. They want to make their films as exciting, believable and scary and emotional as possible. There are some chase sequences that we treated very 'realistically,' but the fact that it's animation does give you some leeway to perhaps be a little more charming and whimsical than what you can get away with in live action. It's an interesting blend of the two styles of film- making. These very realistic computer-gener- ated features have a look that calls upon a different approach to sound as well. It's been a lot of fun. We've made the sound as relat- able and believable as we could." POST: The film is a period piece, so there are old-timey sounds, like wood carriages on stone streets. KING: "We recorded stagecoaches and wagons and animals, and we designed and cut the sounds as if it were a live-action period piece. It's a bit of a western too, so you get to play in that genre as well. We always have to be aware of the fact that part 16 Post • October 2011 sound of a drop of milk falling on someone's boot. It's an over-cranked shot and slightly slow motion and it's an opportunity to do something you wouldn't be able to do in live- action films as seamlessly. It's trying all kinds of different echo-ey and pitch-down effects. It's an important moment, this drop of milk dropping on this boot." POST: Oftentimes sound designers don't actually use the item related to the sound they are making. Did you really use milk? KING: "No, we are using a lot of other things. It's an example of where you can go a lot further with the whimsy and humor and just completely ignore the realism of the moment. I can do this because of the way the sequence is designed. I am using things like musical drips, echo-ey cave drips, musical drips; I separate one and use that sound, and just odd sounds that have a liquid quality to them. "On the other side of the spectrum is a wagon chase we treated very realistically with gunfire and ricochets and horses and wagons. It's like a car chase with wagons. Our goal was to make it as exciting as possible. It's got a humorous conclusion to it, but we wanted the audience to feel like there was some real jeopardy while the chase was going on. We recorded all the stuff we would normally record and made it sound as excit- www.postmagazine.com to feel jeopardy but they designed in little breaks in the tension with a sight gag or a running gag, then you resume it a moment later. The movie is designed to appeal to broad spectrum of ages, from little, little kids through adults. They want to make the film fun for the parents to take the kids to see. There is some humor that might go over the heads of little kids, but it's a very charming, funny film." POST: Can you talk about creating some of the more signature sounds of the film, like sword and cat sounds? KING: "There are a lot of cats, and luckily I have cats at home and have recorded those over the years as well as some new stuff for this show. We also recorded some feral cats at a rescue place to get good howls and hisses — we didn't have to poke or prod them, that's what they do anyway. We recorded cats in heat at a breeder. We just set the mic up and waited. We recorded all manner of animals that are in the movie. "And while Puss primarily speaks, he occa- sionally does revert to his second language, which is cat, and does a hiss or meow." POST: What about the sword sounds? KING: "We used real swords. The sword fight sequences were treated like sword of our audience is young children, so we try to contain ourselves as far as levels. But there is a lot of room to invent every single sound in the movie since you are not inheriting anything from the production." POST: Can you share an example? KING: "I was just sitting here making the ing and believable and relatable as we could." POST: This is both action film and a com- edy. Does this change the way you work? KING: "You take each moment by itself. Even in the midst of an exciting chase scene there are humorous moments designed into it. It's an interesting back and forth. You need