Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/634968
31 The Martian was one of the highest grossing movies of 2015 and a critical success. Helmed by legend- ary director Sir Ridley Scott, starring Matt Damon and a signifi cant ensemble cast, the fi lm realisti- cally created the Mars landscape, outer space and earth. Sir Ridley tasked us with creating a reality on the set and thus convincing the audience of the plausible reality of near future Mars travel. The Mars Rover vehicle, the spacesuits, the communication sys- tems, sets, props and the performances all had to work to further this goal. From my fi rst discussions with the production team, I knew that this show would be extremely challenging. As Production Sound Mixers, I strongly believe we are collabora- tors in the process and there to help facilitate the director's vi- sion in capturing the best audio performance, however, there is so much more to this. Capturing that audio is the culmination of a long sequence of events that we work toward, starting in prep. This is where some of our most valuable but most underappreciated work is conducted. Most importantly, we get to ride with the creative vision of the fi lm. Our colleague, Mark Ulano CAS AMPS, in the context of another fi lm, wonderfully discusses this. We have so much to learn from his attention to detail at this stage of the game. During prep, we get to the "nuts and bolts" with other depart- ments, discussing all the aspects of our interactions so they go smoothly on the shooting day. Right away we knew that we would be dealing with spacesuits so that became mission number one. Simon Hayes set the bar very high on Prometheus, when he worked for Mr. Scott. Oscar-winning Costume Designer Janty Yates, who also worked on Prometheus, was extremely helpful in allowing us early access with the spacesuit design team. She solicited our input on the "look" as we were lobbying for a helmet mic that would be effective in the acoustic space, while also looking realistic. We proposed a "mini- boom microphone " which would be visible, as we believed that the NASA helmet engineers would come to the same conclusion. The concept was approved by Ms.Yates and Ridley Scott and our team custom manufactured the mini-booms using the DPA 4061 as our preferred microphone after more than a week of testing. There was also a second hidden DPA in the lower part of the hel- met, which was added as backup. If the primary helmet mic failed, the actor in the suit would not be able to communicate with any- one on the set or be recorded. This two-mic setup in the helmets was what Simon Hayes and his crew estab- lished on Prometheus. I have immense respect for Simon and his team's work, their experi- ence and his efforts to further our craft. Photo: Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox