Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1261193
way around. It was very inspiring for everybody, the scriptwriter, the director, the photographer, the actors. Why isn't this done more? Because that's not how we normally do it. There is so much more to explore for us to use sound to its fullest potential. I think the more brave and the more courageous we are, the more interesting our content will be. BF: From a sound design POV, did you have a blueprint of the sound design approach in mind from an early stage? Please give us an insight into the e‚orts you took in terms of the detailing in the various aspects of the sound design—how did you go about it? PA: I see a film like a musical composition. It needs peaks and valleys, rhythms and melodies, atmosphere and abstractions. You don't want to have every instrument playing on top of each other. That would just be meaningless noise. All instruments should work together, you want certain instruments to come in on cue and shine. So the sounds of the hospital change all the time and constantly support the scenes, going in and out of focus. It's a symphony of sounds. Sometimes loud, sometimes quiet, but hopefully always musical and well orchestrated so it fits with what's going on during the scenes. Because I talked with Feras very early on about the film, there was a lot of time to research sounds. I always spend a lot of time on getting hold of the right sounds for a film, no matter if it's a doc or a feature film, and for this movie I got material from people all around the world. So many different recordings. I got hold of sounds of lo-fi hospital machinery like the machines which were used in the cave. I got in touch with some Russian sound recordists who had recorded the Russian military jets which play such an important role in the film. I knew that the vibrations and rattles of the walls in the cave would be an important element in the movie and I got hold of some wonderful metallic rattles that I could use that were recorded by California sound designer Nathan Moody. I even recorded sounds of the stretchers rolling through the underground hallways at a hospital in Copenhagen where I live. I couldn't have made a soundtrack without a vast amount of specialised details had it not been for the internet and the generous global sound community. I like the big contrasts of the film: the empty exterior and the tight interiors. For the exteriors I used sounds of wind, metal creaking, echoes of things in the distance, these things all helped to create the feeling of being outside in a city that is now a ruin. The sounds of shootings in the streets are actual recordings from Syria. It was very harrowing. Hearing gunshots echo through the streets felt very scary and deeply unsettling. I'm so impressed by the doctors and nurses in the film who dare to drive around these streets. They are heroes. LG: For me personally, one of the key aspects of the soundtrack is the characters on screen and the war around. Peter went through great length to make all the other sounds gritty and as real as possible. This became the real strength because we were able to create a feeling where you might really feel torn between staying with the characters and running away when the jets flying over drowns out the protagonists. This heightens the fact that civilians can't escape war, unless they are able to flee far, far away. But most people aren't able to do this. BF: Any particular scene(s) that you can break down for us in terms of how the sound added to the overall experience? PA: The final chemical attack is so scary and horrible. This is one of the places in the film where my sound design really melts very closely together with the score by Matthew Herbert. He used different musical drones and I created different loops of respirator sounds and these played together very well. The soundscape is deliberately very dirty and rough but the drones and loops also create a hypnotic feel throughout the whole sequence. If it was just wounded people screaming all the time, it would have been impossible to handle and it would have alienated the audience totally. But by slowly making the sequence sound more and more abstract, I think the audience understands the horrors of war and at the same time there is space for reflection—the reflective soundscape makes the situation emotional and enveloping. I've seen the movie many, many times and I still cry every time I see this part of the film. The whole audience cries LG: For me, it's the scene where Samahar is preparing food and there are people chopping ingredients next door. She is so tense and frightened each time she hears a war plane overhead. We exaggerated the sound in these moments to transport the audience to the same space. It is this heightened attention or over-sensitivity that enables us to exaggerate the sound of the chopping, but also the sound of a motorcycle passing by. BF: Sound is also incredibly important and seems to be amplified in places. Lars Ginzel, re-recording mixer, Graeme Stewart, music editor, Denmark Stage