Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1382552
45 S U M M E R Q 2 I S S U E F E A T U R E When Stateman f irst started con- ceiving the sound world of "The Queen's Gambit," he saw possibilities in scenes that might strike others as unexciting or un-cinematic. "From the beginning, I talked to the production mixer Roland Winke, and Scott for that matter, and said, 'Breaths are going to be really i m p o r ta n t ,' " State m a n s a i d . " W h e n somebody is leaning over a chessboard, I need to hear their aerobic performance." For example, Stateman points to pro- duction sound captured by Winke during scenes between Beth and her teacher, Mr. Shaibel. "You really hear them breathing, and we use those breaths as pivot points and transitions," said Stateman, whose approach is applauded by Frank. "We're only given two senses to work with, sight and sound," Frank said. "And over three projects now, Wylie has not only taught me the storytelling value in the second sense, but also how it should ... dovetail and work in concert with the first...[. Sound] is as vital to the narrative as the photography." Stateman also recognized early on the critical role music would play in the se- ries, both the original score by composer Carlos Rafael Rivera as well as individual songs. "There are some really outstand- ing uses of songs in this picture, when we have a chess game set to 'Classical Gas,' when we have Anya dancing to 'Venus' or 'Fever,'" said Stateman, again empha- sizing the advantages of the concurrent development of both cutting patterns and musical rhythms in the show. "The Queen's Gambit" was written and shot to be divided into six episodes, but at some point Tesoro realized that Episode 2 was not only running exceed- ingly long but had a natural dividing point. "I remember looking at the cards for Episode 2 and just seeing how it was laying out," she said. "There's two phases in this show: there's the begin- ning, where she's establishing her home life with Alma and the Wheatleys and being a teenager and then being in her first tournament. And then there's a life where they've hit the road and they're really building on their mother-daughter relationship." Tesoro proposed splitting Episodes 2 and 3 into three episodes, resulting in a total of seven episodes. As Stateman sees it, that sort of cre- ative thinking comes more readily to the picture side when sound decisions are frontloaded into the process. "The rolling mix frees the editor to be a big-picture thinker and to explore some for these ideas, which would normally take maybe weeks or months, and do them quickly and to do them with the confidence that, behind their vision, is a small team of artisans that are handling the house- keeping," Stateman said. W h e n t h e co ro n av i r u s p a n d e m i c hit, about half of the episodes had been submitted to Netflix with the remainder yet to be delivered, but because the "cutting room 2.0" system was already so efficient, and many of the key players were already working remotely, the shift wasn't too traumatic. "It was just sort of having to get used to these online collaborative platforms, such as Slack and Zoom and Evercast," Tesoro said. "Because we had all worked together before, there was already an established relationship of trust among everybody." Fra n k s a i d t h a t f i n a l m i xe s w i t h Stateman are pretty short affairs. "I've already heard much of it by this point, or at least know the concept of what we're doing," he said. In the end, "cutting room 2.0" intro- duces efficiencies into the process, but Stateman stresses that its advantages are more about artistry than economics. "Having those decisions baked early gives everybody in the sound department chain an advantage," Stateman said. "It reduces waste, and it improves the de- liberate intention of the film." He added: "It's not about trying to save money. It's about trying to avoid the pitfalls of lack of time and/or lack of approval pro- cess workflow." M e m b e rs o f t h e p o s t - p ro d u c t i o n team may never turn into chess players on the order of, say, Beth Harmon, but in developing an innovative approach to marrying picture editing and sound design, each craftsperson has mastered the equivalent of a chess opening move. And with the series racking up awards and nominations, Tesoro and Stateman have already proven they are playing the game at master levels. ■ Stateman. Tesoro. P H O T O : C H R I S T O P H E R F R A G A P A N E P H O T O : C H R I S T O P H E R F R A G A P A N E