CAS Quarterly

72 S U M M E R 2 0 2 1 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y CAS STUDENT RECOGNITION AWARD WINNER Brandyn Johnson by PETER KELSEY CAS Meet the Winners As re-recording mixer Sherry Klein CAS said as she announced the winner, this award has become an integral part of the CAS legacy. The CAS is proud to say it has always been inclusive and diverse in all things CAS, and this was exemplified by the gender and ethnic variety of this year's SRA submissions. This was the seventh year of awarding this honor. The last few years have seen many women entering the cinema audio field—and this year was no exception. While four of the five finalists were women, this year the prize went to Brandyn Johnson from the University of Southern California. I sent some questions to Brandyn to find out more about him and here are his responses. What brought you into sound and specifically "sound for film"? I graduated from the University of Albany, SUNY with a BA in Documentary Studies. Narrative fiction storytelling had always been my lane. Unfortunately, University of Albany didn't have a film production program at the time, so I chose the next best thing. Understanding the role sound played in the filmmaking process was important for me, so I focused on audio/radio docs. That decision sent me on a more technical trajectory than I expected. I walked out of UAlbany having a solid understanding of the recording process, microphone types, polar patterns, and the acoustics of a space (in addition to amazing guidance and mentorship by the Documentary Studies faculty—Hi Susan, Gerald, and Sheila!!!). It wasn't until I got to USC's School of Cinematic Arts (eight years later), that I started to think about sound as a serious career path. I noticed a huge hole that needed to be filled as there weren't many students interested in production sound. I knew the basics of it fairly well, and I enjoyed it, so I dove in. Over the course of three years, I got the opportunity to make a lot of great projects with a lot of great people. Those opportunities coupled with mentorship by some of the GOAT's—David MacMillan, Stephen Flick, Richard Burton, Midge Costin—helped me get to this point. I'm super grateful! What's your favorite part of the "sound for film" process? I'm a production guy! I love the adventure. The autonomy. The quiet responsibility. I get paid to travel to cool places and make dope stuff with dope people. I also really love not getting those "planning" calls from a director/producer after wrapping a day. My job is (usually) done at wrap. That gives me more mental space for the other important things in my life—like my son! I couldn't design my life any better if I tried. What does the CAS Award mean to you? It's incredible—a true life-changer! It's only been a week since the award and I've already been given unreal opportunities in

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