Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1451070
60 S P R I N G 2 0 2 2 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y plugins that allow us to do our job and lead to subtle and delicate decision making. There's no book, it's always different, and our part of the creativity has been dumbed down." Gary said that when people come to the dub stage and see all the knobs, they make the assumption that "I'm a technician. But what I bring to the table is something creative." You can view the full discussion here: https://cinemaaudiosociety.org/cas-the-sounding -board-v1-0/#ears The forum allowed for interaction with the viewing audience. Here are a couple questions from the chat: What do you do to keep your mind and body healthy and combat the pressures you are under? Craig: Lots of stretching. Alex: Time off after. Gotta take some time off. Lee: I just came back from a 30-mile bike ride and, during that, I'm not thinking about anything but cycling. It's totally immersive. And when they wrap on Friday night, I don't think anymore about the project until Monday morning. Gary: I swim regularly for 45 minutes. I go into a zone. If you can, find something to do to take you away from all the pressures. Alyson: Get a bird feeder. I sit outside in nature and that nourishes me. Gary: We all need to find something to give us that Zen- like experience. A way to de-stress. Dane: I run. I run around the dub stage. We have to take care of our physical body. Gary: I think we all try to get outside for a few minutes at least. I once told the head of CBS that I work in a room where plants can't grow. He then proceeded to bring in plants and trees to the dub stage, changing them out every week. Are you sending sounds to the director ahead of the cut and do they need a visual reference to know what they are hearing? Dane: Everything depends on the show and how much lead time you have. But, yes, we do send sounds to the director. The first temp mix is so critical, that's where things get defined. What are some questions you ask your clients in order to understand their vision? Craig: If you can go to lunch with the director and relate to them on a personal level, that goes a long way to making it easier. Gary: The more we can interact with the client, it shows them that what we do is more than who we are and they can start to think there's a thoughtful person behind the console. Dane: And someone who has passion. Directors are looking for someone with passion. Gary: We're all here because we've been passionate about what we do all our lives. We have a certain high standard to reach for and, more importantly, we want to make sure the audience is entertained in a way that the director had the vision to communicate with them.