Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1475409
The Discovery crew lightly and the puddles the boys splash and kick through having fun help add to this feeling. How did you treat the SFX in this opening knowing where we would be going next? OT: It's a lush part of the world. We wanted to convey how normal it would be for there to be an abundance of water, to let the audience know this wasn't a reckless excursion for the boys—that they got caught out by monsoon rain earlier than they would normally have expected in the season. We see the farmers who so selflessly sacrificed their crops later in the story. Ron was also keen to hear nature, and the intensity of the sound of insects and birds increases through that early part of the film— signalling that something ominous is on its way. MA: A sudden downpour of rain preemptively starting the monsoon season causes the water to switch to something that can take a life. The heavy rain gives you a claustrophobic feeling with the sound coverage on all the surfaces around us pushing forward the idea that nothing is untouched by this huge event. How did you tackle the rain scenes? OT: We started by compiling a huge library of rain recordings! There are a large number of differing surfaces in the shots which helps—mud, metal, wood, rock, vegetation. We tried to vary the type of rain from shot to shot—splatty, drippy, shashy, partly so even when the rain was relentless the audience wouldn't tune it out, but it also sold the idea that the rain was permeating everything, including the caves. There were 2 or 3 tracks of rain per section. We started with a core layer per location, and then we'd add up to two layers that were specific to the surface we were looking at. Additionally, we added thunder where it was appropriate. MA: With the sheer amount of weather sounds in this film I'm sure a conversation must have happened with Ron before you designed these scenes. OT: Not just the weather but also the nature, birds and insects. Inside the cave there were many constants with Wildtrack recording session, (L to R) Alex Boyesen, Borm, Tern, Taan, Vicky, Nop (hidden child not named), Joe, and Ott (with boom). Loop group, strictly left to right (using nicknames) - Art, Nick, Jack, Opal, Hen, Pong, Niw, Geng, Jar, Praew, Wan, Joke, Ott, and Alex Boyesen in the front. Director Ron Howard on the set of Thirteen Lives. Photo by Vince Valitutti/MGM Pictures.