Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1500728
58 PRODUCTION SOUND & VIDEO – Summer 2023 Pro Tools Playback Motion Control Workflow: The Flight Attendant S2 I first got the call for The Flight Attendant to solve a tech issue. They wanted to "parent-trap," which is where you have one actor play many characters in the same shot. Here's how: We stacked Kaley Cuoco's performances in QTAKE, and by the time we wrapped the scene, had a complete sequence. They were all layered in on a VFX comp, with only her dialog heard from each performance. This was important for VFX as some of the scenes had to have perfect eyelines, throw stacks of paper, high fives, etc. The dialog timing had to be on point as it would motivate the moves, and there needed to be enough of a gap for each line, otherwise, it would throw her off. This required a repeatable scene. My system would drive six or more peripherals that employed motion control for the camera, QTAKE auto-record and layering, DMX lighting cues, and sound FX on the Pro Tools timeline. I decided to run it with record-run timecode via an Avid Sync HD, and I'd record the isos over Dante into Pro Tools HDX and on a 970. I chose LTC over GPIO to drive this, given the nature of linear time frames of each scene—hitting cues at certain intervals for FX, actions, light, and not to mention the flow of dialog. GPIO had only basic transport functions, and LTC allowed me to adjust things in my repeatable timeline. Each segment would start at 00:59:56:00 so as to give everything enough time to catch sync. We wired everyone, including the photo doubles, who ran lines to hold space for when Cuoco was to do those character's performances. I ran a Dante feed from the production mixer's rig so I could get anything I wanted over that line, including the mix and all isos. I would roll when they called action, kicking the LTC off, which would trigger QTAKE to roll four cameras, the bloop light for Moco would hit at 01:00:00:00, our AD would call out "three … two … one … action," then they'd do the scene. We wrote motion control, focus racks, DMX lighting cues, and any other chronological scene information against my LTC stripe on all moving parts, recording all data. If we wanted another one, we'd have to write it all again based on the linear requirements of the scenes. After we got a keeper-take, we would then call that the base on which we would build. I would mark that in my session, then figure out which character would go next. I would clean up the dialog on the fly with iZotope and cut out photo double lines of the character she chose to play next, so she could perform it. Sometimes we'd rehearse while she was getting wired, and she would read her next character's lines against the other lines to practice timing. I'd also retain the verbal "three … two … one" cue, although it was archaic, as it served the purpose of cueing everyone on the exact same start mark each time for the scene. We had to drive QTAKE's initial "keeper-take" to play back in sync with the new one and print both into a new VFX comp track. We were effectively "stacking" performances, similar to a sequencer or multitracking in a DAW. I also would run my updated dialog edit into the mixer's board, so it would always represent the most recent dialog comp for VTR overlays. Sometimes, I'd cue three beeps to help give her a start mark if her character didn't start the scene or if she needed a cue for action. This was a constant process throughout the season, requiring all departments' collaboration. It was great practice in how to translate weirdly complex situations to others in a palatable fashion. To Leslie: Good Old-Fashioned Filmmaking To Leslie was a special experience for me and a total relief from all the other deeply technological jobs I had gotten myself into. Shot single-camera on film, this job was fun because it wasn't about big tough problem-solving or new fancy wireless gear; it was about the relationships and organic processes of capturing great performances. It was classical filmmaking. Our Director, Michael Morris, was an absolute joy to collaborate with. From the beginning, we discussed the music as it was important in this film. He left me in charge of the jukebox, and I was always ready whenever he wanted something for needle-drop or otherwise. It was very enjoyable to delve into the "outlaw country" discography and learn about a style of music I hadn't been entirely familiar with.