Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1504731
M OT I O N P I CTU R E S O U N D E D I TO R S 53
SL: Thanks for chatting, pal. And
thanks for hiring me at the start
of my career. I think the biggest
takeaway for me from those days
was how important it is to always
be recording, and how important it
is to always be building an original
library. A very wise sound man
once told me, "Nothing gets older
faster than a new sound."
MM: No self-respecting filmmaker
would put a stock shot in their
new movie. You shoot something
new. Something with the specific
intention and relationship to
the story and the script and the
characters. I think we should
all follow that to the best of our
abilities in sound as well. There
is great value in sound libraries—
but I believe the best sounding
movies always have the freshest
ingredients. No self-respecting
chef would put canned peas in their
featured dish.
SL: That's the analogy I always use.
MM: So too should we not use
any more canned sounds than we
absolutely have to. Sometimes you
can't avoid it—you can't always
find a Sherman tank. It's easy for
me to pontificate. I understand
that I live in an ivory tower. Unlike
most, I get schedules and budgets
that support a fresh recording. But
many sound designers working on
TV don't have these luxuries. They
have to turn an episode around in
a week and feel lucky to have any
kind of sound cut at all, let alone
a bespoke one. Who has time to
even go outside? I recognize that.
Yet I think you might still take pride
even if you just get one new sound
in, 'cause you thought, "Oh, I just
heard my espresso machine! I'm
gonna put that in for the flaps on
the airplane!" That feels good!
There's value in that.
SL: I completely agree with you.
100%. Having been on the side of
not having the money or the time
to go out to get anything—some
libraries have saved my ass. But
also there is a lot of forward-
thinking you can do during your
downtime. You should always go
out and record things when you
can because you just never know.
MM: You've actually just made
your own point beautifully. When
you do have the downtime, get
those recordings made, and you
can have a fresh palette. You didn't
make it that day, but you recorded it
"because it was there," as we used
to say—and now you have a fresh
recording when you need it and you
don't have the time to go out and
record it. That's an example of what
sound designers might be doing in
their downtime.
SL: Thanks again for taking the
time to talk, dude. Oh, wait—last
question … what can you tell
me about Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles... I hear Trent Reznor is
doing the score!
MM: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
are doing the score. I'm super-
stoked about that because they're
bringing a very unique sensibility
to the movie. The director (Jeff
Rowe) is a mensch. I got really lucky,
because he's a big fan of the sound
of many of the movies I've worked
on. I've had a great schedule with
ample time to design and develop
the film. As with many previous
films, we built a new sonic universe
for the Turtles. We haven't leveraged
anything from the TV shows or
the previous films. All this will be
bespoke, designed sound. It's a
really good movie. And it's going to
be in Atmos, in theaters! I can tell
you that there was a lot of creature
voice design, which has been really
fun. And the turtles are always doing
acrobatic things—that's a turtle
visual gag. The flips and jumps they
do. So we developed a new library
of whooshes and swishes. There's
some really fun stuff to look for
there as well. It's their "signature."
I'd tell you about it, but I'd have
to kill you. I think we're bringing a
really unique sonic sensibility to it
too. It's a good movie, and a movie
that adults, like you and me, can go
watch!
SL: Great. Thanks, pal.
MM: Wait a minute, now let me ask
YOU something.
SL: Oh, yes…?
MM: Now, you tell me. I told this to
the director—this movie is the first
time I used a "Wilhelm" in 15 … 18
years…?
SL: Right.
MM: …There is a little "Easter egg"
in Ninja Turtles. You have to find the
Wilhelm.
SL: Oh! So it's not necessarily an
easy find…?
MM: YOU will hear it immediately.
SL: I will hear it immediately.
Okay. Well, that says something.