Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1504875
By Jennifer Walden R e-recording mixers spend weeks with a director agonizing over ev- ery detail of a film's soundtrack — choosing when to push the effects hard, making sure lines of dialogue sit just right in the mix, and deciding when to let the music be big and bold. A well-crafted mix not only captures the director 's artis- tic intent for a film; it's an expression of the mixer's artistry, as well. They make decisions on acoustically-treated and precisely-tuned dub stages that are reca- librated regularly to ensure the mix will translate in theaters and deliver the direc- tor's intended experience to the audience — that is, if the theaters play that mix at the proper reference level. What if the fad- er is set too low? How will that affect the audience's experience of the film? "On the creative side, we're very fortu- nate to work on mixing stages that are built and calibrated to provide the best theatrical experience possible," said re-recording mixer Tony Lamberti at Sony Pictures Stu- dios in Culver City, California. "We get to hear the movies at the exact perfect levels all the time. It spoils us a bit. Ultimately, we want our projects to go out into the field and translate so that people can experience it exactly as we do. "But then our clients go to see their mov- ies in the cineplex and say, 'Wait a minute. It doesn't sound like it did on the mixing stage.' That's because some theaters ex- hibit movies in less-than-ideal conditions; the rooms aren't always spec'd out, or the speakers aren't checked for long periods of time, so they either fall into disrepair or aren't up to snuff. It's very difficult; essentially, you hand over your baby to the exhibitors, and it's up to them to make sure it's presented properly," Lamberti said. This uncertainty is a source of anxiety for theatrical re-recording mixers, accord- ing to Michael Babcock, CAS, at Warner SOUND ON: Michelle Yeoh in "Everything Everywhere All at Once." P H OT O : A 2 4 38 C I N E M O N T A G E T E C H Heard This One? SOUND CREWS WORK HARD TO GET THE RIGHT LEVELS ON THEIR MIXES. BUT WHAT THE AUDIENCE HEARS IN THE THEATER OR AT HOME IS OFTEN ANYONE'S GUESS.