Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1512678
26 W I N T E R 2 0 2 4 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y b y A d a m H o w e l l C A S A Look Back at The Shawshank Redemption ( 1994 ) For our second installment of "FAN FAVORITE FILMS," we'll revisit the 1994 classic, The Shawshank Redemption. I'll be kind and rewind. Earning only $16 million at the box office, The Shawshank Redemption was initially considered a disappointment. However, word of mouth gave it a second chance through video rentals. And that's where I first found Shawshank—in the form of a VHS tape at a Blockbuster. Every Friday, I'd scour the aisles in that blue and yellow store, carefully selecting which film I'd watch while enjoying my popcorn and twisty red candy—that I actually believed contained real strawberries. Redeeming indeed, it has garnered further acclaim through television syndication, where I've since watched it over a dozen times. It's one of those classics that you can start watching at any point in the film and you'll inexplicably be forced to finish it because it's that good. The film received seven Academy Award nominations, including Best Sound for Elliot Tyson, Michael Herbick, Robert J. Litt, and Willie D. Burton CAS. I had the pleasure of corresponding with Willie D. Burton, the film's two-time Academy Award-winning production sound mixer. His resume is filled with multiple classics. In fact, the most difficult aspect of writing this installment was deciding which one of his films I'd focus on! Not only did Willie win Oscars for Bird (1989) and Dreamgirls (2007), he's a CAS Career Achievement Award recipient, BAFTA winner, and Emmy nominee. Plus, he's still at the top of his game, having FAN FAVORITE FILMS recently worked on highly acclaimed films such as Oppenheimer and Air. Willie shared that before he got the opportunity to be a sound mixer, he worked for the government at Long Beach Naval Shipyard, specializing in sonar for the Combat System Engineering Division. But the Tuscaloosa, Alabama native soon found his lifelong passion after getting a legendary break in 1975. Willie shares, "My first big opportunity in the film industry was when I interviewed with Sidney Poitier for the movie, Let's Do It Again (1975). His producers were skeptical about hiring me with no prior experience working on films. My Elliot Tyson Michael Herbick