Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1515068
16 PRODUCTION SOUND & VIDEO – Spring 2024 What is your view of the Sound Department's artistic contribution to each project? It is an experienced reality for many of us in our esoteric art form. What we do is so invisible and misunderstood, especially with how we function on the set. I don't mean this in a disrespectful way. There is great misinterpretation by those who work alongside us every day. Very often, they are unaware of exactly what we're doing. Our collective voice must reposition this disconnect in a proportionate way. Fortunately, this is in play in certain quarters these days, but it's still a major challenge to the recognition of our craft. I don't use the "bad-for-sound" description of a challenge as it usually triggers a territorial interpretation of what I'm saying. Instead, I engage when choices need to be made. I explain the issue, with the fewest words possible, placing in the director's hands, the options before us. If it's the director's idea at issue, it's much more effective to speak forthrightly, in terms of the competing elements and the range of solutions available. I won't cut unless I've been given that authority by the director in advance. I don't want to anyway, as there may be other essential elements within the shot not sound-related. This must be a part of our trust relationship. If a 2022 Airbus 330 jet flying overhead occurs during an 1870 dialog scene, I will bring it to the director or AD's attention in the moment. Some people who have the creative and financial authority of directing and/or producing are not necessarily knowledgeable about production sound and its use as a part of their skill set or creative palette. This can certainly be a problem. What is the best way to communicate this? How we communicate this has multiple levels to it. If you frequently come as the messenger of bad news, you can erode your credibility. We're there as an advocate for directorial intent and telling the story, Our only agenda is to help it be better. My position is, it's never about my sound, it's about the sound. It is about serving your project. If the production wants to make a decision that is going to postpone the resolution of the problem; it's their prerogative to do so, and I'll support that even if I think it's not the best solution, as long as I've been clear about the competing elements in a timely fashion. Tom Hartig booming a stagecoach scene at 11,000 feet on The Hateful Eight With director Quentin Tarantino and film editor Fred Raskin on the set of The Hateful Eight Mixing a scene at the Arsenal di Venezia, Italy, for The Tourist