Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1521562
C I N E M A A U D I O S O C I E T Y. O R G 63 fun, and I've been lucky enough to work on some really cool ones. How did you work your way up to this spot? Well, I DJ'ed throughout high school and college—even when it was probably illegal for me to be DJ'ing as a student in bars, my parents were not happy about it! Then, I worked at some of the big classic clubs in New York like Tunnel, Sound Factory, Limelight. They've all since closed, but I learned that I loved music and loved mixing, even just those two records. I interned at Capitol Records. It was an interesting situation, but I realized I didn't really want to be sitting around all day for 12, 15 hours waiting for an artist to come in and record them at 3 a.m., then work another 12 hours. Ironically enough, I'm still putting in the hours, but just on my own. So, I shifted from music to sound for picture. I started doing a lot of commercials. I started recording on a lot of Disney projects. I worked at a studio in New York that had the Disney account. So, every actor in New York, I was recording them, doing a lot of ADR. I learned a lot about doing that. I learned a lot about how to be with people in the room, or how not to be with people in the room. I've gotten into a lot of interesting conversations with cool people. I've gotten into a lot of heated conversations with a lot of cool people. Then I started mixing. I started mixing a show called The First 48, which is a show that's still on A&E. I started doing a lot of reality TV and learned a lot from reality TV such as how to do things quickly, how to get it somewhat right, how to not second-guess yourself, how to pick and choose what sounds good in the moment, and how to not be hung up on anything and just keep moving forward. How to hit the goal that you need to hit in 2½ days for a 45-minute show when you are sound designing and mixing it, which is crazy. I love that you've been through that "mill." Some people could look at that and assume you're going to get used to doing it fast and, maybe, choosing places where you can "cut corners." But 100 Foot Wave is not cutting corners. You still are always about telling the story. You always work to find the sounds that will make the story better. Totally. I was in a room filled with mixers at the CAS Awards and they are people I have only seen on social media or in print, and they are working on things I can only dream of working on. And these people are talented as all hell, and I think everybody has their own path. My path was harder, faster, quicker, but I think it got me to an end goal where I can work on a scripted union show, and I can work through it pretty quick with the time that I have, and all the material is pretty clean. Compare that to documentary and reality where I'm used to processing everything once, twice, even three times. Even on scripted, it's not always clean. The grass is not always greener, I hear you. When I was doing reality TV, I said to myself that I would love to work on a cooking channel show, that seems awesome. And then I finally started working on a cooking channel show, and there were no sounds, and you had no time. So yeah, the grass is not always greener, I agree. My path taught me a lot, so when I do get these shows where I have to go quick, I know where to focus my attention, I know what needs to be touched and what doesn't. Now, I'm lucky enough to be able to pick and choose who works on what. I get a job in, and I try to hire the best people for the job, because I think if you're passionate about something, then you'll do a better job on it. I have a group of amazingly talented workers who I like to work with, and if, for instance, there's someone in that group who likes surfing more than the others, I'll try to get that person. Or for a video game documentary like High Score, I'll try to get someone who's as passionate about video games as I am. That extra insight can help elevate the realism of a project. Having those relationships—whether with colleagues or clients—can also result in better outcomes and elevated opportunities. In New York, where I've been living and working my whole life, there are a lot of commercials, a lot of promo work, a lot of Re-recording mixer Keith Hodne