Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1521715
Summer 2024 – LOCAL695.COM 41 In 2021, I received a call from Production Sound Mixer Mark Ulano to provide music playback on Martin Scorsese's film, Killers of the Flower Moon. I had last worked with Mark on Once Upon A Time in Hollywood and had an amazing experience interacting with its director Quentin Tarantino. So I was excited to work with another great American Director and Mark again. The film takes place one hundred years ago on the land now controlled by the Osage Native American Territory in Oklahoma and, in the name of authenticity, that is where we shot it. I was flown out twice for the two scenes with music playback. The first time was on land owned by the Drummond family (some of you may know Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, from her cooking show) and it involved a wedding scene with Leonardo DiCaprio. The second music playback scene was a few weeks later in the town of Pawhuska. This is a very small country town where the historically relevant courthouse was and still had many of the same buildings that existed one hundred years ago when the film takes place. The music playback scene was a large outdoor street party with hundreds of extras and a period bluegrass group. "Those who make a film have a totally different experience than those who watch it." –Jeff Bridges The two playback situations went great, but what I wanted to share now were the logistics of getting there and back. Getting to the gig is, of course, essential for anyone in our industry to demonstrate our professionalism and expertise. Usually, it's relatively easy, but on these out-of-town jobs, there can be challenges. Part of the job is to rise to the occasion and overcome unplanned events when necessary. On films where I will be on set for many days, Production will ship my standard playback cart to the location, but on a one-day job (which is typical for music playback on non-musical shows), it is less expensive for Production to fly me out with my gear as luggage. Experience has taught me to put together a dedicated carry-on case with all the essential gear ready to go, so I don't find myself in a situation where I need to hunt for local rentals. In rural towns like Pawhuska, Oklahoma, there are few to no options for replacement equipment in the event that something goes wrong. So, it's best to come prepared for as many scenarios as possible. For these short fly-in gigs, I have a carry-on suitcase package I put together some years ago. I had just used it on a Disney film