Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1524863
learned the film sound business from the ground up and listened to thousands of sound effects in the process, which helped me understand both the wide variations in quality that existed in recordings, and how the editors layered these sounds together in separate mag units without the luxury of hearing them played together until they hit the dub stage. Also, during that time, Brenda and I rented a space in Culver City where I built a demo studio complete with separate control room for us to use for our songwriting. Already having an 8-track board and recorder, I started adding outboard gear and synthesizers to use in our demos. When clients I met at Mag City learned that I had a music studio with synths and processing gear, they started asking me to make sound effects for their projects. They would also bring in their own sound effects to process, which led to me suggesting that we record better versions of the ones that were of poor quality. I worked on a lot of low-budget sci-fi and horror films for low pay with long hours and loved it—it was a great way to learn! So, I just sort of walked into that one and the timing was perfect for me. Musicians at the time (and pretty much all the time -CM) were struggling, whereas sound design and sound for film were on the way up. CM: So, that led you into more of what most would consider to be a "studio sound design" sort of situation? JPF: Yes, I left Mag City (to be followed there by a young Dane Davis), moved to a small cutting room on the Warner Hollywood "I remember working with Cece one time, and playing her some effects that I was putting together, and she said, 'You approach this like an editor, you've got a good sense for how these sounds are going to go together before you hear them together.' " M OT I O N P I CTU R E S O U N D E D I TO R S 135