Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1535806
42 S U M M E R 2 0 2 5 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y grandfather was a radio operator in Australia receiving Morse code internationally as well, so it was strangely connected. My grandfather-in-law kept a handwritten journal of everything that happened. He wrote about his 33 missions—which was a huge number when you knew what they went through. In one of them, he talks about how they got hit by flack on the plane and it burst through, and if it wasn't for his flex suit, he'd be in the medical tent at the end of it with his family jewels next to him because it landed right on his lap! He ended up keeping that piece of flex. I got to hold that as we were going through the show, and it was the most "real" feeling of what I could get while working on a show like this. Thor: Even though I was very young when Band of Brothers came out, I watched quite a bit of it as we had the 10-box DVD set. As I got a bit older, I re-watched Band of Brothers and then The Pacific. I loved the music and the shows, so I had an understanding of their sonic worlds. When I heard we're doing this, I was so excited that I could be a part of that sonic world. When Blake played me some of the music he wrote—which I believe was the main title—it was just insanely gorgeous and moving. RS: Mike and Jack [Whittaker, supervising sound editor] actually came to our Foley stage. We had previously received a couple of reels to look at prior to their visit. We viewed them and then we sat down with them and ran scenes and wanted to get their vision as well, because they were in direct connection with the director. They were explaining to us what they were looking for specifically, so we really got an opportunity to spend time to enhance the areas where they needed the most help. They didn't have sound effects cut in or designed at this point, so we were able to really hone in on the areas that needed the most attention within the story. I want to point out the excellent work by the Foley artists on my team, Jeffrey Wilhoit and Dylan Wilhoit. While we focus on the mixing side here in the CAS, they're both MPSE members and it was such a completely collaborative experience. Tim, can you tell us about your planning on the production sound side and any gear considerations? Tim: Throat mics were tried, but intelligibility was a bit of an issue as we tried to use the original carbon Shure mics for authenticity. Comms between departments was crucial so a Riedel Bolero system was used to give almost instant full duplex conferences where required. This was a consequence of both COVID and access issues on the plane. With the Bolero, many channels and conferences could easily be programmed together. We used the digital Neumann KMR 81 D shotgun mic a lot. It's a medium mic, similar to a Sennheiser MKH 416 but better at handling high SPL's. For radio booms, we used DPA 4017B, which are also good for high SPL's and have a low-noise floor. When we were filming at the PoW section at Bovingdon, we had a little frequency clash as there were several other units within sight and four TV studios. I booked out blocks of frequencies, which proved very necessary. Given the combination of the show being a period piece focusing on war, and in particular flight, I can imagine there were some production challenges. Tim: Yes. The planes were very claustrophobic and really noisy and rattly. It's amazing that they ever got off the ground with all the armor mounts and payload! It was very important to try to convey this with sound. They were so noisy inside with the four enormous engines and gunfire. The dialogue inside was really pivotal, [so] it was important to make sure it was not all shouted to maintain the narrative.