Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1535806
62 S U M M E R 2 0 2 5 I C A S Q U A R T E R L Y also make sure there aren't any stomach noises or growls recorded during the pass. I carefully watch the cues go by and make sure I'm not missing any important ones. I'll adjust the accuracy of their starting points and placements in real-time as the cloth is being recorded. If I hear any stomach noise during the record, I drop a marker and let it continue recording unless the artist stops the movement, or we both stop to catch something we missed on a cut. I usually have shortcut macros assigned for my "Fix it" markers to drop with a few asterisks (****) so that they don't get mixed up with my regular markers for other purposes. Example: *****STMK or *****CUT CLOTH. That way, when I drop in regular location markers, I can clearly distinguish my "Fix it" markers from other ones. It is only by frame-accurate cues that I'm able to record 500 to 700 sounds in a day with a professional Foley artist. The rest is technique and speed that I acquired over the years which allows me to record and edit at the same time. As the next cue is about to be recorded, I'm nudging and adding fades to the previous take during the three-second pre-roll beep time—and adjusting my preamp knob for each take. After the cloth is done, I quickly edit my cloth track and fix the noisy areas and the scene-ends, so nothing goes beyond the commercial black cuts or hard scene cuts. All while the Foley artist is preparing the shoes to start with the first main character's footsteps. When I record the cloth movement, I'm constantly aware of the production, noises in cloth, ticks, and pops that need removal, and most importantly, it's the best time for me to study the show. You want to intake as much information as possible about the show, the surfaces, special props that need building and prepping for, and any wet/water scenes that require us to fill the water pit or splash pit. If it's the first episode of a show, we start with testing certain shoes and decide which one suits each character the best as each shoe can help the performance of that character's acting. For example, a killer's boots will have to sound a lot different than another person with the same type of boots, so we have to pick and choose the important characters and give them the best options first. The Order in Which We Record the Footsteps (FS) Now we record all the main characters and then move on to non-mains, then background (BG) and foreground (FG) people going by. After that, it's time for a Group (GRP) FS pass, which is two Foley artists walking at the same time with different shoes on each foot, so they can replicate four or more people walking as a group in one take. When we have more than two people walking at the same time and speed in the same direction, we can group them together. I never group the main characters together, no matter what. GRP FS is only for backgrounds and non-main characters. When someone goes from left to right in the foreground or background, I make sure the perspective in the mix is done right and the far/close relation is respected during recording. If it's an interior shot, I use our room mic with the close mic and mix it with more room (and sometimes reverb) and less close mic when the person is on the far left/right. Then as they come closer, I'll add more of the close mic and less of the room/reverb to bring them close to the camera. And then the opposite for when they leave the scene. My Brain Process for Recording FS It's all about the mastery of those three faders in relation to what's happening in the scene. Watching the sync, the volume, the emotion, the feel, and the dynamic of the performance, and using your words to guide the artist to the right direction to achieve the best possible result for the sole purpose of making the project sound better and making the re-recording mixer's day easier. When I label my recordings, I always take into consideration