Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1545202
jobs. We had to rethink how we would adapt. And it's funny, we adjusted, we've come up with new plans. Now I can't imagine doing sound any other way." The use of booms was a contentious topic—apparently. John Wells had laid down the law: There would be no booms on this show … but nobody told Von! Before they started shooting, co-EP Terri Murphy called him in a panic, trying to confirm his team wouldn't use booms. "I had to explain to her that I never even agreed to that," shares Von. "We had no intention of doing it without booms. But we knew we had to handle this very delicately." And through that first season, they were able to win John Wells over, to the point that now Javier has carte blanche to deploy his boom wherever he needs to. Re-recording mixer Todd Grace agrees: "Von really fought hard—he had to convince them that he could get a boom in without killing the shot, which he and his crew did, much to their credit. And man, those booms come in helpful, because there's a lot of times where I might need a little additional perspective, and the booms are really good for that." "The lighting is all practical," says Von. "They have a China ball on a stick that Javier has to duel with constantly. He had to teach the lighting guy how to boom!" Javier points out: "It's hard sometimes to get a boom in. Reflections are very challenging. They catch the lighting booms or their reflections, and they think it's me." Jaiver gets help from utility Cristina Meyer. "I always tell her, 'Go check if you see me in the right corner!'" Cristina confirms, "I sit at the DIT monitors with the gaffer and the key grip every day. Of course, as soon as they see something, they tell me. They're difficult shots, with a lot of reflections, but Javier is nowhere to be seen. The gaffer and the key grip have said, 'He's a magician. Where is he? I can't see him!' It gives me a lot of pride to say, 'Yeah, that's my guy.'" Despite all the challenges, the crew as a whole—who are about to start their third season—has become a unit. "This is where we really have to give John Wells and his production team their kudos," Von indicates. "They interviewed well and pulled some people out of the woodwork that I had never heard from. These people are good! As big as the show is, I feel like everybody checks their egos at the door. It's really a team family effort." Javier adds, "Everybody has to look out for each other. We're making these crazy big moves, the background is always moving, always active. It really does have to be a collective of people working all together. It's challenging, but it is fun!" Von shares, "While I regret not mentioning it during the frenzy of the CAS Awards, I would have loved to have thanked our AD's—even the PA's, they are always in 'go' time. At any moment, someone's coming in, and they are so good at bringing them to us, or if there's information we don't know, we have some people that report directly to us. They literally come to us and say, 'Hey, get ready, this is what we're doing.' I can't give them enough credit. They have become part of this sound team." One adjustment to the show's workflow was finding a location for Von's sound cart. "Our stage is literally built out fire lane to fire lane. We made them put out an 8'x8' square within one of the bathrooms that my cart never leaves from. Originally, they didn't want me to do it. I went to the producers and noted, 'You L-R: Alex Jongbloed CAS, Von Varga, Tami Treadwell, and Todd M. Grace CAS