Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/637797
39 Q1 2016 / CINEMONTAGE The hugely successful Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens marks the first outing in the franchise from director/co-writer J.J. Abrams. Starring Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac, the film picks up the narrative some 30 years after Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983) and the defeat of the Galactic Empire, with a new threat as the First Order attempts to rule the galaxy while a group of rebels attempts to stop them. "J.J. is the kind of director who gives you the freedom to create a range of sound that we think will work," reveals co-supervising sound editor Wood, who focused on dialogue, ADR and Foley editorial, while Acord — working closely with veteran Star Wars sound designers Ben Burtt and Gary Rydstrom — oversaw sound effects editing. "Our task was to honor the sound legacy of the previous films, while extending the design to the next level," Acord says. "One of my biggest challenges was to create realistic vocal sounds for the masked characters, including Adam Driver, who played Kylo Ren," explains Wood, who was nominated for an Oscar for WALL• E (2008) and There Will Be Blood (2007). "I used a number of Pro Tools plug- ins to create voice distortions and futzes that I then fed into Adam's headphones as he re-voiced his lines, so that he could work the microphone according to the amount of compression and processing I might be using. Unlike Darth Vader's mask, which is a biological necessity, Ren's mask was solely meant to intimidate people; we helped that with the effects we used. I recall that J.J. had asked us to make Ren sound like a Harley-Davidson combined with a flame thrower and a chainsaw!" "We had access to new transfers of Ben Burtt's original sound effects for the lightsabers, Millennium Falcon, X-Wing, TIE Fighters and other Star Wars landmarks," says Acord. "To prove continuity with Return of The Jedi — and as a tip of the hat to the original sound design — we used Ben's tracks as starting points, but with added low end to make them even more powerful, as J.J. had requested." "All in all, we tried to help J.J. Abrams realize his overall vision for the film," Wood concludes. "Whereas previous director George Lucas had several motion pictures upon which to draw, J.J. was coming fresh to the franchise, so we needed to ensure that we did the best job possible for him — with creative sound effects, dialogue and music tracks that worked harmoniously on the final mix. I hope we succeeded." f David Acord. Matthew Wood. "We had access to new transfers of Ben Burtt's original sound effects for the lightsabers, Millennium Falcon, X-Wing, TIE Fighters and other Star Wars landmarks," Scott Acord