Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/856624
22 S U M M E R 2 0 1 7 C A S Q U A R T E R L Y us thinking more about what we were going to do during the series. One of the things that was under discussion quite a bit was Lizzy's [Elisabeth Moss'] voiceover. Karol: There was a distinct difference going from her voiceover to her production, but it didn't sound like a floaty documentary-read narrative. Lou: And when we met Bruce, he talked to us a little bit about voiceover and he did so much research on how films use voiceover … how to adapt a book and use a voiceover … how to use it. He spent quite a long time thinking about it. So, it gave us his thoughts and concepts. Then we just sat with it for a while. I was actually given a day in the studio to try to come up with some various schemes for making the voiceover different than the dialogue but at the same time, have it integrated into the conversation. If you've watched the show, you know that the Offred character is in the scene, but the voiceover's going on and she's acting to the voiceover. So it becomes a character in the scene. It took some time and some playing to figure out a sound for the voiceover that would fit into the scenes but stand apart from the production dialogue. Everyone was very … very interested in finding out what it was going to sound like and how were we going to do it. We did pre-records of the first episode so they could do playbacks on set. I think Lizzy, she just had it all in her head anyway. So, after the first episode, they abandoned the playbacks and she just acts it in her head while the scene's being filmed. Then we would just come in and do it later in the studio and get a clean version of it and do some processing on it to make it fit the scenes. Karol: Wow. Elisabeth Moss did not use ears with playback on set. I'm … that's pretty impressive. [Laughs] That's awesome. [Later, I was told that Lizzy came into hear the voiceover treatment and was so happy she high- fived Lou—surprising him so much that he almost left her hanging!] Did the book come to life on-screen the way you had begun to imagine it? Lou: In some aspects, yes, but in other aspects, no. The characters that you're imagining in the book—like the Commander's a lot older and so is the Commander's wife. So, these were fresh ideas with Bruce's interpretation. Karol: The book was written in the early to mid- '80s. But I liked how they placed small tech details in the storyline to make things more modern and more tangible to today, but yet were very, very true to the original storyline. Gilead is surrounded by new technology but is so yesterday in concept in many ways. That must be an interesting world to create. An old throwback to almost colonial living amongst known modern-day technology. Lou: Yeah, I think the political concepts for sure hold. It's more the people and, I guess, making it more contemporary. But an interesting thing about what you were saying about the old world and modern world … when we were spotting early on with the first rough cut, we had a lot of discussion about what is Gilead exactly. We thought visually it looks almost period. But the interesting thing is the back story on Gilead. They've taken over a modern United States. So all the technology that was there before still exists. It's just that they've chosen to not use some of it. They're big on solar and renewable energy. These [pollution and lack of resources] were problems that were caused in the previous political situation that almost caused this Gilead takeover. So, one of Bruce's wishes was that the technology being used by people in Gilead was actually slick and efficient and so those big black vehicles have electric assist on them. They're not just straight big V8 engines, but they have an electric whine to help them. So, they're being actually environmentally conscious … probably out of necessity. He even kind of threw it at us. I mean, I don't know if it's exactly in his script, but he would propose things like, "You know, they probably have a trade deal with Germany. So, you can put a German dishwasher in the kitchen that operates very quietly." And we tried all season to get a vacuum cleaner in, but we couldn't. [Laughs] It would always mean something if we had it there and so it just kept getting turned [off]. Karol: I see the action would have been too significant. But you could get away with something purely environmental. Lou: Those are the kinds of things. [For instance], in a later episode, you see the Commander at the dining room table with a laptop open. It was weird to us initially because you're working on something and, as a mixer, you tell yourself, "I'm in period." So, if there's a car pass on the production sound, I got to do something about it or an airplane flyby and all that. But actually, in this case, we didn't have to do that because it is a modern world and it just looks old. So, that was kind of an interesting headspace to get into. Karol: Well, it sounds like they actually spent a good amount of time investing in some time for you guys to actually process the concept of the story before you started mixing it. I find that to be a fantasy of a project