Fixing
Simple Audio Problems in Post-Production By Phil Crescenzo
On
almost every project that I work on there is a point where the director
sits back and says something like "you know...it is finally starting
to feel like a movie." And 95% of the time it is not the image
editing that evokes that response. Instead, it is usually the assembly
of the audio elements that gives the director that feeling. With all
of the money we spend on what we see on the screen, it is all pretty
much just a sequence of clips without a good audio track.
But often getting that good audio track is the result of extensive
manipulation on the part of the post-audio engineers. And a great
deal of that is trying to repair mistakes made on the set. During
production, where every dime is counted, audio has become a lower
priority than it should be. And I get the impression that location
mixers aren’t paid their due attention sometimes.
There is a general attitude that anything can be fixed in a computer
and that we do not have to give as much consideration to accurate
techniques as we have in the past. Well, a trip to the Usenet location
sound newsgroup might help resolve this issue and give some insight
into what these poor guys have to deal with to get decent audio on
location. One thing you can see there amidst the chatter is that these
guys are serious about their craft. They are the ones testing and
developing new techniques and technologies. Even some of the simple
cable fixes they discuss can save many hours in post production. They
are the developers of hard disk recorders and methods that are all
targeted to overcome location sound problems and make it easier for
shots to be done with great audio without extensive hassle and holdup.
But they can only do so much by themselves. No technology can overcome
the problems that arise when a production crew doesn’t consider
audio concerns as much as they should. And since the audio guys are
not making the final decisions, they eventually have to compromise
and just do their best.
And that’s where the problems start for us in post production.
Problems that, for the most part, are avoidable with a little patience
applied on the set. Consider the location sound crew as important
as the camera crew. You wouldn’t shoot a movie without listening
to the DP. Spend a moment with the sound mixer and seriously consider
their response. If it is at all possible to do what they suggest you
will definitely thank yourself when you are in post. Here are some
of the more common problems we find in post:
Forgetting to unplug appliances
Failing to realize that sounds you hear on location are probably going
to be magnified when you have them isolated in post on a dialog track.
That band saw in the building next door may not sound like much when
you are shooting but trust me, some poor soul will probably spend
hours trying to get rid of it in post for you.
Treat the feet
If you are shooting in a reflective, reverberative environment you
have to realize that every little sound will carry and obscure the
dialog you are trying to record. In that environment you may have
to treat shoes and use sound blankets to minimize reflections and
limit other extraneous sounds so their echoes do not affect the dialog
recording by their exaggeration. Unless the live room sounds is an
integral part of the scene you owe it to your project to minimize
the effects of the live room while you are on the set. Echoes and
reverb are nearly impossible to remove in post. On the other hand,
room artifacts like echo and reverb take time in post to replace if
you have to replace dialog from those scenes. Shooting in a live environment
can yield completely useable dialog if you prepare the set and allow
the mixer to mic the action properly.
Exteriors
Often I am faced with replacing or fixing dialog done on location
in busy traffic environments. Unless proper micing technique is used
these dialog scenes will be unusable. Which means ADR and sound replacement.
Sometimes this can be avoided by giving the sound mixer a little more
time to plan or setup for the shot. And when you are in a busy environment
make sure to record a couple of minutes of it in case you need it
again I post. The real thing is always better than canned audio from
a library.
Of course that applies to every location you record in. Again, if
you can hear it at all when you are on the set it might me a lot more
annoying when you are listening to the dialog in post. Even with excellent
micing techniques these little annoying buggers seem to pop up in
post and cause problems.
Levels
I have to say that distorted audio is a common annoyance. We find
distorted peaks in dialog and sometimes distortion throughout a take.
There are a million reasons why this can occur but it eventually falls
under the mixer's responsibilities. A good mixer/boom crew is used
to dealing with dynamic dialog levels and limiting or riding input
levels to minimize distortion. Especially when they have the luxury
of more than one take! The less experienced your audio crew is, the
more patience and time it will take to let them do their best. Sometimes
that is all it takes to make a big difference.
Professional mixers are not so expensive that they should not be considered
when you budget your production. A good mixer will enhance the 'experience'
of the movie. If you are going to spend tens of thousand of dollars
on talent, crew, location and gear what good is it if you rend result
suffers from poorly recorded audio?
About the author
This month's article written by Phil Crescenzo of Cinema Libre Studio.
Cinema Libre Studio is an entertainment production and distribution
group dedicated to independent filmmaking and offers one-stop production,
distribution, and marketing with headquarters in Canoga Park, CA.
They can be reached at (818) 349-8822 and at www.cinemalibrestudio.com.
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