In Hollywood, we have a saying, "You live or die in the dailies!" Because that is when the producer evaluates the performance of the entire crew. In the real world, where time is money, no one is going to wait until the first cut (six weeks after the end of production) to make a decision. Technicians and even Directors will be gone before their next pay check if their work doesn't shine in that screening room or on that video playback monitor! A Sound Mixer whose tracks are consistently unusable, whose material always sounds like it will need a lot of sweetening or fixing up later--is not going to be kept around!
Before we get started...
This text is about the craft of Production Sound recording for motion pictures and videotape. Production Sound Mixing is the craft of recording dialogue and sound effects on the set during principal production. Whether you aspire to specialize in sound mixing; or just seek to enhance your skills in order to occasionally fill in as "soundperson" on a small shoot--the material in this series of articles will prove invaluable.
There are, no doubt, a number of readers who have absolutely no interest in the world at all about doing sound. You may have aspirations to Direct, Produce, D.P. (director of photography), Edit, or Whatever. For those of you, I suggest that you need the information contained within these pages even more than the future sound mixers--for they, at least, will eventually learn through trial & error, if nothing else. You, on the other hand, may never have to personally record sound, but much of what you do in your specialty will hinge directly upon the success or failure of the sound crew. Learn as much as you can about each other's crafts, because a little understanding and compromise may make a major difference in the final product.
On the same token, prospective sound mixers should also endeavor to learn as much about all aspects of filmmaking as possible, for the same reasons. Much of what you do affects the rest of the production, in terms of time, budget, and quality. Learn Editing and Lighting, especially!
You live or die in the dailies
Just as the fate of the Sound Mixer hinges on the client's first impressions, so does the rest of the crew. The Director--especially a young, new Director--will be replaced early on if it appears that he or she always seems to need additional, costly takes because they can't relate to their crews!
But the Director who only shoots one or two takes, and consistently delivers good footage from his actors and technical people is definitely going to be favored by the producers.
There are no apologies, no excuses. What gets projected up on that screen, and heard through those speakers, had better be top notch.
An anecdote
One side note, if I may. After I left college, I envisioned myself as a cameraman. I had the necessary skills, including professional still photographic as well as cinematographic experience. Actually, I figured that no one would hire me outright as a Director of Photography, so I planned on starting as an Assistant Cameraman (focus puller). After coming out to Hollywood, I took immediate employment at a motion picture equipment Sales/Rental house, and also began freelancing on the side.
On one particular shoot, the Producer was desperate for a soundman, so I "switched hats" and took over the Nagra. That same producer hired me again several times--as his Sound Mixer!
Soon, I found that I could work a lot steadier and advance quicker mixing sound than by loading magazines & checking focus. Photography became a hobby again, and I became a full fledged Sound Mixer. The moral is, life may surprise you. Learn it all, for everything you learn about filmmaking will come in handy one day or another.
Why do you think they're called "Talking Pictures?"
If audiences didn't care about dialogue, but only were interested in the visuals--Hollywood never would have bothered to invent sound motion pictures. But early movie goers did care, and thus the soundtrack was born.
How did Hollywood refer to this new marvel of modern technology? They didn't hype the sound effects. Audiences already heard "live" sound effects, courtesy of men performing theatrics in the orchestra pit. The studios didn't hype the music, films already were projected with orchestral accompaniment. The big attraction was dialogue! For the first time, audiences could hear the movie stars speak!
Hence, when ‘silent' motion pictures were supplied with the first sync soundtracks--everyone named them the "talkies". Production Dialogue had come to movie making!
From those early days of sound onward, filmmakers have relied heavily on the presence of sound to help tell their stories or convey their messages. They discovered that picture and sound were two sides of the same coin.
Picture and sound could reinforce each other--that is, cover the same material, or contribute to the same perceived message. We see an airplane; we hear the airplane. We see an actor shout; we hear the shout.
On the other hand, picture and sound could counterpoint each other. This refers to the soundtrack conveying new or different information and meaning than a viewer could perceive by only seeing the visual. We see the airplane; but we hear a hijacker's threat to the pilot. We see an actor shout; but the music tells us that he is joyful, not angry.
In any case, sound has unquestionably become an indispensable aspect of modern filmmaking (and television).
If you doubt this for even a moment, try this simple exercise. Turn on the television to any show. Watch for a few moments, and then turn your back to the screen. The soundtrack alone will supply you with enough details to keep track of the story. Now, try the same thing with the picture--that is, watch the screen but turn off the sound. The storyline becomes much more difficult to follow.
The point is--even though all of the glory in filmmaking is associated with camera work--without the sound, those pretty pictures lose a lot!
It is sort of ironic, but that conclusion is often a whole lot more apparent to audiences than to filmmakers on the set. Everyone is willing to sacrifice all on behalf of getting a good shot, but rarely do amateur and low budget filmmakers concern themselves seriously with sound. Directors often take audio for granted, until they get back to the editing room. There, they regretfully discover how much better and easier it would have been had they spent the effort to record good sound on the set while they had the chance.