#422 - For the love of Minkler

One of the things I try to do when I'm interviewing someone - other than watching their work and reading interviews with them as background research - is to find something light and interesting as a point of connection at the start of the call.

When I interviewed Terilyn A Shropshire, ACE for Twisters, I had an easy-in through an ad-libbed line in the movie that name-checks my exact neighbourhood in London.

We laughed; it was fun, and we were off to a good start.

For my interview with three-time Oscar-winning Re-Recording Mixer, Michael Minkler, and multi-award-winning Supervising Sound Editor Jack Whittaker, I happened to stumble on this post on Reddit, which features the immortal line:

6. Please for the love of Minkler make sure everything is in sync.
   Not just with the guide track but with the actual picture.

This time, I feel I may have blindsided Michael by bringing this up as my opening gambit. I'm not sure he knew what to make of it - but at least he chuckled!

I think we all had a good time in the end. I certainly did.

Thanks again, gentlemen.

Michael Minkler & Jack Whittaker In Conversation

In this issue of Cut/daily, settle down for a half-hour cup of cocoa and conversation with the Emmy-award-winning sound design team for Masters of The Air.

The successor to Band of Brothers and The Pacific, MOTA focuses on the experiences of the 100th Bomb Group, piloting 'flying fortresses' (B17s) behind enemy lines during World War II.

It is epic, impressive, and compelling in equal measure.

The series also had an epic post-production schedule that stretched over nearly 18 months with every episode of the 9-part series kept open to changes until the very last minute.

Sound editing is the intention and sound mixing is the truth. It's a great reality check to have a mixer listen through stuff.
– Jack Whittaker, Supervising Sound Editor

Here are some of my key takeaways from my chat with Michael and Jack.

Some of these are obvious, but it was good to be reminded that:

• Sound design is a lot of hard work but delivers leveraged returns.
  • Polished sound design makes everything look better.
• Sound is often world-building from a (relatively) blank slate.
  • Genuine B-17 recordings can't be replicated by AI.
• Understanding the stages sound goes through helps everyone deliver better.
  • Knowledge of the pipeline helps collaboration and communication
• Sound editors can learn a lot from watching sound mixers shape their work.
  • How much more could picture editors?
• Sound design is about focus, dynamics and contrast.
  • Build these into your scene.
• New sounds keep us interested.
  • How does your evolving design echo the underlying emotion?
• Great sound design is an editor's best friend.
  • It establishes geography, enhances authenticity, fixes plot holes

Why this matters

What struck me most about preparing my for my interview with Michael and Jack was how much work sound must do to even have a starting point to build up from.

They have to re-create the entire world of the scene.

Picture (mostly) comes for free - unless you're working in VFX or Animation - what you see is what you get. With sound, there's the very real possibility of having a mute visual as your starting point and having to add everything back in.

This presents the opportunity to direct the audience's focus with the sounds that are included, so map that progression carefully through a scene.

Also, as an editor, the more communicative I can be about the kinds of sounds I've tried to focus on in my temp mix and, most importantly, why I've made those decisions, the more my sound ideas will hopefully make it through to the final mix.

Secondly, it pays to think in sound.

Maybe you've hit a problematic story beat. You don't have the shot you need to make an important point. Maybe some clever sound design, some off-camera ADR plus listening shots can save the day?

If you only had sound to solve the problem, how would you do it?

I know I don't pay enough attention to sound, to the detriment of my edit!

So remember, it's a collaborative effort and cut daily.

Take This Further

• #046 - Lessons from an Oscar-Winning Sound Mix
• We laughed; it was fun, and we were off to a good start.#093 - Better Editing Through Sound Mixing
• #118 - Two Ways to Improve Every Audio Mix
• #137 - Every DaVinci Resolve Fairlight Audio Effect Explored
• #151 - Sound Editing vs Sound Mixing
• #163 - How to Work More Efficiently with Audio in Avid
• #193 - Free Audio Clean-Up Presets for Avid and Premiere
• #208 - An Incredibly Detailed Sound Design Breakdown
• #342 - Upgrade Your Sound Design Skills in Under an Hour
• #336 - The Future of the Frankenbite
• #339 - Sound Advice I've Never Heard Before
• #349 - The Power of the Radio Edit
• #381 - Sound Design from Scratch
• #386 - The Secret to Killer Sound Design

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