A COLLABORATIVE POST
WRITTEN BY BOOM BOX POST
We are honored to have been nominated for three Children’s and Family Emmy Awards for 2023!
Sound Mixing and Sound Editing For An Animated Program
Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie
Supervising Sound Editor: Jeff Shiffman, MPSE, CAS
Re-recording Mixers: Jeff Shiffman, MPSE, CAS & Jacob Cook
Sound Editors: Jessey Drake, MPSE & Brad Meyer, MPSE
Foley Editor: Carol Ma, MPSE
Dialogue Editor: Xinyue Yu
Assistant Sound Editor: Tim VindigniSound Mixing and Sound Editing For A Live Action Program
Waffles + Mochi’s Restaurant
Supervisor: Tess Fournier, MPSE
Re-Recording Mixers: Jacob Cook, Kate Finan, CAS MPSE
Sound Editor: Jessey Drake, Tim Vindigni
Dialogue Editor: Logan Romjue, MPSESound Mixing and Sound Editing For A Preschool Animated Program
Santiago of the Seas
Supervising Sound Editor: Brad Meyer, MPSE
Re-recording Mixer: Jacob Cook
Sound Effects Editor: Vivian Williams, Jayson Niner
Foley Editor: Carol Ma, MPSE
Dialogue Editors: Logan Romjue, MPSE
Such challenging projects always have a fun backstory. We thought this would be a great opportunity to share a look “inside the sound” of these three fantastic projects via interviews with the supervising sound editors and re-recording mixers.
Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie
A conversation with Supervising Sound Editor & re-recording Mixer Jeff Shiffman
Coming off a long run on the “Rise” TV series, how did things differ with this movie?
The series was a beast and really ramped things up as it progressed. That being said, the team behind “Rise” found a way to level up with the movie. The opening scene alone is a post-apocalyptic battle with beasts, robots and armies, serving as a backdrop for a time-travel setup. It drops you into the film and basically says “hold on, it’s going to be a wild ride!” We take a breath for a bit as we get some plot exposition but things quickly ramp up to about 45 minutes of non-stop action. I made sure we had a ton of time on the design and editorial side to really do it justice.
What was the most challenging sound design aspect in this film?
All of the turtles have their mystic powers, which have long been established. Beyond that however, most of the film is brand new design. Bringing in an alien race along with all their technology (mech suits, spaceships, etc) was a huge challenge. There’s also a strong military presence to some of the battle scenes, giving us opportunities to design new weapons and battle vehicles.
How did you approach the foley work on the film?
The movie takes a decent-sized cast and really expands it out to a sprawling epic. With so many characters, many of whom wear gear or armor of some kind, we approached the foley digitally, first recording our own sounds and then sequencing/editing them in the box. This allowed us to get really creative with multi-layered, textural sound choices, in perfect sync, while still being able to split out each element for the mix. It’s a nuanced foley editorial technique where in the end something like splatty tentacle footsteps or mech suits really sell.
What does being nominated for a show like this mean to you?
This nomination means the world to me. I know how hard the team worked; a real labor of love. The movie was already once in a lifetime and a true career high. To be recognized by our peers in the Academy is the icing on the cake.
Waffles + Mochi’s Restaurant
A conversation with Supervising Sound Editor, Tess Fournier and Re-recording Mixer, Kate Finan
What do you feel is the heart of the show?
I believe the heart of this series to be the kid-friendly way each episode approaches a lesson. It's an educational program that is incredibly endearing and fun, and we strove to consider that in each step of the sound process.
What was the most challenging design in this episode?
I would have to say the out-of-control bread starter. Waffles and Mochi overfeed a starter and it grows out of control. Our FX editor expertly combined goop, stomach gurgle, monster, and of course fart effects to support the idea that the starter is alive, growing, and becoming larger than life!
What was challenging about mixing something that is a combination of animation and Live action?
Mixing Waffles + Mochi was very challenging from a technical perspective because unlike our usual animated content, there was a lot of cleanup that needed to be done on the production dialogue. There were a number of odd dialogue cuts that were made for story reasons that we had to make work from a technical standpoint, which also never happens in animation because all of the records are very tidy and usually adhere closely to the script.
An example of a major hiccup that we ran into, that we would not have had in an animated work, occurred in a scene where Big Freedia was showing Waffles and Mochi how to make beignets. When they’re finished with the beignets, she taught them a dance to a song “Release Your Wiggles.” They played the song very loudly during the production shoot for them to ad lib their dance moves over. But, they also ad libbed dialogue while dancing with the song playing. Then, when the editor cut the scene together, they obviously cut down the material. So, when we placed the song over the top in post, it was not possible to match what was heard in the production audio, but we could not remove the production audio because it was needed for their dialogue. ADR wasn’t a possibility for them, so I really had to finagle the music edits to make it work, and also to find a volume that was loud enough in the domestic version (when combined with the music heard in the production track) but also would not be too quiet in the foreign versions (when the production dialogue was removed and replaced with foreign language ADR). It was quite a challenge!
What does being nominated for a show like this mean to you?
Our team worked very hard on this series and I'm extremely proud of the work we put forward. As sound professionals who usually work on animated projects, it was a unique and fun challenge to stretch our expertise into the world of Live Action. This nomination is a rewarding confirmation that we can excel in any type of project on which we're lucky enough to work.
Santiago of the Seas
A conversation with Supervising Sound Editor, Brad Meyer and Re-recording Mixer, Jacob Cook
What do you feel is the heart of the show?
Every episode of Santiago Of The Seas has a strong through-line about the power of teamwork and friendship. Santiago, Tomas, and Lorelei can do anything if they rely on one another and work together. From taking down bad guys, to finding hidden treasure and helping the community they live in, they prove time and time again that teamwork is key. This show also lets the audience know that sometimes the best thing you can do is be brave, and everything will usually work out.
What was the most challenging design in this episode?
This episode is heavily inspired by Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. There are tons of ancient booby traps and mechanisms that were a lot of fun to design. Of course we want to make these sounds feel like the original, but it's always a challenge to make them new and exciting. For this episode, we took a very steampunk approach. Everything is powered by gears, levers, pulley, etc. It helped to give a fun sense whimsy and tangibility to the episode.
What was most challenging about mixing this project?
No matter the target audience for a project, the mixing objective remains the same: guide the viewer's attention through the scene and use sound to ensure they have a clear picture of the story. For preschool-aged shows, I tend to pursue this objective more fervently and try to reduce sonic complexity where possible. This helps make the mix easier to digest for younger viewers who might be easily distracted by extraneous sonic stimuli. When it comes to action I try to make sure each beat of the scene is crystal clear. When needed I will duck music, cut steadies and mute unneeded material in order to ensure that each dialogue line, rock crack or hidden lever clunk is present and clear for the viewer to digest and understand.
What does being nominated for a show like this mean to you?
This nomination is a special one. We were lucky enough to work with some incredible people at Nickelodeon on this show. They really trusted us to do our thing, and creative freedom like that is such a treat. To know that we did right by our clients, helped to sell the heart and soul of the show with our sound design, and have the Academy recognize that is an incredibly rewarding feeling.
Congratulations to everyone who was nominated and we are excited for this awards season journey!
DID YOU get nominated for an emmy THIS YEAR? Share your good news in the comments!
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