Tips for Students

As discussed here, it is crucial that you consider sound as early as the writing process. In terms of crewing, be sure to bring on a production sound mixer and sound designer early. The sound designer should be treated as a production head as they can help provide a cohesive sonic vision throughout the production. It is also important to include both the production sound mixer and the sound designer on site surveys of locations so they can anticipate problems for production and decide on recording techniques.

“We’ll fix it in post!” 

No, you won’t… Hearing that phrase on set is every editor’s and sound designer’s worst nightmare. While it may be common practice in the professional world to re-record most dialogue and add in nearly every sound effect in post-production, that simply is not a luxury that comes with film school deadlines. Every effort should be made on set to record sound as cleanly as possible. Make efforts to mitigate sound issues by taking measures such as turning off air conditioners, removing jewelry, and recording tracking shots barefoot. Just don’t forget to plug the refrigerator back in when you’re done for the day!

Sit silently in the room you are in. Listen closely and notice what you are hearing. Air conditioners. Refrigerators. Crickets outside. All of these sounds are picked up by the boom microphone and will be heard in the final sound mix. In post-production, sound effects and dialogue often need to be replaced. However when the production sound is deleted, so is the sound of the room. To make sure that sound edits are fluid, a bed of the room sound is needed. This is what is known as room tone (or presence). Room tone should be recorded in every location with all equipment running for about one minute. Without it, the “digital silence” in the audio edit will be jarring to the audience and sound like a mistake.

Deadlines for projects approach quickly. On most student projects, there is only one sound designer to handle all jobs such as dialogue editing, sound effects editing, ADR, and mixing. If ADR is needed, it can take weeks to properly identify spots, schedule recording sessions, and edit the dialogue. Time also needs to be provided for mixing and rounds of feedback. Every project has unique demands so be sure to work with your sound designer early in the scheduling process to ensure they are provided the time they need.

Having a composer to write original music for your film is a special privilege that should not be taken for granted. That being said, just because you have a composer does not mean you need constant music throughout your project. Music is a powerful tool and using music throughout a film without intention diminishes its impactfulness. Work closely with your composer to identify key narrative moments and be specific about where and how you want music to be used. Click here for discussion on how to effectively use music in your films.

It would be unreasonable to expect every student project or film to have an original score. As an alternative, students frequently turn to production music libraries. These libraries are great resources with music to fit nearly any genre. However, students frequently do not use production music to its full potential. Not only do students not realize the narrative power of production music, but they often run into technical issues such as a piece being too short or long for their needs. Poor music editing rarely causes egregious or noticeable issues, but good music editing can significantly elevate a project in the absence of a composer. 

It is best to approach music editing by trying to make the production music sound as if it had been an original composition for the film. This begins with selecting music that has moments that can be used to emphasize the narrative shifts you are looking to highlight. From there, it is helpful to have musical knowledge to cleanly edit music without obvious cuts. If you, the editor, or the sound designer are not musically inclined, it is helpful to find someone who is to assist in music editing. See here for an example of effective music editing (link to Il Cuore Effimero creative example).