Customer Reviews

Dialogue Editing for Motion Pictures: A Guide to the Invisible Art

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Clearly phrased, easy to read, concise and extremely useful, this book is a step by step guide to every pop, crackle and roll of the core part of sound editing - making the dialogue heard. It also has a great overview of the context - how to transfer production sound from the picture editing room, what you'll need from production as well, favoured/time saving procedures and the required contacts in other departments of production (a crucial though rarely covered issue).
The basic feel is somewhere between a 'how to' guide and a master-class. The book covers a lot more than which plug-in gives you what or how to use your mouse. Anyone with a few basic concepts in editing would probably be able to give it a go him/herself, or at least have a very good clue on what should be done in order to get the job done, and done well.
It's also packed with illustrative materials of most dialog boxes and written materials you should run into while working.
I'd recommend it to editors (both picture and sound) and post production facilities (in case a producer might wander in and wonder what's the big deal with dialogue).

This is the best book I have ever read on dialogue editing! It explains everything from budgeting time for a project all the way up to the final mix. John Purcell clearly loves his job and his enthusiasm comes through in his writing. I highly recommend this book to all filmmakers as a way to learn exactly what goes into the dialogue editing process and I consider it a must read for all sound editors.

John uses pictures and examples to demonstrate what he is talking about. He shows how to organize EDLs and how to use them to find alternate takes and locate wild sound for a particular scene. Though every film has its own quirks, John also demonstrates how to handle common problems with matching rooms tones from different angles in scenes. Those two aspects alone make the book worth getting, but there is a wealth of information in this book that makes it an excellent purchase.

Dialogue Editing for Motion Pictures, by John Purcell is an opportunity to learn a HUGE amount about dialog editing and audio post production in general. This is the type of information that can only be acquired through years of professional experience in the motion picture industry. From practical techniques of file management and workflow to the creative aesthetics of the art of sound design, Purcell delivers an incredibly dense book that will be helpful to both students and seasoned pro's.

I am not aware of any other book on the market that presents this advanced level of information on dialog editing and sound for picture. I am looking forward to using the book as a required text for my upcoming college classes, because I believe these skills are essential for success in today's digital audio job market.

Two Thumbs Way Up!

In my opinion, Purcell has written the definitive book on post-production sound editing for feature film. This is the best yet. Though this book focuses primarily on dialogue editing (a largely misunderstood and under-appreciated craft), there is a wealth of information that would benefit anyone who works in post-production from the picture cutting room to the final mix dubbing stage.

While so many books on this subject are written from the point-of-view of the technician, the academic, or the bedroom studio warrior insulated in his own "home-brewed" workflow, it's clear from the first few pages that Purcell has spent many years working in the professional film industry. Many times I feel like I've been on some of the same crews that he describes.

Overall, this book is not only informative but very funny and cleverly written. As someone who works in the industry myself, I got a lot out of this book and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in this field or who wants to broaden their understanding of how the "Invisible Art" really works.

I recommend this book. It uses ProTools to illustrate the various aspects of dialogue editing and succeeds in getting the info across in a clear manner. I would have given it 5 stars if the book had been accompanied by a CD containing examples / exercize files.

Hey there,

I read the amazing book of John Purcell all night and I couldnt stop.
This book contains everything that sound editor & sound desginer need for Dialogue editing.

The book doesnt patronizing or try to goes a round by his language. Its talking straight to you as an editor. step by step building you as Dialogue editor and construct John famous and modest System.

I was student of John Purcell, and I am using his methods from college time, because of his system I get compliment & awards.

Director that I used to work with John system got compliments for the Sound Editing & Design on her movie from Mike Leigh - The famous Director. that close the case. The book is must in every sound desginer or Dialogue editor who take himself seriously...

Yours With truthful respect
Yaniv

This is by far the best book on the subject I have ever come across. It is not only beautifully written, and with great graphics, but it is also thorough. It has everything from rudimentary editing techniques, to how to improve an actor's acting with proper editing. I teach television production at the college level; I only wish I were teaching a course on sound - this would definitely be my textbook of choice. Well worth the purchase even if you are not a teacher!

Very readable and yet very comprehensive, this book covers just about everything a budding dialogue editor needs to know. After that, it's just about logging hours doing it. Most books on sound for video and film just touch upon simplistic aspects such as cross fading room tone across cuts or normalizing clips. If you want to really get into the fine art (and science) of dialogue editing, there is no other book at this time like this one.

My only gripe with the author and Amazon is that since I already own the hard copy version, they should give me a deep discount on the Kindle version so I can add it to my growing portable library of books on my iPad.