2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Laudatory review from the Hollywood Editors Guild Newsletter, June 15, 1997
By A Customer
This review is from: Sounds of Movies: Interviews with the Creators of Feature Sound Tracks (Paperback)
From May/June, 1997 issue of the Editors Guild (IATSE Local 776) Newsletter, Hollywood, California
BOOK REVIEW:
"SOUNDS OF MOVIES - Interviews with the Creators of Feature Sound
Tracks" by Nicholas Pasquariello
240 pages, softcover - Port Bridge Books
Reviewed by Dave Whittaker
Nicholas Pasquariello has been writing about the technical side of filmmaking for a variety of periodicals for about twenty years, and he
now has published a valuable book that collects together interviews with thirteen individuals who are all prominent in the world of film sound.
The interviews span the last thirteen years, published originally in Mix magazine and others, and the interviews included here seem to have been
chosen for their timelessness, a wise choice. While this book seems aimed largely at the academic film community, there's sufficient depth
in the contents so as to be of value to "working professionals" in the film industry.
The book is divided into two main sections about production and post-production. The production interviews are with prominent production mixers; the section on post is with re-recording mixers,
sound editors, and "sound designers" who wear both hats. The balance is devoted to absorbing interviews on director/composer collaboration, the
archival restorations of 'Othello' and 'Lawrence of Arabia', and the perils of translating and dubbing foreign-language versions abroad.
In the production section the interviews are with Chris Newman on 'A Chorus Line' and 'Mosquito Coast', Drew Kunin on the rigors of getting
usable sound on racing yachts for Carrol Ballard's 'Wind', Ivan Sharrock on 'The Last Emperor', Simon Kaye on 'Platoon', Tod Maitland on 'The Doors', and Nelson Stoll on the marriage of documentary and feature techniques and the politics of the job.
It's an interesting and highly varied group of films, with an equally interesting and varied group of mixers talking. If you've never worked
in production, or if you've ever complained about the production mixing on a show you're working on, these interviews can be most enlightening.
You'll gain some appreciation for the difficult position these folks are in. Trying to reconcile the goal of good sound quality with the conflicting demands of preoccupied directors, camera and lighting needs, difficult locations, and budget realities, all the while "looking good
in dailies", is clearly revealed to be a most elusive objective.
In the post-production section are interviews with Mark Berger on re-recording 'Amadeus' and 'Mosquito Coast', Richard Beggs on sound
design for 'Cotton Club' and 'Tucker', Leslie Shatz on sound design for 'Mishima', Mark Mangini on sound effects for 'Star Trek IV', and Mike
Minkler on re-recording 'Explorers'. Like the production mixing section, the group of films here is quite varied and the personalities of the interviewees are often quite engaging.
The post section devotes most of its length to the interviews with Bay Area professionals. As a Hollywood sound editor, I was taken aback by
this at first, but then realized that this proves to be a bit of a virtue, because the multiple-hat wearing of Richard Beggs and Leslie Shatz allows the interviews to roam over the entire sound-post process, presenting a cohesive picture of what really goes on beyond the picture editing room. Perhaps this Bay Area weighting is a reflection of the tendency for many filmmakers who appreciate the value of collaboration to be attracted to the less-compartmentalized working methods there.
It proves useful to read about the difficult location sound recording on 'Mosquito Coast', and then read later about the ramifications of those
early decisions when Alan Splet and Mark Berger were trying to edit and mix the tracks. Where this book could be improved would be if there
more of these linkages of interviews. Also, when techniques with a long history are discussed in the interviews (such as dance foley for 'Chorus
Line') an internal author's reference about that history would be enlightening (as in: "Fred Astaire and others were doing this in
1934"). But these are minor quibbles, somewhat made up for by the presence of fascinating 'bonus' interviews with Vittorio Storaro and Dean Tavoularis on the cinematography and production design for 'Tucker'.
There's precious little published material on the working and creative processes of film sound, and this book helps to fill the void. Check it
out.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
recommended by Dolby Laboratories senior vice president, May 12, 1997
By A Customer
This review is from: Sounds of Movies: Interviews with the Creators of Feature Sound Tracks (Paperback)
"I recommend this book to film students and anyone else who is interested in the art of mixing film sound; it contains absorbing insights into the creative process from some of the best sound designers in the industry. By engaging film sound artists in a series of revealing dialogs, Pasquariello highlights some of the practical
problems and ingenious solutions to making films sound good."
Ioen Allen
Senior Vice President
Dolby Laboratories
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Dolby vice president's praise of Sounds of Movies, June 15, 1997
By A Customer
This review is from: Sounds of Movies: Interviews with the Creators of Feature Sound Tracks (Paperback)
"I recommend this book to film students and anyone else who is interested in the art of mixing film sound; it contains absorbing insights into the creative process from some of the best sound
designers in the industry. By engaging film sound artists in a series of revealing dialogs, Pasquariello highlights some of the practical
problems and ingenious solutions to making films sound good."
Ioan Allen, senior vice president, Dolby Laboratories
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