Case Study of 2009 Sound Design/Mix Reel
This reel highlights 3 selected television promos I did in 2009. My role was the sound FX designer and mixing engineer. The titles included in the reel are USA – Monk, Syfy Insider – Saw VI, and Cisco Technologies – Dialog Cafe.
Generally, the sound design process begins when a client brings in a reference video with a session file containing on-screen dialog, music, and occasional temp voice over track – all prebuilt by the producer and video editor.
Since sound design and mixing is usually the last step for a television commercial or promo, all of the sounds contained within the session file have been placed in sync with the video in what is referred to as “picture locked”. This means the video cut has been approved and the rest of the creative process is up to me to choose sounds and musical elements that will augment the audience’s experience.
Sound designing for horror films is particularly enjoyable, as was the case in the Syfy Insider – Saw VI, because the overall design included layers of effects. For this spot I mixed in a lot of metal scraping and screaming sounds, chosen from a sound effects library and digitally processed with echo and equalization so that they combined in harmony.
Time is usually a determining factor in how deep I get to go into the sound design. In the case of the Monk promo for USA Network, I had an entire day to work with the sound effects because I had recorded the voice over a few days earlier, while the producer and video editor were cutting picture. Because I had time to specifically tailor the sound to the promo, the producer and I were able to “Foley” many of Monk’s intricate cleaning noises. “Foley” is an element of sound FX design, where a “Foley artist” watches the video and records him or herself playing various “non-conventional” instruments simultaneously. The section where Monk is trying to clean bubble wrap with Windex is a good example of “Foley”. We used different plastic wraps and FedEx packs to create the crisp, immaculate squeaking of fresh bubble wrap.
Lastly, sound design is not always about being in the audience’s face. In the case of the Cisco Technologies – Dialog Cafe most of my creative energy was directed towards swelling the music tracks and creating momentum behind the dialog. Subtlety and feeling is at the heart of these types of commercials, and careful attention to the narrative (however short it may be) is the most important aspect of the job.