Location audio

Your one-person location-sound department

By DTL
Posted April 1, 2018

(This is a pastiche of emails I often send to Directors and Producers who are interested in having me be their location Sound Recordist. I think it helps manage expectations on both sides. If a script has any special needs for audio, I also bring them up. Clear communication ensures the whole team knows what we’re doing!)

Dear Director and Producer —

To be clear and specific about what I offer in terms of recording audio for your movie:

I am your one-person-band Sound Recordist. My goal on set is to record the dialogue as cleanly as possible. For your project, I will supply and operate one boom mic, audio recorder, and accessories necessary to record dialogue. I find that this set-up allows me to be quick and flexible in repositioning myself for new shots or movements.

I also offer up to four wireless lavalier microphones (or more, at additional cost). Given the script I’ve read, I think we’ll be safe with only the boom mic. That will give you all the audio you need, and you won’t be spending money unnecessarily. On the other hand, it’s not a bad idea to record redundant tracks. On the third hand, more tracks means more time spent in setting up and editing. It’s your call!

Whether using wireless lavs or not, I like to boom every shot. Wired always beats wireless, boom always beats lav (except when they don’t). The lav will have a different accoustic feel, being smaller and omnidirectional; you might like that. You can mix them together for both presence and fullness.

I also suggest rolling sound even on non-dialogue takes. You can capture the timing of diegetic audio, even if you wind up replacing it in post-production.

I recommend taking the time after each scene to record wild lines: get the actors to run through the whole scene once or twice. The actors are still in the moment, so the emotions and even the lip-synch usually match, and of course the acoustic environment is the same. If there are any audio problems, this can save you an ADR session. It’s also worth taking the time to record any sound effects in the environment: footsteps, doors opening and closing, etc. These things take time, and you can’t also be packing up gear or whatever because everyone has to be quiet, so your AD will have to build time into the schedule.

Consider audio when planning your shots! If you want to see both the floor and the ceiling, it won’t be possible to get a boom-mic close (rule of thumb is that if the actor can’t reach out and touch the mic, it’s too far away). If you’re in a room with hard surfaces (eg. bathroom or kitchen), or a really large room (eg. ballroom or auditorium), you need to get the mic in close to avoid echoes. The “remove echo” filter is called “shoot it again”.

It is advisable to include your Sound Recordist in decisions about locations and costuming. Consider the incidental sounds of locations you visit and outfits you like. HVAC systems can be a problem, as you don’t always have control of them. Likewise with costumes: leather creaks (sometimes rubbing neatsfoot oil on it can help), silk rasps, synthetic fabrics and blends are loud as they rub over things like lav-mic cables. The best material is cotton; if the costume itself isn’t cotton, try to have the actor wear a cotton undershirt or camisole.

I will maintain a backup of the audio files for 30 days or until you tell me to delete them, whichever comes first. If your hard drive gets struck by lightning, at least you won’t lose the audio.

I want my billing to be “Sound Recordist” or “Location Sound Recordist”, styled as per the other credits, to appear in any list or block where the Cinematographer is credited, and no less prominently; the medium of cinema is made of image and sound. I’m willing to share credit with other Sound Recordists (eg. ADR re-recordists) if they’re also willing. I don’t care about display billing.

I work a 12-hour day, and get a minimum of 10 hours off between working days (I need my beauty sleep!). My usual policy for compensation is that if there’s any money going, I want some of it. My corporation will send you an invoice at my usual rate of $650 per day, plus GST.

Upon payment of the invoice, I automatically transfer ownership of the IP in recordings I make to you or to the entity you specify. I consent to you using my work, voice, and image in supporting or promotional material for this project (eg. if you shoot BTS stuff, or interview me for “About the movie” stuff, or anything like that). I do not consent to the use of my voice and image to promote your production company generally.

Having a good post-production sound person is essential! You want someone who can sweeten the dialogue, lay in the sound effects and music, and mix it all together. Alas, that is not something that I do. But it’s well worth your time and money to find such a person.

Is there anything else? Have you any questions or comments? Please let me know. Thanks!

Ciao for now . . .

 — DTL