Nov 10, 2009 12:21 PM

The goal for the SoundWorks Collection is simple: We are dedicated to profiling the greatest and upcoming sound minds from around the world and highlight their contributions. The SoundWorks Collection was created by director Michael Coleman in November of 2009 in a partnership with Mix magazine, several audio-focused college schools and programs, and the support of the online sound community worldwide.

The SoundWorks Collection takes you behind the scenes and straight to the dub stage for a look into audio post-production for feature films, videogame sound design and original soundtrack composition. This exclusive and intimate video series focuses on individuals and teams behind-the-scenes bringing to life some of the world's most exciting projects.

'The Avengers' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of The Avengers from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

The SoundWorks Collection talks with Supervising Sound Editor, Sound Designer, and Re-Recording Mixer Christopher Boyes about his work on The Avengers.

Marvel Studios delivers the ultimate comic-book film, which ties together such characters as Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) for a big-screen franchise team-up like no other. Taking center stage this time is Nick Fury (played once again by the note-perfect Samuel L. Jackson), leader of the peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Fury, along with former Russian spy Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), recruits a super team to combat Thor’s ever-deceptive brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) after he brainwashes ace archer Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) while stealing a cosmic cube from an underground base. Thus the heroes must learn to work together alongside outlaw scientist Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), who can track down the artifact’s gamma signals when he’s not hulking out into a giant green monster. Show runner Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly) adapted and helmed the script by Zak Penn.

SoundWorks Collection: Fantasy Studios (Berkeley, Calif.) Studio Profile

SoundWorks Collection: Fantasy Studios - Berkeley, CA from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

The SoundWorks Collection is pleased to present a studio profile on Fantasy Studios, a world-renowned recording facility located in the San Francisco Bay Area. As an integral part of the Zaentz Media Center, Fantasy provides exceptional services for the music, film, video, and game communities. In September 2000, Fantasy was voted the Number One Recording Studio by Billboard magazine and continues to be one of the most requested recording studios on the West Coast with an extensive selection of microphones, outboard gear, instruments, and natural echo chambers. The facility is comprised of three legendary recording and mixing rooms, acoustically tuned for quality sound. All three are fully-equipped with Pro Tools|HD3 systems and two have concert-quality Yamaha Grand Pianos.

Video produced by Corduroy Media.

SoundWorks Collection: The Making of Dolby Atmos

On Monday April 24 at CinemaCon 2012, Dolby Laboratories Inc. announced Dolby® Atmos, a new audio platform that will change the experience of sound in entertainment. Launching in the cinema, Dolby Atmos delivers a more natural and realistic sound-field, which transports people into the story with a lifelike, sensory experience.


For the first time, Dolby Atmos introduces a hybrid approach to mixing and directs sound as dynamic objects that envelop the listener, in combination with channels for playback. Dolby Atmos enables adaptive rendering to ensure that the playback experience is as close as possible to the creator's original vision in any given environment, irrespective of the specific speaker configuration in the playback environment.



Dolby Atmos is an end-to-end solution that takes into account the entire content pipeline and brings together mixers, studios, and distributors to create dramatic improvements in the audio experience. The Dolby Atmos platform provides content creators with a new creative freedom to tell their stories. It simplifies movie distribution with a single universal package to deliver to audiences the full impact of the artist's intent, regardless of theater configuration.  

'The Hunger Games' Sound for Film Profile

Author Suzanne Collins’ best-selling novel The Hunger Games, the first in a trilogy that has sold more than 16 million copies in print in the U.S. alone, has developed a massive global following. Movie Director Gary Ross and his sound team including Supervising Sound Editor Lon Bender, Re-recording Mixer Michael Keller, and Re-recording Mixer Mike Prestwood Smith discuss their approach to creating the lush soundscapes for this highly anticipated film adaptation.

'John Carter' Sound for Film Profile

From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton comes John Carter, a sweeping action-adventure set on the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars). John Carter is based on a classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, whose highly imaginative adventures served as inspiration for many filmmakers, both past and present. The film tells the story of war-weary, former military captain John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who is inexplicably transported to Mars where he becomes reluctantly embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions amongst the inhabitants of the planet, including Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and the captivating Princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). In a world on the brink of collapse, Carter rediscovers his humanity when he realizes that the survival of Barsoom and its people rests in his hands.

Supervising Sound Editor Jonathan Null and Composer Michael Giacchino share with the SoundWorks Collection their extensive work bringing to life the planet of Barsoom.

CAS Awards 2012: CAS Career Achievement Award - Scott Millan

CAS Awards 2012: CAS Career Achievement Award - Scott Millan from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Held in the Millennium Biltmore Hotel’s famed Crystal Ballroom, the 2012 CAS Awards program celebrated the professional contributions of Scott Millan, CAS, with the CAS Career Achievement Award. A four-time Academy Award winner, Millan has won three CAS Awards, and been nominated eight times. “This is a great honor, and I am very proud to be recognized in the company of so many distinguished and talented past recipients,” Millan says. On hand to present his award were previous CAS Career Achievement Award recipient (and two-time Academy Award winner) Walter Murch, CAS, and 10-time Academy Award nominated, Grammy and Emmy Award-winning composer Thomas Newman. Millan and Newman most recently collaborated on the 23rd James Bond feature Skyfall.

CAS Awards 2012: CAS Filmmaker Award—Rob Marshall

SoundWorks Collection: CAS Awards 2012: CAS Filmmaker Award—Rob Marshall from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

As part of the 2012 CAS Awards program, Academy Award nominated director Rob Marshall (Chicago) was presented with the CAS Filmmaker Award, the highest honor bestowed upon a non-CAS member. “I am thrilled and honored to be receiving the Filmmaker Award from the CAS,” Marshall said when he learned of the honor. “I have been incredibly lucky in my career to have worked with some of the finest artists in the field of sound. They have taught me so much about the creative process and the integral nature of collaboration, which I value so highly.” Some of Marshall’s most notable colleagues presented his award: Academy Award-winner Penelope Cruz; CAS Award and three-time Academy Award winner Michael Minkler, CAS; Academy Award winner Lee Orloff, CAS; and CAS Award and six-time Academy Award nominee Paul Massey, CAS.

CAS Awards 2012: 'Hugo' Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture

SoundWorks Collection: CAS Awards 2012: 'Hugo' Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

It was a fairytale evening for Hugo and the Sound Mixing team of Production Mixer John Midgley, Re-Recording Mixer Tom Fleischman, CAS and Scoring Mixer Simon Rhodes at the 48th Annual Cinema Audio Society Awards. The family adventure won Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture, the evening’s top honor. This is Midgley’s first CAS Award. He was previously nominated for Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace. It is the second CAS Award for Fleischman in this category having previously won for The Aviator. Earlier in the evening, he also won a second consecutive CAS Award for Boardwalk Empire. This is Rhodes' first CAS Award, as this is the first year Scoring Mixers have been included in the Awards.

'Hugo' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of Hugo from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Martin Scorsese’s adaptation of Brian Selznick’s award-winning novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret stars Asa Butterfield as an orphan boy who lives in a Parisian train station. Sent to live with his drunken uncle after his father’s death in a fire, Hugo learned how to wind the massive clocks that run throughout the station. When the uncle disappears one day, Hugo decides to maintain the clocks on his own, hoping nobody will catch on to him squatting in the station. In this exclusive SoundWorks Collection video profile, producer Michael Coleman sits down with Hugo's Oscar nominated sound team, including co-supervising sound editor Philip Stockton, co-supervising sound editor Eugene Gearty, and re-recording mixer Tom Fleischman.

'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound and Music of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a 2011 English-language drama/thriller film. It is the second film to be adapted from the Swedish novel of the same name by Stieg Larsson. The first was a 2009 Swedish-language/English-dubbed film. The 2011 film was written by Steven Zaillian and directed by David Fincher. Daniel Craig stars as Mikael Blomkvist, and Rooney Mara stars as Lisbeth Salander. In essence, the film follows a man’s mission to find out what has happened to a girl who has been missing for 36 years and may have been murdered. We talk with composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, sound re-recording mixer Michael Semanick and re-recording mixer/sound designer and supervising sound editor Ren Klyce.

'War Horse' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound and Music of War Horse from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

From director Steven Spielberg comes War Horse, an epic adventure for audiences of all ages. Set against a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War, War Horse begins with the remarkable friendship between a horse named Joey and a young man called Albert, who tames and trains him. When they are forcefully parted, the film follows the extraordinary journey of the horse as he moves through the war, changing and inspiring the lives of all those he meets—British cavalry, German soldiers and a French farmer and his granddaughter—before the story reaches its emotional climax in the heart of No Man’s Land.

In the exclusive SoundWorks Collection video, we talk with sound designer and re-recording mixer Gary Rydstrom and composer John Williams.

Read Mix's profile on War Horse

'Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol" Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound and Music of Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

In this exclusive SoundWorks Collection video, we talk with director Brad Bird, composer Michael Giacchino, supervising ADR editor Gwen Whittle Yates and supervising sound editor Richard Hymns.

'The Muppets' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of The Muppets from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

On vacation in Los Angeles, Walter, the world’s biggest Muppet fan, and his friends Gary (Jason Segel) and Mary (Amy Adams) from Smalltown, USA, discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to raze the Muppet Theater and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets’ former stomping grounds. To stage The Greatest Muppet Telethon Ever and raise the $10 million needed to save the theater, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways. In this SoundWorks Collection exclusive, we talk with director James Bobin, film editor James Thomas, supervising sound editors Kami Asgar and Sean McCormack, and sound re-recording mixer Kevin O’Connell.

Composer Brian Tyler Sound for Film Profile

Brian Tyler is a composer of more than 50 films and was recently nominated for Film Composer of the Year by the International Film Music Critics Association. He composed and conducted the scores for Eagle Eye for producer Steven Spielberg, the box office hit Fast and Furious, The Expendables, Rambo, Law Abiding Citizen, Constantine, Battle Los Angeles, Fast Five and many more.

'Pearl Jam Twenty' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Music of Pearl Jam 20 from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Pearl Jam Twenty chronicles the years leading up to the band’s formation, the chaos that ensued soon after their rise to megastardom, their step back from center stage and the creation of a trusted circle that would surround them—giving way to a work culture that would sustain the band. Told in big themes and bold colors with blistering sound, the film is carved from more than 1,200 hours of rarely seen and never-before-seen footage spanning the band’s career. Pearl Jam Twenty is the definitive portrait of Pearl Jam: part concert film, part intimate insider hang, part testimonial to the power of music and uncompromising artists.

In this SoundWorks Collection exclusive video, we talk with Eric Fischer of Autumn Audio, who had the task of handling 16 5.1 mixes and additional post-production work required to clean up and prepare various archived audio recordings.

Read more about mixing for the documentary

'DRIVE' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of "Drive" from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Supervising sound editor Lon Bender shares his thoughts on the creative process behind the acclaimed sound design for DRIVE. The project was also mixed at Sound One by re-recording mixers Roberto Fernandez and Dave Paterson.

'Real Steel' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection - The Sound of Real Steel from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Real Steel plays out this fantasy as robots have replaced humans in boxing in this Shawn Levy film. Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) loses a chance to become a boxing champion when robots take over, and he becomes a small-time promoter. When he has difficulty making a living, Kenton reluctantly teams up with his son, Max (Dakota Goyo), to build a robot that can contend for the championship. The stunning visual effects behind the robots can only be brought to live by believable sound. The team responsible for this difficult task include Craig Henighan (sound designer, sound re-recording mixer, supervising sound editor), Skip Longfellow (first assistant sound editor), Warren Hendriks (sound designer), Rob Nokes (sound effects field recordist) and Dan O’Connell (Foley artist).

'Angry Birds' Sound for Videogame Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound and Music of Angry Birds from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Finland-based composer and sound designer Ari Pulkkinen seems to be one of the most listened-to composers in the world right now, with more than 250 million people who have heard his original Angry Birds theme. Pulkkine’s catchy theme was also recently performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra as part of a music festival in the city. Angry Birds has been praised for its successful combination of addictive gameplay, comical style and low price. Its popularity led to versions of Angry Birds being created for personal computers and gaming consoles, a market for merchandise featuring its characters and even long-term plans for a feature film or television series. Angry Birds has had a combined 350 million downloads across all platforms, and including both regular and special editions.

Pulkkinen has also worked on other popular games such as Trine (PS3/PC), Dead Nation (PS3) and Outland (PS3/360). The games have received rave reviews and praise for their soundtracks and sound design.

'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of Rise of the Planet of the Apes from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Director Rupert Wyatt takes the audience on the science-fiction summer hit Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Leading the sound team is supervising sound editor and sound designer Chuck Michael and co-supervisor John Larsen, with the talents of first assistant sound editor Smokey Cloud and sound re-recording mixers Doug Hemphill and Ron Bartlett.

'The Sound of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2' Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

After eight films over a 10-year span, the epic adventure of Harry Potter and his circle of wizard friends will close the last chapter of this celebrated series with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2. Director David Yates returns to direct his fourth Harry Potter film with his talented sound team including re-recording mixers Stuart Hilliker and Mike Dawson, supervising music editor Gerard McCann, supervising sound editor James Mather and sound designer Dom Gibbs. Expecto Patronum!

Dolby Presents Surrounded: 7.1 Cinema & Beyond

SoundWorks Collection: Dolby Presents Surrounded: 7.1 Cinema & Beyond from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Dolby gathered a group of cinema industry leaders and innovators from around the world for an exclusive Filmmakers’ Forum held on Monday, July 11, 2011, in San Francisco. Their focus was be on how 7.1 surround sound delivers a richer, more immersing moviegoing experience to audiences.

Discussion Topic: The Impact of 7.1 Surround Sound on 2-D and 3-D Movies
The content creation community is embracing this new audio format, and more than 25 feature films have been announced or already mixed in 7.1—and a majority of them are in 3-D. Discover how 7.1 brings a more exciting sensory experience to 2-D and gives content creators even more control over audio placement for 3-D movies. Also learn from experts in the cinema industry how they envision the future of surround sound.

Panel Moderator:
Stuart Bowling, Dolby Laboratories, worldwide technical marketing manager, Cinema

Panelists:
Kinson Tsang, supervising sound designer, Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen and The Lost Bladesman
Rohan Sippy, director, Dum Maaro Dum
Erik Aadahl, supervising sound editor, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Kung Fu Panda 2 and Megamind
Michael Semanick, re-recording mixer, Cars 2 and Toy Story 3
Eric Brevig, director, Yogi Bear and Journey to the Center of the Earth

'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' Sound for Film Profile

Soundworks Collection: The Sound of Transformers: Dark of the Moon from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Director Michael Bay and producer Steven Speilberg return this summer for the third film in the Transformers franchise, Tranformers: Dark of the Moon. The amazing visual effects in this film are complimented by the talented efforts of the sound team, including re-recording mixers Greg Russell and Jeff Haboush, and supervising sound editor and sound designers Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl. This is the first 3-D film of the series and will also be presented in regular 20D, Real D 30D and IMAX, featuring Dolby Surround 7.1 sound.

'Cars 2' Sound for Film Profile

Soundworks Collection: The Sound and Music of Cars 2 from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Marie Ebbing and Jonathon Stevens Sound for Film Profile

SoundWorks Collection: Marie Ebbing & Jonathon Stevens - Advanced Noise Removal from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Marie Ebbing and Jonathon Stevens offer advanced noise-removal services for music and film post-production using a suite of tools by the software developer Algorithmix. These noise-removal tools are divided into two categories: broadband (including surface noise, hiss and hum) and transient, including camera hydraulics, coughs, page turns and other instantaneous noises.

Their use of these tools extends into the non-standard. They can remove unwanted dialog and music from stereo or multichannel master recordings. Rebalancing or complete removal of instruments in a master recording is also possible, and on occasion pitch correction to a specific instrument in a mix. All of this is done with the utmost respect to the sound quality of the original master.

Projects that have benefited from their noise-removal services include
Tron: Legacy, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Capitalism, Public Enemies, San Francisco Symphony’s Keeping Score Series, The Lord of the Rings: Complete Music boxed sets.

Find out more information about Ebbing and Stevens.

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