soundwiz Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Hi All I was just wondering if each of you have any inspirational anecdote from your life to share that completely changed your outlook towards how you did Sound Mixing/Designing I am sure there would be many looking forward best regards Hari Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Wexler Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Hey, Hari, just wondering: are you writing a book? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundwiz Posted June 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Hi Jeff Good to hear your response this is actually a question someone asked me to share with a group of filmmakers while attending a film screening where else but on this forum would I get to hear and share such gems I thought this was profound so I shared it why don't we start with you and expect others to chime in too good day best Hari Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Blankenship Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 It's your topic, Hari, so I think you should start it. What was the story you told the group of filmmakers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Hardly inspirational, more luck really. I met Jeff Wexler early in my career and he asked me to work with him & Don. That changed the way I thought and worked at recording production sound for picture. CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Wexler Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Hardly inspirational, more luck really. I met Jeff Wexler early in my career and he asked me to work with him & Don. That changed the way I thought and worked at recording production sound for picture. CrewC We were all lucky at that time to have met up and worked together. You must realize also that I learned so much from you and Don, I wouldn't be the person I am today were it not for these relationships that thankfully have carried on to this day, this hour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 You are right Jeff. It is the relationships I value the most. I most likely would of grown beyond my hot dog sound ways sooner or later, but I got the world class sound education from you guys that has served me very well over the years. Thanks. CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Manfred Klemme introduced me to David Ronne (another early adopter) when I bought my first Nagra IV-STC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Rose Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Read a magazine article about Tony Schwartz. Sent him a letter saying I'd sit at his feet. He replied, "come sit". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPSharman Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 For me, it was the call I got after my second feature. I had made a few mistakes on my first movie (non-union). I was questioning my choices, and my experience. I had learned a lot of things from a handful of mixers, and adopted my own "style", for lack of a better word. The line producer, who is still a good friend, called me to tell me that when everyone was on the Sony mix stage (a team led by Paul Ottosson), someone turned to them and said, "If more production mixers were like this guy, half of us would be out of a job." It made me realize I was on the right track. I still make mistakes, and make choices I wish I hadn't, but I always think back to that and know that I am mostly doing the right thing. It keeps me inspired. Robert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soundwiz Posted June 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 Very inspiring thoughts and experiences from all of you as John asked,its my topic so I should add my few words,the one advice I remember was from my Professsor at the Film School who told me if you want to achieve something in my job and excel at it, then be at it for a good period of time and don't give up Old School, Jeff,Jay, Robert,studiomprd,John thanks I hope others too join in here enjoyed reading this Hari Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikewest Posted June 19, 2013 Report Share Posted June 19, 2013 The first real feature I recorded in 1980 was "Smash Palace" for Roger Donaldson. When he took the film to Australia he was asked if he had spent a lot of money on dialogue replacement. His answer was "that was the sound that Mike recorded"! From that I new I was on the right track (no pun intended as I was using a mono Nagra 4.2) mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted June 20, 2013 Report Share Posted June 20, 2013 The first real feature I recorded in 1980 was "Smash Palace" for Roger Donaldson. When he took the film to Australia he was asked if he had spent a lot of money on dialogue replacement. His answer was "that was the sound that Mike recorded"! From that I new I was on the right track (no pun intended as I was using a mono Nagra 4.2) mike I dig that. CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirror Posted June 22, 2013 Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 ...it was when I got my first rental check and saw that I had doubled my take home pay for the week. Sign me up thank-you very much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josephduemig Posted June 22, 2013 Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 Great thread, Hari! It's a tough question to answer, as we're all constantly learning. Every situation is different and presents us with unique challenges that may require us to bend our perspective. It'd be difficult for anyone I think to pinpoint a single epiphany moment where he/she suddenly realizes, "Hey! It works better if I do it this way!" because, come the next gig, that way won't work as well, and he/she will have to find a new way of doing things. But for the sake of the thread, I can offer a few milestone moments from my personal path: 1.) On the first film set I ever worked on I was a Sound Utility under a guy named Nick Ray Harris. There were several opportunities throughout the day to get creative with plant mics, and he let me set up all of them and even give suggestions of where and how to place them (some were good suggestions, others weren't the best). Mic placement was fun, challenging, and fascinating to me, and I think that may be why I gravitated toward boom operation. 2.) About a year into my career post-college, I got a call (I still don't know who referred me or how they got my name) to boom op on an LA indie feature that was coming to Austin. Up to that point I had almost exclusively worked as boom op for my twin brother, Erik, who is the mixer of the family. Working with a new mixer (in this case, a lovely lady by the name of Jessie Marek) was an incredible learning experience. She had been a boom operator for many years and taught me some great tricks, but I also soaked in everything I could about mixing so I could go home and relay my experiences to Erik so he could grow as a mixer too. 3.) Just this year I visited Los Angeles for the first time. Going in, I was almost certain I was going to hate it. I'd heard more bad reviews of the city than good ones, and many accounts suggested to me that LA would differ from Austin in some of the most important ways: authenticity, friendliness of the people, etc.. But to my surprise, I fell in love with the city almost immediately, and my love for it only grew as I began to dip my toes into the Production Sound community there. I visited Coffee Sound, and Glen Trew happened to be there that day. Erik and I were curious about cardioid and hyper-cardioid mics to use indoors in lieu of the not-always-perfect-for-the-job MKH-416. Glen proceeded to get out a bunch of mics and lead a mic comparison for us right there in the store! The rental manager there, Ryan, was also incredibly friendly and helpful. We ended up running into him again about a week later when we went to the Parade of Sound Carts. He pointed out Mark Ulano to us (we didn't know what Mark looked like), which was pretty crazy because we hadn't seen his name on the list of expected guests and he's been somewhat of an idol of mine and Erik's for some time. Getting to meet Mark and to meet Jeff W. in person and all the other guys there was pretty surreal, and it changed something in me. It gave me a sense of proximity to the big leagues, so to speak. I no longer felt like the LA circle of soundies that work on the big shows were in a separate, exclusive circle from my own. We're all in the same circle, and it took being there in person and shaking hands with Mark Ulano and chatting casually with Ryan Coomer to realize that. I will certainly be visiting LA much more often from now on. Hoping to go in mid July for Outfest - the first feature Erik and I ever worked on is finally having its USA premier there after years of being stuck in post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted June 22, 2013 Report Share Posted June 22, 2013 Interesting post Joseph. I think a lot of people get an idea or picture in there mind about a place that doesn't correspond to the reality. Back in the mid 80's I thought I knew what NYC was and I didn't think I could ever like such a place. I was so wrong about the city and people. These days I try to keep an open mind about all things but it is an easy trap to fall into. I think every place has good and bad aspects to them, but most share a common positive, the locals. CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebranting Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 Great stories everyone! Its so awesome to hear about and think back on these kinds of pivotal moments in our careers. I have a few moments like this, as I'm sure we all do, but first and foremost interning at Pro-Sound in NYC was a complete eye-opener. I had been working freebie craigslist jobs to gain experience (with a friend's gear consisting of an FR2 and some G3s) and essentially reinventing the wheel about how to do location sound! Being around all the experienced pros who come in and out of Pro-Sound, as well as the super knowledgable PSS crew changed my perspective entirely and made me realize the "right" way of doing a lot of things! My second moment was the first film I boomed, under a great boom op named Guillermo Pena Tapia, himself a boom op who went union immediately after the film wrapped. I thought I knew how to boom, and Guillermo kicked my ass and disabused me of that notion to put it mildly! After almost every take he would shake his head and tell me he heard handling noise, or I was off axis, or missing lines. He really had to hold my hand through basic booming technique, and after the film wrapped I continued to grow as a boom op because I knew what I needed to work on and had developed the ears to hear correct booming! So from a purely technical standpoint, I am the soundie I am today because of his patience and instruction. He taught me something even more important than booming technique though, which was a sense of my own limitations and humility. I thought I knew what I was doing when we first started working together, and I had an attitude about his criticisms because I thought he didn't know what he was talking about. But as the shoot progressed, I started listening, respecting what he was saying, and really trying. I started out arrogant and slow, and he kicked that right out of me! Taught me to hustle, to respect the hierarchy, and so so much more about narrative film sets. The last scene of the film was very tough for me, and involved I believe 5 actors and a dolly move. Needless to say I did NOT nail it and he told me after it was over that, FYI, that was a very easy scene to boom. Obviously that's pretty discouraging to hear, but I needed to hear it to know what to aspire to! Fast forward, Guillermo hooked me up with my first low-low-budget feature, and got my started on the narrative path. When I got my first feature that actually let me bring on a (fairly green) boom op, I was able to direct him because of what I learned through my experiences being put through the wringer. A few years later, that boom op is absolutely killer, and always my first call. He has also told me multiple times that I am the pickiest/most exacting mixer he works with :-) Sorry for the long story, but you really can't overstate how much a guiding hand helps out young guys and gals at the beginning of their careers! I never worked with Guillermo again, but I'm forever grateful for the ass kicking he delivered to me on that movie! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted June 24, 2013 Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 moment number two: A voice on the phone says Hi, I'm Keith Wester..." and number three: another voice on the phone says: "Aloha, I'm Hal Whitby..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Finlan Posted June 27, 2013 Report Share Posted June 27, 2013 "They'll pay me to do this!?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Maloney Posted June 27, 2013 Report Share Posted June 27, 2013 Years ago...while taking production courses a night Mind you this when I had to assemble edit Gunsmoke on 3/4 and slice and splice sound on 1/4" tape Anyway my instructor told me 3 things Your sound is only as good as your weakest link in the chain If you want to get better at something hang with people better than you Never stop learning Today it all still applies Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted June 27, 2013 Report Share Posted June 27, 2013 " assemble edit Gunsmoke on 3/4 and slice and splice sound on 1/4" tape " we still use that material, though now on NLE's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfisk Posted June 27, 2013 Report Share Posted June 27, 2013 My prof in college said something that I'll never forget. Nothing is fool proof because fools are so ingenius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkautzsch Posted June 27, 2013 Report Share Posted June 27, 2013 When I first heard a really well-mounted lav. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted June 27, 2013 Report Share Posted June 27, 2013 We did the Gunsmoke edit on a Movieola with 16mm film. Makes me smile to know they still use it in the new world. CrewC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glen Trew Posted June 30, 2013 Report Share Posted June 30, 2013 Like many here, my career altering moments usually involve teaching/learning moments with a mentor. My three most notable were Dan Newman, Larry Sullivan, and Vilmars Zile. With that in mind, I encourage all to teach whenever you can. Aside from passing your knowledge to someone else, being the teacher makes you better at what you're teaching. It's always helpful and appreciated, but it's hard to say if it's the teacher or the student who benefits the most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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