Re: Looking for 16mm sound mix studio

From: Bill Seery (email suppressed)
Date: Fri Aug 29 2008 - 23:13:39 PDT


We have all of the components on site, including the ability to go
back to optical with our in house facility Trackwise, but do not mix
or edit directly from mag. I can't think of any professional
facilities, in the US at least, that still mix from multiple mag
dubbers. The process is cumbersome and the quality and amount of
control offered by DAWs like Pro Tools make the work flow much
faster, with, in my opinion, better results. I don't know of any
analog film audio "purists" like one finds in the music world, but
I'd be interested in hearing about them. I think one reason is the
inherent limitations of optical as a reproduction format.

Depending on the number of tracks involved, setting up and
maintaining your own system would be a daunting task. I have a few
mag machines that I'm looking to part with if anyone is up to the
challenge.

Freya and Alain bring up good points about the status of 16mm. I
don't think audio editorial/mix is a problem (though finding people
who understand the process is. How many times do I have to explain
what a 2-pop is and why it is an important thing to have? ), but what
about negative cutters, optical transfer houses, labs, etc. Since I
still do a lot of work for 16mm it is something I am continually
aware of. Another academic year is beginning, so that is when I
begin getting calls asking where university programs can send their
students for services and whether its worth sustaining a film
program. It's getting harder to answer those questions.

Might be a good thing to network about. How's your site coming along,
Alain? I called a while back to discuss these issues but didn't hear
back from you.

As far as anyone becoming furious, these are hard times to keep a
facility afloat, especially one that understands the needs of non-
commercial makers. If it doesn't get utilized, it tends to
disappear. I think empathy would be a better emotion.

Bill Seery
MercerMedia

PS for those who know us, we've moved to 123 West 18th Street, in the
same facility with Trackwise and the Standby Program (celebrating
it's 25th anniversary!)
Our number remains the same.

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For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.