Cinematic Post-Production - Alexander Lennen by alex

Audio Basics

40532471_2 — 2023-09-25 13:57:42 UTC

In an audio waveform:

compression - above the zero line

rarefaction - below the zero line

One cycle - one period of compression + one period of rarefaction

Frequency - represents pitch, measured in cycles per second. Higher the frequency, the higher the number of cycles

It is measured in Hz

Humans can hear up to 20 kHz

Amplitude - represents intensity, visually represented in a waveform by height

It is measured in dB

Audio in the Digital Domain

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Sample - a single measurement of an audio signal, measuring the amplitude at one specific moment

Sample rate - number of samples per second (e.g. 44.1 kHz)

Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem – to accurately record/reproduce a sound, the sample rate must be at least twice the highest frequency of that sound

You need at least 2 samples per cycle - one sample in each compression phrase, and one sample in each rarefaction phase

Foldback/aliasing is when there are less than 2 samples per cycle, and a lower frequency is created

Bit depth - number of bits of information in each sample. The more bits, the more accurate the recording and reproduction of the audio will be

Dynamic range – using more bits will allow you to measure greater heights. Each bit gives around 6 dB of dynamic range.

Therefore, 16-bit has a maximum dynamic range of 96 dB (16x6) while a 24-bit audio has a maximum dynamic range of 144 dB (24x6)

Maximum dynamic range of a human being is 120-130 dB, therefore 24-bit is the best bet to record everything you want to hear and more

DAWs and Pro Tools

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DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) - an electronic device/piece of software which combines Audio and MIDI recording, editing and mixing tools. (Pro Tools, Ableton etc)

In Pro Tools, if the master file is on a local drive, it’s called a session file.

If it’s in the cloud, then it’s called a project file.

A clip is the visual object on the timeline which represents an audio file on your drive. You can position them anywhere you want, and because you’re not operating on a file directly, no data will be lost if you fiddle around with it

Reasons why Pro Tools is epic:

Preserves a clean signal when processing for best results
Has powerful MIDI functions so you can compose music
Has top-of-the-line workflow features, giving users flexibility and efficiency

There are different versions of Pro Tools – Artist, Studio and Ultimate

Artist allows 16 separate audio input/outputs, Studio allows 64 and Ultimate allows 256

Can work on stereo mixes in Artist, but Studio/Ultimate is required if you want to do Surround mixing

Pro Tools System

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Pro Tools systems can operate in one of two ways:

Native – the computer itself does all the processing

DSP (Digital Signal Processor) - specific hardware is added on to offload tasks

The more CPU and RAM you have, the better

You should use a separate hard drive, which has a good size and speed

You will also need an audio interface – which can connect through computer connections (USB) or Analog Audio Connections:

Line level inputs – used for synths, drum machines
Microphone inputs – used to connect microphones, typically using 3-pin XLR connectors
DI (Direct Injection) - guitar or bass

Monitor speakers – should give you an honest reproduction of your recordings and mixes, without the enhancements built into consumer products.
It will let you hear what your work will sound like on a wide range of playback systems

They don’t have to be expensive – if it sounds good on cheap speakers, it’ll sound good anywhere

Frequency response – flattest shape between 20Hz and 20kHz

Ports – rear-ported speakers need about 1 metre behind them, so if you have a small room then choose front-ported speakers

Most professional mixing headphones use an open-back design, which allows sound to pass out of them

Closed back is good if you don’t want to disturb those around you, or if you’re recording something

Avid uses PACE anti-piracy software to manage Pro Tools licences

When you install Pro Tools, another application called Avid Link is also installed

Lesson 1

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Lesson 2

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Lesson 3

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Lesson 4

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Lesson 5

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Tackling Harassment

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Unconscious Bias

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Mental Health

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Getting to Know Pro Tools

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Mac to Windows:

Option = alt

Return = enter

Control = start

Command = Ctrl

Show/hide transport
Cmd + 1

Play/pause
Space

Move cursor to beginning
Return

Move to end
Option + Return

Save As
Cmd + Control + S

Powering Up Your System

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Monitor speakers should be the last thing you turn on, and the first thing you turn off

Start with all devices powered down
Turn on any devices with external power
Power up computer
Launch Pro Tools
Turn on monitor speakers

File Types

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WAV files are more common and therefore more compatible than other file types

Interleaved files - enabling this option will mean that any stereo recording will be stored as a single stereo audio file, instead of two mono files

Session files are .ptx in Pro Tools 10 and later

WaveCache.wfm is automatically created by Pro Tools, and is a visual representation of an audio file's waveform. It is not an audio file itself.
If you delete this file, Pro Tools will reconstruct it whenever the session file is opened again

The Bounced Files folder contains the single stereo mix file for the whole project

Track Types

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Different types of tracks:

Audio
Aux Input
MIDI
Instrument
Master Fader
Video
VCA Master
Folder (Basic, Routing)

Audio tracks can be mono, stereo or surround, but only Studio and Ultimate have surround

An Auxiliary Input track can be mono, stereo or surround, but cannot hold audio clips.

In the Mix window or Tracks List, Auxiliary Input tracks can be identified by an arrow icon

Master Fader tracks - can’t hold clips, but used to control the level of an output

Has the sigma symbol (Σ)

VCA Master tracks - tracks that control other tracks

If you press Option/Alt when dragging a file onto a track, the file will be added to the session and also be copies into the session’s Audio Files folder

Working With Tracks

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To open up the New Tracks dialog box

Shift+Command+N or Shift+Ctrl+N

Selecting a track is simple, but to deselect a track

Hold Cmd / Ctrl and click on the track

Workspace Browser

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The workspace browser searches your system like a regular file browser, only it’s designed specifically for Pro Tools

To open the Workspace browser:

Window -> New Workspace -> Default

Lesson 6

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Lesson 7

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Lesson 8

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Lesson 9

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Lesson 10

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Starting the Breathe rehearsal

40532471_2 — 2023-11-28 18:36:25 UTC

Starting off the project with a bit of track laying. We mainly just went through the AAF, taking out each bit of dialogue and adding it to our DX tracks.

We made sure to separate the audio files in terms of Booms/LAVs and each character in the scene. I also practiced levelling the clips so that they were all consistent with each other.

The most important thing I learned was how to trim the clips properly. Jack taught me that each clip should be trimmed at the end of the waveform's cycle. This way you avoid the harsh popping sounds when the clip ends.

Also, since this was our first session we made sure to name our folder according to the naming conventions we learned in class.

Working with RX7 Connect

40532471_2 — 2023-11-28 18:42:43 UTC

Our next session was very useful, as we spent ages discovering all the features on Izotope RX.

At first we tried the AudioSuite version, and played around with each tool. While we didn't make much progress with the project itself, we learned so much about RX7 and how each tool affected our audio clips.

This was a huge discovery for me, as I was previously aware of the RX7 inserts, but I found the Connect version in AudioSuite to be so much more helpful and suited to the way I work.

However, I become aware that AudioSuite means you're rendering directly onto the clip, meaning it's hard to undo later down the line. And so I made sure to save an inactive duplicate of the DX folder just in case I needed the unaltered clips in the future.

My favourite tools were the Voice DeNoiser and the De-wind tool - the latter I used about a million times on one clip to see what would happen. The answer was not much, apparently.

Starting the Calculated Affection rehearsal

40532471_2 — 2023-11-28 18:53:08 UTC

Our first session for Calculated Affection was pretty much the exact same as Breathe's. Splitting up dialogue, doing some rough levelling.

This time, I was the main person on SFX/Foley, so I scanned through the timeline, noting down potential sounds to source.

Ambience Inspiration

40532471_2 — 2023-12-06 13:10:23 UTC

The script mentioned that "guests are heard, but not seen." Given that the only audio in the AAF was dialogue, I knew I had to create a dinner party soundscape from scratch.

Before doing so, I listened attentively to an episode of The Bear - specifically the season 2 episode Fishes, which is set at a Christmas dinner party. This was a particularly good source of inspiration, as it features a wide range of emotional states for the characters, and the background noises reflect that.

Every time I picked up on a specific noise I made a note on my phone. Here is the list in created:

Noises in background

- [x] cutlery noises

- [x] wine glasses clanging

- [ ] chairs moving

- [ ] people walking around, leaving to go to bathroom, going over to join another conversation etc

- [x] clock on wall ticking

(we should get a bunch of different takes for each of these, as we'll have 3min to fill and don't want to use the same sound twice)

Voices in background

- [x] one person laughing while having an enthusiastic conversation with someone else

- [x] person who sounds like a UofE student talking obnoxiously

- [x] multiple people having calm conversations over the top of each other (separate takes)

(guest voices should be panned in the direction of wherever the other guests are in each shot)

Music

- [ ] Jazz music maybe?

(music is non-intrusive for some scenes, playing quietly in the background. other scenes can differ)

Other things

- If the characters on screen are wearing watches that tick, add a ticking sound

- If they're wearing noisy clothing, add some noises when they move around

Recording dinner sounds

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Jack booked out a boom mic and we headed over to his flat.

First, we got our friends to gather in the living room. We figured the living room was the most accurate room in the flat, in terms of its size and how sound would travel in it. We recorded several takes of our friends having conversations, some calm and some intense.

Then everyone cleared off and we recorded some cutlery sounds, wine glasses clinking, water glasses being picked up and put down again, plates being arranged... Each item had a separate take which we named appropriately. I made sure to leave around 5 seconds after each sound so we could chop them up later.

Finally, we recorded chair sounds and movement sounds. Cara and I walked around the kitchen at various different speeds while Jack recorded on the boom. We chose the kitchen as it had the best sounding floor. (carpet was terrible) I then dragged a chair across the floor for about 5 minutes, as many ways as I could.

Foley session

40532471_2 — 2023-12-06 13:28:13 UTC

The foley for the rehearsal shoot wasn't that exciting, as it was mainly small movements like a character tapping their hand on the table or touching another character's shoulder.

It was quite challenging to get these noises sounding accurate. If I tried to exaggerate my movements, the sound would come off as fake / too loud. Alternatively, if I tried to make them subtle, like the actor's actual movements, they wouldn't get picked up by the mic.

My favourite sound was the drinking sound. I ~~stole~~ borrowed a glass from the sink area in the Screen Academy and took a drink of water a million times. We recorded so many takes that I kept running out of water.

A big discovery during this session was the playlists feature in Pro Tools. By creating a playlist on each foley track, it made it so much easier to go through each take and compare them.

Arranging Foley/Ambience in Pro Tools

40532471_2 — 2023-12-06 13:40:42 UTC

After recording a whole bunch of different sounds, we finally put them all in a Pro Tools session. I made sure to save a copy of the dialogue session, specifically for ambience/foley etc.

Most of the time was spent experimenting - layering each dinner sound and trying to create a full atmosphere. I panned different conversation sounds in different directions, same with chair sounds and footsteps, to get a real sense of people moving about the room.

We chose the best foley takes and made sure they sounded perfectly natural. I also had to denoise some of the foley, as you could hear some faint, yet annoying microphone feedback in each clip.

Our director/producer was not available to give us in-person feedback on our session, so we bounced a mix and sent it to them. Didn't get much feedback but we got their approval at the very least.

Finishing off the rehearsal

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 14:42:45 UTC

Due to the nature of the AAF (all mic sources merged into one big stereo file) there wasn't much else I could do in terms of dialogue.

While waiting for Molly to finish editing the actual shoot, Jack and I practiced merging our sessions into one. We thought it would be better to mess up now with the rehearsal, so we could smoothly merge the real shoot when it came to it. Thankfully, we had no real problems and it was pretty straightforward.

Then, our director and producer came into the screen academy to approve our mix. There was limited feedback, again due to the nature of the AAF, but we got the green light and prepared ourselves to work on the real thing.

Moving on to the actual shoot

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 15:50:32 UTC

Having worked on two rehearsals already, the starting process was almost second nature to me. After being delivered the AAF, I set up the template, identified the different mics and split up the dialogue. I tried to use the boom where possible, to retain a sense of space, but used a mix of boom and LAV if the boom was particularly bad.

On set there was a massive fridge sound that hummed all the way through each take. It was clear that my biggest challenge would be removing this fridge sound from the dialogue, or at least minimising the effects of it.

To do this, I experimented with the DeNoise real-time inserts, such as the RX7 Voice DeNoiser. The default setting, Surgical, removed too much from the audio, and made it sound metallic. The Gentle option was less intrusive, but also less effective.

Eventually, I managed to layer 3 DeNoisers on top of one another. They were each set to gentle, and had a modest amount of noise reduction. By themselves they weren't very effective, but all together they removed a lot of the noise without affecting the actual dialogue too much.

As I soon realised however, 3 DeNoisers on each track was not optimal CPU-wise, and they caused a lot of delay on my session. Also, due to the fridge sound being different in each slate, the denoising was inconsistent. (I hadn't yet learned to put each slate on its own track and make the DeNoiser learn the slate's specific noise.)

And so, I opted to try AudioSuite instead. I discovered a tool called Dialogue Isolate, which I found to be way more effective than the Voice DeNoise. Making sure to save a copy of my unaltered dialogue, I rendered the Dialogue Isolate directly into my clips.

The result was incredible - the fridge sound was completely removed and the dialogue sounded great! It was going to be smooth sailing from here on out... or so I thought.

EQ and Automation

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:10:26 UTC

Proud of the denoising I'd done so far, I began fine-tuning each bit of dialogue.

After doing a couple of EQs to suit each of the characters' voices (this was pretty easy as I'm used to EQing) I looked up some dialogue mixing tutorials on YouTube, to see what else I could do.

I learned how to use automation to make my audio levels more consistent. For each clip, I took down the major transients and raised the particularly quiet parts. This was particularly effective for Donny's voice, as his volume was naturally all over the place.

However, I was aware that by doing this, I was decreasing the dynamic range of the dialogue. It's not good to have everything at the exact same loudness level. And so, I made sure not to overdo the automation, only bringing down the harshest of transients so there was still a good bit of range.

Disaster

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:17:46 UTC

Several hours into the dialogue process, Jack and I realised that the levels of our Mix Bus were particularly quiet. Somehow we hadn't noticed this the whole time.

When we raised the entire session audio to a more appropriate level, things didn't sound good. The effects of the Dialogue Isolate plug-in were far more apparent than I once thought. Even with a limiter, the sound was pretty bad, and I was forced to start the denoising process from scratch.

Important note: level things properly before you start messing around with all of the fancy plug-ins.

Starting again

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:29:35 UTC

First things first, I made sure to properly level the dialogue this time. I used one of the Pro Tools meters to measure the loudness of each clip, making sure it didn't exceed 23 LUFS.

As per Anne-Marie's advice, I monitored not only the short term loudness, but long term too, playing through the entire session from start to finish. After achieving a satisfactory short term AND long term loudness, I saved a copy of the session and moved onto denoising.

Now aware that I couldn't remove the fridge sound completely, I accepted that I had to live with it. The job was not to remove the sound, but make it more consistent throughout the scene. Using Ambience Match in RX7, I managed to achieve this, although I had no idea what I was doing half the time so my process was messy and unique to say the least. This took around 2 days before I was happy with it.

Outdoor SFX session

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:37:24 UTC

Jack booked out another boom mic and we took to the streets of Edinburgh. We made sure to record in a quiet street, so there was minimal background noise in our recording.

Jack recorded me walking along the street, as if I was approaching the shop in the film. We did this many times at various speeds, and different types of walking (clean, scuffed, almost jogging) so that Jack had a lot to work in his Foley/SFX session.

Afterwards, we captured some door rattling sounds. Jack recorded me violently pulling on the door handle to his flat. We made sure only to do this a few times so we didn't disturb his neighbours.

Indoor foley session

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:42:57 UTC

After recording footsteps and other stuff outside, we went inside and began to record our interior Foley.

This was mainly just footsteps of the main character Donny walking in and out of the store. I had reference footage on my phone which I used to match up my footsteps with the movement on screen.

We chose Jack's kitchen out of all the rooms in his flat, as the floor was the most similar to the floor in the actual film.

Foley session in Screen Academy

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:48:59 UTC

During this session we meticulously recorded all the little movements each of the characters made throughout the film.

Most of the session was me handing cash to myself, or slapping my own hand. I had to pretend that one hand was Donny's, and the other was Imogen's. We also recording the wiping shoes sound when Donny walks into the store.

My favourite sound to record was the gum chewing sound. Jack and I swapped places, so that I was in the playback room, and I got to direct him chewing gum into the microphone.

Finishing touches + final mix

40532471_2 — 2023-12-07 16:55:41 UTC

After the bulk of the work had been completed, Jack and I merged our sessions together and began working on the final mix.

We got Luca (our director) into the Screen Academy, and went through the entire session with him, applying feedback whenever he gave it.

I put some final touches in the dialogue, fine tuned the EQs and got the fridge sound to be as consistent as possible.

Finally, we made sure the levels were consistent throughout the whole session, before bouncing the mix.

Jack on boom recording chair sounds

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Dragging a chair for the millionth time

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Recording footsteps outside

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Photo I took of the foley mixer so I wouldn't forget how to set it up

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One happy crew

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Post-production report

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