OUTLOOK '08: AUDIO
Chris Jenkins, Senior VP, Universal Studios Sound
Issue: December 1, 2007

OUTLOOK '08: AUDIO

The theme of audio continues to be digital technology aiding creativity. Audiences expect new and better experiences in every area of entertainment. Technology allows editors and mixers more creative time to build a better show, whether it is for the movie theater, the TV set, the Web or for the videogame console. 

For example, two projects we worked on this year were 300 and August Rush.  With 300, the film was based on an epic graphic novel retelling an ancient Greek legend. Effects had to be larger than life and the mix had to support the character's heroic nature.

With the Hitchcock Theater's digital workflow, we can move files easily from editor to mix console and try out new sounds until the perfect result is achieved. In August Rush, the film is about a young boy who hears music in the every day sounds of cars passing and the wind in the trees. This storyline lead to an intense collaboration between the sound editors and the composer. Sound effects transform into music. Because we were able to share effects and bits of music digitally, the film's sound was molded into a special audience experience. 

Chris Jenkins is Senior Vice President at Universal Studios Sound.