Sound Editing

Sound Editorial is major component of the audio post-production chain. This process involves the organization, placement, and integration of sound clips from a video or film in preparation for the final re-recording mix. It is the job of the sound editor to prepare all of the audio tracks for a given project in a manner that allows for maximum efficiency and creative control during the mix. Good sound editing goes largely unnoticed, while the work of a bad sound editor is often painfully obvious.

Workflow

In most cases, the head Re-Recording Mixer will specify to his sound editor how the tracks are to be prepared. While there are guidelines for how the process should be completed, there is no single universal standard for editing sound for video/film. Every editor is different, just as every mixer has his/her own preference in regards to how the project is prepared. The number of sound editors on a given project is usually determined by the size and scope of the project. On smaller budget productions, sound editorial may be handled by one or two persons. On large scale productions, it is common to find a team of sound editors for each aspect of the sound track. A separate person or persons may be assigned to each element of the mix (Dialogue, music, sound fx, foley, ambience, etc.)

Today, the majority of sound editing is done on DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations). These stand alone workstations utilize powerful software such as Digidesign's Pro Tools or Steinberg's Nuendo. Such software allows the user to have control over a wide array of features including linking, waveform editing, trimming, cross fading, gain staging, and filtering. Many of these programs also include features for recording and mixing.

The head sound editor for the project is referred to as the Supervising Sound Editor. It is his/her job to coordinate the efforts of all the editors and to maintain quality throughout the post-production process. The Supervising Sound Editor gets the final say in all matters pertaining to the soundtrack. This position requires acute organizational skills in addition to comprehensive knowledge of sound editing practices.

The person in charge of editing the project’s location sound is referred to as the Dialogue editor. It is their job to organize and cut all of the sound recorded on set. This process includes splitting tracks (by actor, shot, or scene) and separating any production sound effects from the dialogue. It is also their responsibility to repair any damaged dialogue by use of alternate takes, or by post-syncing. The dialogue editor is heavily involved in the ADR (Automated dialogue replacement) process. It is his/her task to help select which lines require replacement and to sync the replacement lines to the picture.

In addition to these positions, a major production is likely to have separate editors for sound FX, Foley, ADR, and music.

References

1. Purcell, John. Dialogue Editing for Motion Pictures a Guide to the Invisible Art. Boston: Focal P, 2007.

2. Yewdall, David Lewis. Practical Art of Motion Picture Sound. 2nd Ed. ed. Boston: Focal P, 2003.