NUGEN Audio has announced that Sreejesh Nair, a Mumbai, India-based audio/mix engineer and pro audio solutions specialist for Avid, has chosen NUGEN Audio’s Halo Upmix plug-in for stereo-to-5.1/7.1/9.1 upmixing. Nair uses Halo to produce a powerfully immersive upmix on a broad range of cinema projects, including the sound tracks of well-known Bollywood titles.
With more than 250 film titles to his credit, Nair has served as a senior re-recording mixer for Rajkamal Studios (FutureWorks) in Mumbai, in addition to his role at Avid. While most of his work has been on Bollywood movies, he has also worked as a version mixer for Hollywood releases from Warner, Disney, Paramount, and other studios. Nair chose Halo Upmix after searching for an upmixing tool that could not only deliver surround output that sounds as close as possible to the original, but also allow him to work efficiently and save time.
"Advances in technology have given audio engineers more flexibility to deliver complex mixes. But the new efficiencies mean we’re expected to deliver much more in less time—while still reaching for inspiration and new ideas," Nair said. "My colleagues and I first discovered Halo Upmix at IBC2015, and right away we could see that Halo is an extremely immersive tool. I knew I had found the upmixing tool I was looking for when I heard the reverbs, pads, and instruments open up in a Halo-upmixed song to deliver a cohesive-sounding track."
In addition to Halo Upmix, Nair is a satisfied user of several other NUGEN Audio tools—including the Seq-S equalizer, which allows him to apply a spectral mixing method, and the Monofilter and Stereoizer plugins. In combination with Halo, Nair is able to use these tools to create a sonic placement that is unique in texture and sound. "Sree is precisely the type of audio professional for whom we designed Halo Upmix. He has seen many profound technology changes throughout his career, and he’s helped advance sound engineering in key ways," said Jon Schorah, creative director, NUGEN Audio.
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More