Macre to head restructured audio post division.
By SUSAN LIN
Prompted by the growth of interest in its music services, Video Post & Transfer (VP&T), Dallas, has restructured its former audio post division into Cuppa Joe Music, a full-fledged music/sound design/mixing company. Joe Macre, who was head of audio services at VP&T, will take the helm of the shop as senior engineer/composer.
The new music house will become the fourth postproduction subsidiary under the VP&T umbrella, joining broadcast graphics shop Hothaus Design, Dallas, film-processing arm The Lab, Dallas, and recently formed telecine boutique Pacific Data Post, Santa Monica (SHOOT, 1/28, p. 7). As with its Dallas-based sister companies, Cuppa Joe will work out of the main VP&T facility, in the same three-studio wing it had occupied as a VP&T division.
According to Macre—the "Joe" in the shop’s nickname—VP&T had decided to start up Cuppa Joe because his juggling 10 hours of mixing during the day, and composing music during the evenings and weekends, was becoming a matter of course. "I didn’t want to fall into that trap of being a one-man band, so I started interviewing people [and putting together a support staff]," he said.
Although the positions at VP&T required heavy mixing, Macre said he looked for people "that would [also] become a part of the scoring team." In the past year, Macre hired a staff of three. The first on board was engineer/composer Scottie Richardson. In the three years prior to VP&T, Richardson had worked in-house at J.C. Penney in a similar capacity. Macre also added engineer/composer Eric Jenkins, who had been freelance producing and engineering out of his apartment in Ft. Worth, Texas; and engineer/sound designer Jeff Barbian, who for the past 10 years had been earning his livelihood as a drummer in different swing bands.
Macre himself was a composer/live performer before he settled into the more routine lifestyle of a staff mixer. After eight years of working independently, Macre’s first full-time roost was Beachwood Studios, Cleveland, where he was director of audio services/senior engineer. After two years at that post, he relocated to Dallas, where he began with VP&T.
In ’96, the audio post department at the facility consisted only of Macre and former senior engineer Bruce Buehlman, who had brought Macre on board as a mixer/engineer. When Buehlman departed in ’98 (to Complete Post, Hollywood), Macre took on his job.
Cuppa Joe’s staff has already mixed a reel’s full of commercials, including several for McDonald’s via agency Moroch & Associates, Dallas; as well as Ford via JWT Specialized Communications, Dallas. Cuppa Joe also recently wrapped a 10 ID package for Showtime, called "No Limits." The shop scored and mixed the ID via Hothaus.
Franklin Leonard and The Black List To Receive 2024 Gotham Awards Anniversary Tribute
Franklin Leonard and his company, the Black List, the platform dedicated to nurturing written storytelling and empowering writers to maximize their professional potential, will receive The Gotham Anniversary Tribute at the 34th annual Gotham Awards ceremony, taking place on Monday, December 2, at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.
The Anniversary Tribute was created by The Gotham Film & Media Institute in order to recognize the major milestones and storied commitments of entertainment’s most influential individuals. With the Anniversary Tribute, The Gotham will honor the 20th anniversary of the Black List, which has been dedicated to identifying and celebrating exceptional storytelling since it was first established by Leonard in 2005. Most recently, Mariska Hargitay received the Anniversary Tribute at the inaugural Gotham TV awards for her outstanding run on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
“With the Black List, Franklin Leonard has undeniably reshaped Hollywood by elevating talented writers and remarkable projects. His commitment to nurturing emerging screenwriters and lowering barriers to entry for talent is one that resonates deeply with The Gotham and our values,” said Jeffrey Sharp, executive director of The Gotham Film & Media Institute. “So many of Hollywood’s most beloved films, such as Juno, Slumdog Millionaire, and The King’s Speech, were all given a singular platform by the annual Black List that helped them get made. We are honored to present Franklin and the Black List with the Anniversary Tribute.”
First established as an annual survey of Hollywood’s most-liked unproduced screenplays, the Black List has since grown into a comprehensive resource for the film, TV,... Read More