I would bet that, like most people, you watch TV with the remote in your hand. And not because you’re constantly changing the channel, but because you’re riding the volume like it’s a fader on a console. I feel your pain and I apologize. The typical blast that ensues at the commercial break is nothing short of alarming and as a spot mixer I need to accept at least partial responsibility.
I have been mixing television commercials for nearly 10 years and I can tell you that a LOUD mix is a regular expectation of my job because the client requests it. And to a certain extent, I can sympathize with their position. The last thing they want to hear is their spot come in half as loud as the one right before it. But this may be out of control. Because of the varying loud volume of spots, neighbors are complaining, thumbs are getting tired and, if you have a sleeping two-year-old nearby, late-night TV viewing is completely out of the question.
It used to be that analog recording kept things in check. There was a physical limitation to the medium that for the most part standardized dialogue levels. Digital recording changed things. For one, no longer is there an industry-wide standard for audio-levels. But more importantly digital recording allows greater headroom for “hotter” recordings without distortion. And products like the L2 Ultramaximizer allow for all new degrees of “transparent” limiting that dramatically increase loudness. Using this tool and others like it to extremes creates an effect, for the most part undesirable, known as hyper-limiting. Although hyper-limited mixes are certainly “louder” than those that are not, they are the inevitable result of a lack of regulation–and the cause of the advertiser’s worst enemy, the dreaded mute.
How can we improve the situation? To start, producers might simply tell their mixer to “make sure not to make it too loud,” or “make it a bit more dynamic.” “Can you leave the car crash louder than my whispering announcer” and “can we have the chorus of the song louder than the verse?” You get the drift. Right now, the biggest challenge for the mixer in a typical spot mix is figuring out how to maximize the loudness of every critical element regardless of its overall purpose in the story. In an attempt to assure we have the undivided grasp of our viewers’ attention, we create an uninteresting mix. If capturing viewer interest is our goal, then creating a dynamic mix, one with loud and soft moments, is important. It is how to “break through.”
We might also start adhering to network specific delivery requirements regarding dialogue normalization. Dolby’s LM100 meter allows a programmer to measure the loudness of a program’s dialogue. According to Dolby, “when the dial norm value is properly implemented across multiple programs, the home listener can switch between programs and perceive the dialogue in each program at the same level.” Imagine that.
In conclusion, it’s time to retreat from the front lines of the Loudness War. With your direction as my producer I can bring the levels back down to earth and we can all live together peacefully. No complaining neighbors, no woken-up children and most importantly the remote left where it should be–on the coffee table.
[Nathan Dubin is a staff mixer at Margarita Mix/Santa Monica.]
Oscar Nominees Delve Into The Art Of Editing At ACE Session
You couldn’t miss Sean Baker at this past Sunday’s Oscar ceremony where he won for Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay and Editing on the strength of Anora. However, earlier that weekend he was in transit from the Cesar Awards in Paris and thus couldn’t attend the American Cinema Editors (ACE) 25th annual panel of Academy Award-nominated film editors held at the Regal LA Live Auditorium on Saturday (3/1) in Los Angeles. While the eventual Oscar winner in the editing category was missed by those who turned out for the ACE “Invisible Art, Visible Artists” session, three of Baker’s fellow nominees were on hand--Dávid Jancsó, HSE for The Brutalist; Nick Emerson for Conclave; and Myron Kerstein, ACE for Wicked. Additionally, Juliette Welfling, who couldn’t appear in person due to the Cesar Awards, was present via an earlier recorded video interview to discuss her work on Emilia Pérez. The interview was conducted by ACE president and editor Sabrina Plisco, ACE who also moderated the live panel discussion. Kerstein said that he was the beneficiary of brilliant and generous collaborators, citing, among others, director Jon M. Chu, cinematographer Alice Brooks, and visual effects supervisor Pablo Helman. The editor added it always helps to have stellar acting performances, noting that hearing Cynthia Erivo, for example, sing live was a revelation. Kerstein recalled meeting Chu some eight years ago on a “blind Skype date” and it was an instant “bromance”--which began on Crazy Rich Asians, and then continued on such projects as the streaming series Home Before Dark and the feature In The Heights. Kerstein observed that Chu is expert in providing collaborators with... Read More