“This fills a gap in our offerings,” said Randy Baumberger, president of Paramount Studio Group in reference to Technicolor at Paramount, a state-of-the-art sound facility situated on Paramount’s storied motion picture/TV lot in Hollywood.
Celebrating the official opening of the audio operation during an evening reception on the premises this past Tuesday (3/6), the joint Technicolor/Paramount venture has indeed gone a long way towards filling that “gap,” already servicing assorted theatrical features and broadcast programs during its first several months of operation.
The sound facility handles not only Paramount projects but work from other studios and producers, bringing a mix of homegrown and outside business to the lot. Located in a 92,000 square foot building, together with Paramount’s theatrical postproduction offices and 30 high-end picture editorial suites, the Technicolor at Paramount facility is spread over three floors and 65,000 square feet.
Among the post sound services available are:
o Re-recording mixing–eight stages with surrounding editing rooms and client lounges.
o Worldwide connectivity–secure, high speed media transfer to and from worldwide facilities via the proprietary Technicolor Production Network, providing access to post talent and resources.
o Remote Picture QC–capability to receive and playback work-in-progress footage from outside post houses (i.e., VFX, DI), in real time within all sound mixing environments and on screens calibrated to Technicolor grading specs.
o ADR and Foley–three large ADR stages and one Foley stage.
o Sound design and editorial–eight sound design rooms and 16 sound editorial rooms.
o Transfer and layback–capable of handling the latest multi-format audio needs.
o DVD audio and restoration–four DVD edit and two DVD mastering rooms.
o Mobile mixing–Technicolor’s DMR (Digital Mobile Re-Recording) Solution.
Oscar-recognized talent
But taking priority over state-of-the-art technology are the people who have been put in place. Among the notables are: the theatrical sound mixing and re-recording team of Scott Millan and Greg Russell; and sound re-recording mixers Anna Behlmer and Terry Porter.
Millan has won four Academy Award for Best Achievement in Sound Mixing (The Bourne Ultimatum, Ray, Gladiator, Apollo 13), and been nominated four additional times.
Russell has been nominated for 15 Oscars for Best Achievement in Sound Mixing, with the recognized films including Salt, Spider-Man, Pearl Harbor, Transformers, Apocalypto, The Mask of Zorro, The Rock and Black Rain.
Behlmer has garnered 10 Oscar nominations for Best Achievement in Sound Mixing for her contributions to Star Trek, Blood Diamond, War of the Worlds, Moulin Rouge, The Thin Red Line, LA Confidential, Evita, Braveheart, The Last Samurai and Seabiscuit. The latter two noms came in the same year, 2004.
And Porter is a four-time Oscar nominee for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe; Aladdin; Beauty and the Beast; and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
