Supervising Sound Editors Lon Bender and Victor Ray Ennis of Soundelux are among the nominees for Best Sound Editing in the 84th Annual Academy Awards® for their work on “Drive.” This is the third Oscar nomination for Bender. He previously won the award, with Per Hallberg, in 1996 for “Braveheart.” This is the first Oscar nomination for Ennis. Winners will be announced February 26th in Los Angeles.
“On behalf of everyone at CSS Studios, I would like to congratulate Lon, Victor and their team at Soundelux on this Oscar nomination,” said Robert C. Rosenthal, President of CSS Studios, Soundelux‘s parent company. “I would also like to thank their peers in the Academy for recognizing their artistry. ‘Drive’ is a unique movie and one that makes truly innovative use of sound.. It represents creativity in motion picture sound at its peak.”
“Drive,” from FilmDistrict and Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn, tells the story of a Hollywood stunt car driver (Ryan Gosling) who moonlights as a wheelman and discovers there is a contract out on him following a robbery gone bad. The movie is violent, yet stylish and emotionally gripping, and is being hailed by critics for its brashness and its brilliance.
For Bender, Ennis and the film’s sound team, which included Re-recording Mixers Roberto Fernandez and Dave Paterson of CSS Studios‘ Sound One facility in New York, the film presented many unusual sonic challenges. Although tacitly an action tale, the film is also highly cerebral, alternating between moments of intense realism and surreality as the audience is drawn into the main character’s head.
“Although there are some exciting car chases in this movie, it’s not really a ‘car chase,’ movie,” Bender explains. “It’s about a character and his relationship to the world. And it’s about a car that transports him through life.”
“From a sound perspective, the film is sometimes soaring and intense and at other times, it forces you to lean forward and listen intently, but it all adds up to an experience you will never forget.”
About CSS STUDIOS, LLC
Hollywood, California-based CSS Studios® is a wholly owned subsidiary of Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the world’s number one nonfiction media company reaching more than 1.5 billion cumulative subscribers in over 180 countries. CSS Studios provides creative post production sound services to major motion picture studios, independent producers, broadcast networks, cable channels, advertising agencies and interactive producers. The services of CSS Studios are marketed under the brand names Todd-AO®, Sound One, Soundelux®, POP Sound®, Modern Music, Soundelux Design Music Group and The Hollywood Edge, with facilities in Los Angeles and New York. With more than 50 years of experience in providing creative sound services and technical solutions, the companies, collectively, have garnered more than 50 Academy Award nominations and won 26 Academy Awards®.
