Hunger Games Blu-ray Out Now!

Great review from the Blu-ray release of the Hunger Games designed by Soundelux, using sound effects from the Hollywood Edge…

Before we address The Hunger Games‘ stupendously exciting lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 audio mix, mention must be made of something I at least have never seen before on a Blu-ray release: a Dolby Digital 2.0 track that has been (in the words right there on the audio menu screen) “optimized for late night listening”. I don’t know why that struck me as inherently funny, but there you have it—for you people staying up way past your bedtime, there’s a wonderful Dolby Digital 2.0 track on this disc expressly set up for your listening needs. Now on to the track that most high definition aficionados are going to be listening to, no matter what the time of day (or night). This DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 is simply a huge, unadulterated “wow” from start to finish. Impeccably immersive and full of some of the coolest surround effects I’ve heard in some time, this track regularly assaults the senses with all manner of discrete channelization and bombastic LFE. I defy most listeners not to startle when they first hear the cannon which announces the deaths of various participants (and listen to how carefully it’s placed in the sound field with differing amplitude along the way). One of the coolest effects comes a couple of times in the film when a huge spaceship hovers over head. The LFE here is absolutely astounding and one of the most notable things about it is how it vibrates and pulses over the listener—this is an LFE “wave” of sound. There are too many wonderful moments, both large and small, to really list in any detail, but the track sports absolutely reference quality fidelity, with huge variances in dynamic range and a totally visceral sense of “being there”.

Check it out!

Re-Recording Mixer Gary C. Bourgeois Joins Todd-AO

Gary C. Bourgeois (pictured), one of the film industry’s top re-recording mixers, has joined CSS Studios’ Todd-AO. Experienced in all industry-standard sound mixing and editing platforms, Bourgeois will work out of Todd-AO’s facilities in Burbank, Hollywood and West Los Angeles.

The move marks a return to Todd-AO for Bourgeois as he was previously on staff at the sound company from 1985 to 2001. “We are very pleased to welcome Gary Bourgeois home to Todd-AO,” says CSS Studios President Robert C. Rosenthal. “He is a great talent and enjoys universal respect in the sound industry for his skill and professionalism. We look forward to being part of the next chapter in his career.”

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Soundelux Design Music Group Celebrates 20 Years of Excellence in Sound for Games

HOLLYWOOD, May 14, 2012 | SHOOT Publicity Wire | — As it marks its 20th anniversary this year, Hollywood-basedSoundelux Design Music Group(“DMG”), which creates sound for games, commercials and location-based entertainment, has plenty of reason to celebrate. It’s coming off a year in which it worked on several of the video game industry’s biggest releases, including Microsoft/Epic’s “Gears of War 3” (a Golden Reel Award and G.A.N.G. Award nominee) and Activision/Toys for Bob’s Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure (also a Golden Reel Award nominee). The group also recently received a Golden Reel Award for the Electronic Arts title Need for Speed: The Run, adding to the multitude of awards and nominations it has received for its game work. And, it is ready to open a second production facility on Los Angeles’ Westside.

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Home Theater Geeks Podcast 108: Lon Bender

Academy Award-winning sound editor Lon Bender explains the process of adding sound to a movie, how the process has evolved over the years, and how a home-theater mix differs from a commercial-cinema mix. He also shares some anecdotes from several projects he’s worked on, including The Hunger Games and Drive, talks about the problem of not enough sound isolation between theaters in a multiplex, answers chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 1:06:32

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Benavente Joins Soundelux

Hollywood, CA (April 20, 2012)—Supervising sound editor Michael Benavente, ADR supervisor on Moneyball, recently nominated for an Academy Award for Sound Mixing, has joined Soundelux.

Benavente arrives with more than 40 credits as a supervising sound editor, including the comedies No Strings Attached, Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Idiocracy. His latest project is Think Like a Man for director Tim Story, due for release in April.

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SoundWorks Collection: Sound Design of the Hunger Games

CSS Studios Brings Supervising Sound Editor Michael Benavente To Soundelux

HOLLYWOOD, March 19, 2012 | SHOOT Publicity Wire | — Supervising Sound Editor Michael Benavente has joined Soundelux. Benavente arrives with more than 40 credits as a Supervising Sound Editor, including the comedies “No Strings Attached”, “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” and “Idiocracy. He also served as ADR Supervisor on “Moneyball”, recently nominated for an Academy Award for Sound Mixing. His latest project is “Think Like a Man” for director Tim Story, due for release in April.

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Supervising Sound Editor Michael Benavente Joins Soundelux

Soundelux has hired Michel Benavente, whose most recent screen credit is ADR supervisor on Moneyball. His credits as supervising sound editor include No Strings Attached, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, and Idiocracy. His next project is director Tim Story’s Think Like a Man, scheduled for an April 20 release in the U.S.

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Hallberg Hears Call of Duty

Hollywood, CA (February 8, 2012)–Per Hallberg, two-time Academy Award-winner and Soundelux supervising sound editor, created the audio for a new trailer for video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, aiming for the feel of a movie.

Conceived by Los Angeles advertising agency, 72andSunny, and directed by Peter Berg, the live action trailer for the latest in Activision’s record-setting game series casts Sam Worthington as “The Vet” and Jonah Hill as “The n00b” in an urban combat scenario. The trailer, which runs 90 seconds in the online version, has attracted nearly 21 million hits on YouTube.

Hallberg was brought into the project to do what he has done for films such as The Bourne Ultimatum, Green Lantern, G.I. Joe and Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters. “It looks like a movie and it needed to sound like a movie,” Hallberg recalls. “It has an intensity and sense of reality that goes far beyond other trailers of its kind.”

Hallberg assembled a team of editors, sound designers and Foley artists, who helped him in building a bed of sound elements that is richly detailed and authentic. All of the weapon sounds, for example, are accurate for the guns and artillery pieces seen in the trailer.

“We approached it just like a feature film,” Hallberg recalls. “We cleaned up the production dialogue, we shot Foley with cut backgrounds and we cut sound effects and sound design.” Todd-AO’s Gary Hecker, whose credits include Unstoppable, Spider-Man 3 and The Hunger Games, created the Foley elements.

Getting all of the hyper-kinetic sound elements to work within the trailer’s relatively short time-span was a challenge for Hallberg. “A lot happens in a short time,” he says. “You have to tell the story, create a high level of intensity and make it work with the dialogue and music-but that’s one reason we were attracted to the project. It was fun and invigorating.”

CSS Studios
www.css-studios.com

CSS Studios Brings Re-Recording Mixer Andy Koyama to Todd-AO

 

Veteran Re-Recording Mixer Andy Koyama (pictured) has joined independent sound company Todd-AO. Koyama will mix theatrical projects at Todd-AO’s Santa Monica facility. He arrives with more than 60 films to his credit, including the comedy Meet the Parents, the vampire tale New Moon and the summer blockbuster The Incredible Hulk. Most recently, he mixed The Grey, director Joe Carnahan’s thriller set for release this month.

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