Audio Post-Production Resources for Filmmakers
We all know the benefits of being acquainted with what the audio post-production process entails, especially within the film industry. But for those who are just getting started or are looking to learn something new about it, a few tips always come in handy.
We all like to know more about what we do; however, regardless of whether you’re looking for an audio post-production studio for your audiovisual project or simply want to step up your game as an audio professional, the following tips will certainly help you get a much deeper understanding about this pivotal stage of your film’s development.
The following post-production tips for film audio will definitely help you enhance the sound you recorded during the production process of your audiovisual project. Although you may have recorded audio lines separately from moving images, for example, ADR, foley or environmental sounds, the following tips should not only apply but also will help you get a much better understanding of the audio and sound post-production process.
Let’s break it down in a more comprehensive way:
Organize Your Audio Tracks
Once you have recorded audio lines it is normal to let other processes overlap with what you’re currently doing. The result? A bunch of tracks are gone or M.I.A to say the least.
If you have recorded several files for your film, putting some kind of hierarchy or structure will certainly help. In fact: label those tracks and get yourself and your audio team acquainted with naming conventions. Of course, the complexity of the aforementioned hierarchy will always depend on how robust your film is — if you don’t have many files, using a comprehensive naming convention will suffice.
In an ideal scenario, you will want to talk to your director of photography about how you and the audio team are organizing and naming the audio tracks. This will help both of you stick to the same naming structure, making it much easier for whoever is going to be responsible for editing the media. A pro tip here would be using descriptive file names that represent or highlight the moving images that correspond to the audio lines in question. Try to use something unique about them.
Mixing Audio And Video
As mentioned in other articles, mixing audio for film and video is not that different from music or game on its own. At least in its nature. However, there should always be some kind of structure encompassing all the elements in your film’s audio tracks so viewers can focus on the key parts.
How Loud Should Your Mix Be?
A film’s entire mix should, of course, meet industry standards for loudness. When it comes to audio post-production, keeping the master track around -15 to -12 dB will provide you with a lot of room for mastering.
Once your initial audio recordings have been mastered, the standard for a film is typically found within -3dB, but of course this figure is subject to change, especially for different distribution platforms. For example, if you take a look at Netflix, they require you to adjust your mix so nothing peak past -2dB.
So, how to get the most out of today’s sound technology to make your project sound better without falling victim of today’s regulations? That’s something many have wondered, and the answer is short and simple: audio effects.
Audio Compression
Although you certainly want your audiovisual project to have a solid dynamic range, compression can help shape and even tame those reckless extremes.
Audio compression allows you to bring the loudest elements down, which in turn increases the level of quiet in contrast. This simple yet effective technique can make your film sound better and controlled; however, mind the dynamics — otherwise, you will ruin your project if you use compression too much.
Audio Equalization
Adding an EQ to your film’s different audio lines can really help highlight those key frequencies within your project while reducing the ones you want to get rid of.
What equalization essentially does is it provides you with control over the overall decibel/volume level of specific parts of the whole frequency spectrum between 20 and 20,000 Hz. It is found and established between those values because that’s the average individual’s audible range. Anything below 20 isn’t typically heard but can be felt.
Additional Audio Effects
If the audio for your project isn’t sounding realistic enough, you may need to get a hold of several other audio effects such as reverb to enhance your film’s environment.
This is key, especially for things that were not recorded on the same set, such as foley or ADR. Bet that as it may, it is always recommendable to use visualizer plugins to see the stereo width and frequencies. Thus, you will always have a much more solid understanding of your mix’s current state.
