"There's a director I've worked
with five times, and for four films, we have not had great
sound. And this director only makes talky movies. Yet, we
still have dialogue intelligibility problems.
Mostly because the crew, unbeknownst
to him, hasn't respected the sound team on set enough to give
them the tools and access they need to get a great recording.
It took four films with this director
for me to finally get up the gumption to say, 'Dude, you keep
telling me dialogue is king in your movies, but you don't
put your money where your mouth is. This film, here's what
you're going to do: you're going to call a department heads
meeting, introduce your sound mixer, and you're going to say,
'See this individual? You have to listen to what he asks you
to do, or you're going to answer to me.'
And you know what? We got the best track
we've ever got.
All it took was a little bit of collaboration
and communication, and all of a sudden, grip and electric
are moving generators a hundred yards away instead of having
them right around the corner from the set. It takes an infinitesimal
amount of extra effort to get us close to what we need, but
it takes somebody with authority to make it happen. Me as
the sound designer, I'm not a loud enough voice. But a director
is."
