By Mel Lambert
With a BAFTA win and high promise for the upcoming Oscar Awards, the sound team behind Bohemian Rhapsody secured a clean sweep at both the Cinema Audio Society (CAS) and Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) ceremonies here in Los Angeles last weekend.
Paul Massey
The 55th CAS Awards also honored sound mixer Lee Orloff with a Cinema Audio Society Career Achievement Award, while director Steven Spielberg received its Cinema Audio Society Filmmaker Award. And at the MPSE Awards, director Antoine Fuqua accepted the 2019 Filmmaker Award, while supervising sound editor Stephen H. Flick secured the MPSE Career Achievement honor.
Re-recording mixer Paul Massey — accepting the CAS Award for Outstanding Sound Mixing Motion Picture-Live Action on behalf of his fellow dubbing mixers Tim Cavagin and Niv Adiri, together with production mixer John Casali — thanked Bohemian Rhapsody’s co-executive producer and band members Roger Taylor and Brian May for “trusting me to mix the music of Queen.”
The film topped a nominee field that also included A Quiet Place, A Star is Born, Black Panther and First Man; for several years the CAS winner in the feature-film category also has secured an Oscar Award for sound mixing.
Isle of Dogs secured a CAS Award in the animation category, which also included Incredibles 2, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and The Grinch. The sound-mixing team included original dialogue mixer Darrin Moore and re-recording mixers Christopher Scarabosio and Wayne Lemmer, together with scoring mixers Xavier Forcioli and Simon Rhodes and Foley mixer Peter Persaud.
Free Solo won a documentary award for production mixer Jim Hurst, re-recording mixers Tom Fleischman and Ric Schnupp, together with scoring mixer Tyson Lozensky, ADR mixer David Boulton and Foley mixer Joana Niza Braga.
Finally, American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace (Part 1) The Man Who Would Be Vogue, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Vote For Kennedy, Vote For Kennedy and Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown (Bhutan) won CAS Awards within various broadcast sound categories.
Steven Spielberg and Bradley Cooper
The CAS Filmmaker Award was presented to Steven Spielberg by fellow director Bradley Cooper. This followed tributes from regular members of Spielberg’s sound team, including production sound mixer Ron Judkins plus re-recording mixers Andy Nelson and Gary Rydstrom, who quipped: “We spent so much money on Jurassic Park that [Steven] had to shoot Schindler’s List in black & white!”
“Through your talent, [sound editors and mixers] allow the audience to see with their ears,” Spielberg acknowledged, while stressing the full sonic and visual impact of a theatrical experience. “There’s nothing like a big, dark theater,” he stated. He added that he still believes that movie theaters are the best environment in which to fully enjoy his cinematic creations.
Upon receiving his Career Achievement Award from sound mixer Chris Noyes and director Dean Parisot, production sound mixer Lee Orloff acknowledged the close collaboration that needs to exist between members of the filmmaking team. “It is so much more powerful than the strongest wall you could build,” he stated, recalling a 35-year career that spans nearly 80 films.
Lee Orloff
Outgoing CAS president Mark Ulano presented the President’s Award to leading Foley mixer MaryJo Lang, while the CAS Student Award went to Anna Wozniewicz of Chapman University. Finalists included Maria Cecilia Ayalde Angel of Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogota, Allison Ng of USC, Bo Pang of Chapman University and Kaylee Yacono of Savannah College of Art and Design.
Finally, the CAS Outstanding Product Awards went to Dan Dugan Sound Design for its Dugan Automixing in the Sound Devices 633 Compact Mixer, and to Izotope for its RX7 Audio Repair Software.
The CAS Awards ceremony was hosted by comedian Michael Kosta.
Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards
During the 66th Annual Golden Reels, outstanding achievement in sound editing awards were presented in 23 categories, encompassing feature films, long- and short-form television, animation, documentaries, games, special venue and other media.
The Americans, Atlanta, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Westworld figured prominently within the honored TV series.
Following introductions by re-recording mixer Steve Pederson and supervising sound editor Mandell Winter, director/producer Michael Mann presented the 2019 MPSE Filmmaker Award to Antoine Fuqua, while Academy Award-winning supervising sound editor Ben Wilkins presented the MPSE Career Achievement Award to fellow supervising sound editor Stephen H. Flick, who also serves as professor of cinematic arts at the University of Southern California.
Antoine Fuqua
“We celebrate the creation of entertainment content that people will enjoy for generations to come,” MPSE president Tom McCarthy stated in his opening address. “As new formats appear and new ways to distribute content are developed, we need to continue to excel at our craft and provide exceptional soundtracks that heighten the audience experience.”
As Pederson stressed during his introduction to the MPSE Filmmaker Award, Fuqua “counts on sound to complete his vision [as a filmmaker].” “His films are stylish and visceral,” added Winter, who along with Pederson has worked on a dozen films for the director during the past two decades.
“He is a director who trusts his own vision,” Mandell confirmed. “Antoine loves a layered soundtrack. And ADR has to be authentic and true to his artistic intentions. He is a bone fide storyteller.”
Four-time Oscar-nominee Mann stated that the honored director “always elevates everything he touches; he uses sound design and music to its fullest extent. [He is] a director who always pushes the limits, while evolving his art.”
Pre-recorded tributes to Fuqua came from actor Chis Pratt, who starred in The Magnificent Seven (2017). “Nobody deserves [this award] more,” he stated. Actor Mark Wahlberg, who starred in Shooter (2007), and producer Jerry Bruckheimer were also featured.
Stephen Hunter Flick
During his 40-year career in the motion picture industry, while working on some 150 films, Steven H. Flick has garnered two Oscar Award wins for Speed (1994) and Robocop (1987) together with nominations for Total Recall (1990), Die Hard (1988) and Poltergeist (1982).
The award for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Animation Short Form went to Overwatch – Reunion from Blizzard Entertainment, headed by supervising sound editor Paul Menichini. The Non-Theatrical Animation Long Form award was awarded to NextGen from Netflix, headed by supervising sound editors David Acord and Steve Slanec.
The Feature Animation award went to the Oscar-nominated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse from Sony Pictures Entertainment/Marvel, headed by supervising sound editors Geoffrey Rubay and Curt Schulkey. The Non-Theatrical Documentary award went to Searching for Sound — Islandman and Veyasin from Karga Seven Pictures/Red Bull TV, headed by supervising sound editor Suat Ayas. Finally, the Feature Documentary was a tie between Free Solo from National Geographic Documentary Films, headed by supervising sound editor Deborah Wallach, and They Shall Not Grow Old from Wingnut Films/Fathom Events/Warner Bros., headed by supervising sound editors Martin Kwok, Brent Burge, Melanie Graham and Justin Webster.
The Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing — Music Score award also went to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, with music editors Katie Greathouse and Catherine Wilson, while the Musical award went to Bohemian Rhapsody from GK Films/Fox Studios, with supervising music editor John Warhurst and music editor Neil Stemp. The Dialogue/ADR award also went to Bohemian Rhapsody, with supervising ADR/dialogue editors Nina Hartston and Jens Petersen, while the Effects/Foley award went to A Quiet Place from Paramount Pictures, with supervising sound editors Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl.
The Student Film/Verna Fields Award went to Facing It from National Film and Television School, with supervising sound designer/editor Adam Woodhams.
LA-based Mel Lambert is principal of Content Creators. He can be reached at mel.lambert@content-creators.com. Follow him on Twitter @MelLambertLA.
