Sounds Good to Me

A Sound Designer’s Dream

Ah, the art of sound design.  We audio buffs are few and far between, but those of us who are truly dedicated to our craft are not in it for the money.  We enjoy recognition, and certainly wouldn’t mind a paycheck now and again.  But hey - I’m still learning, and haven’t broken into the industry and made a name for myself.  I do what I love, usually for free, but the contacts I make early in my budding career as a professional sound designer are invaluable despite being financially sparse.

My primary artistic outlet comes in the form of Webserials.com.  For the most part, the guys behind WebSerials are former classmates from days past in the film academia at Biola University, in La Mirada, California.  The production company, a part of Sikora Media Group, has released a handful of successful compelling feature films broken into bite-sized episodes, attracting thousands of loyal subscribers.  They are relatively small, and as of now, funded mostly out of pocket - with the exception of the site funding itself through ad revenue.

WebSerials is wonderful in such a way that the people backing it are not in it for money.  We are artists who simply long to create, and yearn for a medium that allows as many people to enjoy our work as possible.  Turning a profit is second priority to us.  In turn, we work freely without the strangulation of corporate oversight.

I have worked with WebSerials since production of Cataclysmo and the Battle for Earth began in early 2008.  Since then, I have had the privilege of manufacturing a plethora of unique sound effects - ranging in diversity from airlocks to flying saucers, from the subtle presence of android servos to the thunderous roar from rocket-powered Winnebagos.  Truly, working on Cataclysmo has stretched me as a sound designer, and taught me to tackle difficult scenes from unconventional angles.

Cataclysmo finished its run last winter.  This year, The Black Dawn reins.  I have much work to do.  My load has been lightened by the help of fellow sound designer, Chris Irwin, whom I look to for advice on a regular basis.  He shall be tackling the more technical side of audio for The Black Dawn as the ADR Mixer, liberating me to focus on my favorite part sound in movies.

This year will be busy, but I hope to post regularly on the topic of sound in music and movies for a very long time.  Soon I will permalink to some demos of my work. Your compliments, and criticism alike, are very welcome.

Tags: adr, audio, biola, black dawn, cataclysmo, effects, mixing, pro tools, sfx, sikora, sound, Sound Design, webserials