Premiere audio question

[Scottness]

All our sound for In My Image was recorded with a mono microphone on a minidisc but was then converted to stereo on the computer and synched with each take and rendered as an avi file of each take -- my question is this - I met with a sound editor the other day and he told me all the sound files should be in mono since that's what they were recorded in - so I've gone through and converted them all, and am now re-rendering the takes with a mono track - but after having done 60 or so, I'm thinking do I really need to? - I can batch process the rendering, but synching the audio and video again is time consuming and I think Premiere might convert them back to stereo when I render them to avi anyway because I can't change that setting in the export settings box. So am I wasting my time? - I've got about 60 to 80 takes left (the rest hasn't been synched at all yet) - what do people reccomend? Remebering too this is before I choose which takes etc to use in a scene, so it's not a decision which will effect/determine the final sound balance of the scenes because they will all be mixed in stereo - composed of many takes and atmos tracks etc

Anyones input would be appreciated

thanks

Scot M

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[MovieStuff]

Just go with what you have. I wouldn't change a thing until you finish the picture edit. "Stereo" is defined as having two different sources on discrete tracks. If you have one microphone that is present on two tracks, then you don't have stereo. You simply have two mono tracks. Won't sound any different than having one mono track.

However, and this is very important, having the sound on one channel only may mean the sound from the mic comes out of only one speaker. That will throw off your sound design. But, you have a couple of choices, depending on how you are going to design your sound:

If you are going for a stereo mix and plan on moving the mic sound from one side to the other, depending on the placement of the on-screen actor, then re-assignment of the location sound can simply wait until that point in post. If you plan on keeping the voice "centered" at all times but are still going for an otherwise stereo mix for the sake of music and/or sound effects, then you can simply bring the audio to center position on the timeline. Depending on which version of Premier you have, the tools are found in different places but all versions of Premier have that ability without having to re-digitize or export new files.

In any event, the audio can be manipulated on the time line to make it one or two channel mono. I wouldn't worry about it right now unless hearing the audio out of one speaker bothers you during editing.

Roger

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Roger Evans
MovieStuff
http://www.afterimagephoto.tv/moviestuff.html

[Scottness]

Thanks Roger - I am actually gettting it out of 2 speakers at the moment (double mono?) - so it's okay - I'll leave what I haven't changed already how it is -- save alot of time too :-)

Scot M

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[Matt Pacini]

Another suggestion I would make is, put all your dialog on their own tracks in premier; don't mix music, foley, ambient room tone or anything else at all on the dialog tracks.

WHy?
If you get distribution, they are going to want M&E tracks (music & effects only) so they can dub other languages, so it will be a snap to simply shut off those tracks to create your M&E tracks.

Otherwise, you're going to have to go in and shut off each dialog clip individually.

Matt Pacini

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[Hanthx]

Not to deviate from the subject, but I was wondering how well Premiere of a job does Premiere. At my job, were currently working with both Avid and Final Cut Pro, so I cant complain, but I have had many of my freinds cut on Premiere, and they seem to like it.
Typical price around 300 bones?

Just curious.
Hope it works out for you Scott

S-

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[Scottness]

Hi guys - yeah that's what I'm doing Matt - I really hope I can get distribution - but sometimes I feel like this film is the biggest disaster ever, and other times I feel like it's the world's greatest artistic achievement -- hmmmm, well somewhere in between those - you know how it is!

As for using Premiere - I've never used anything else so I can't compare - I have tried a Ulead media thing which I hated - but never used Avid of FCP -- I'm finding Premiere easy - it's very easy to learn -- there's a few things I wish it had - like the ability to stretch audio waves - or even a built in wave editor -- but I think it's fine

Scot M

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[MovieStuff]

You can change the length of an audio track by simply applying a speed change. I do it all the time. Just treat it like a video clip.

Roger

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Roger Evans
MovieStuff
http://www.afterimagephoto.tv/moviestuff.html

[Matt Pacini]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Courier, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Scottness:
... sometimes I feel like this film is the biggest disaster ever, and other times I feel like it's the world's greatest artistic achievement...
Scot M

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Tell me about it!
I've had a few newbie first time filmmakers that live in my area ask me for advice, and I ask them why they are making their film.
They usually say something about how passionate they are about this particular story.

They are shocked, when I tell them that's fine, but it's not a good enough reason to make a film.
You have to be in it for the long haul, and be committed to it as an artistic and career achievement in general, because it's almost certain that you're going to absolutely hate your film by the time you're done editing it!

It is tough, because you get so sick of seeing and hearing the same scene over and over, that it becomes impossible to know if it's good or not - you just hate it by this point even if nothing went wrong!

I have a documentary of the making of Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Spielberg says exactly what you just said, almost word for word. (Were you quoting him? Or are we all having a universal filmmakers experience?)

Matt Pacini


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[Scottness]

A universal film maker experience Matt! - I can remember you mentioning that somewhere too about Lost Tribes, and I was thinking about that when I wrote it - I even remember relating to what you said when I first heard you say it - and we'd only just started filming then I was yet to discover *THE JOY THAT IS EDITING*! -- But actually having said that I do actually quite enjoy editing - talk about playing god - you can so totally change an actors performance (hmm I must use this power for good not evil.....note to myself) ---- the only bit that's a a drag is fixing all that technical stuff - but that's the learning curve and as long as it's not passed on to the next project ---- you're so right about the mixture of artisitic and career aims -- I'm doing this for the artisitc reasons - but with the all the cost and time taken and the way it eats into family time etc - I can't afford for it just to be a one off - it's really got to lead to something else -- but that I see as being up to me - it's not about breaks into the "industry" it's about finding a way to make the next project, and then the next one etc - to be as progressive and as independant as possible --- anyway enough of that (I'm probably going to end up like that guy in The Player "no stars, no names - just real people - real art" or whatever he says - and then end up with Bruce Willis etc etc .......)


Anyway about the audio Roger - don't you get a pitch change then - I didn't really say it but what I was looking for is full on sound tools - time change without pitch change etc -- but maybe that's just because I'm to scabby to buy a proper sound editor


Anyway

it all happens - and then you die

(but that's cool)

Scot M

(to be found slumped over an editing bench

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[MovieStuff]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Courier, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Scottness:

it all happens - and then you die
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Nah. Only if you're lucky. Old timers like me find themselves trapped in hell, always hoping against hope that the NEXT project is "the one, baby".

Yes, the audio will change its pitch if you stretch. I think there are several free software down loads that will give you pitch change capability on wav files. I need to look at mine and see what it is and where I got it. I've had it for so long now I've forgotten. If I have it on disk, I'll send you a copy of it back with your film if you're still sending it to me to transfer.

I occasionally do some consulting work for beginning film makers and I tell them the same thing that Matt did. The other thing that I tell them is that there is nothing convenient about the film making process and that long hours are just the way it is. Volunteers would MUCH rather give you one long 16 hour day than two 8 hour days, the second of which many won't return for, anyway. Also, you do no one a favor by trying to get them off the set too quickly at the expense of coverage. If they are on the set for 16 hours, they'll be tired and mad but will be happy if the results look good later on. In that case, the time spent becomes a proud "war story" that they tell others. However, even if you keep them there only an hour, they will be pissed off and feel their time was wasted if the end results are underachieved because you were more worried about getting them off the set than you were about the end result and didn't get enough coverage.

Also, the director is never a popular guy during the shoot. That's kind of the way it is and too many neophyte directors are just too worried about that aspect or how cool they look making the film. I have this notion that you can only have one image or idea in you head at a time and you either have a vision of how the shot will look or how you look making the shot. Too many beginning film makers concentrate on the latter and not the former. So, they surround themselves with technology and all the trappings of the film making experience, hoping that magic will happen and then are surprised when nothing comes together in editing because they didn't envision the picture completed while shooting. Instead, they envisioned them being seen by others as a competent director that was well liked and universally understood by all. Never happens.

Roger

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Roger Evans
MovieStuff
http://www.afterimagephoto.tv/moviestuff.html