Episoder
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“I think that sound is, by far, the most powerful tool in the cinematic language.”
—Denis Villeneuve, Director, Co-Writer, and Producer, “Dune: Part Two”
Director Denis Villeneuve returns to Dolby Creator Talks to discuss the incredible sound work in “Dune: Part Two,” his latest adaptation of the epic sci-fi saga. He and his multiple Academy Award®-winning sound team share their thoughts on how sound plays such a pivotal role in his films, offering insights into his process of integrating sound design even during the early stages of development. From Paul’s iconic worm-riding sequence to the hauntingly quiet deserts of Arrakis, this episode explores the bold artistic choices that make the film such an immersive sonic experience.
Joining today’s conversation:
- Richard King - Supervising Sound Editor and Sound Designer
- Ron Bartlett - Re-Recording Mixer
- Doug Hemphill - Re-Recording Mixer
- Clint Bennett - Supervising Music Editor
Be sure to check out “Dune: Part Two,” now streaming in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos® on MAX.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Multiple Emmy® Award-winning A1 audio mixer Glenn Stilwell joins us for an in-depth discussion on mixing live sports in Dolby Atmos®. As one of the first to adopt this immersive audio technology for sports, Glenn shares his journey into the high-pressure world of live sports audio, where he has worked on everything from the Olympics to Apple’s Friday Night Baseball. From setting up microphones for the iconic “bat crack” in baseball to leveraging the immersive capabilities of Atmos for crowd sounds and announcer placement, this conversation offers a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the artistry and challenges of live sports audio production.
“When you go from stereo… now the room that you're listening in has opened up. The room, it feels bigger. Now imagine when you add four more speakers above you, now the room really opens up… If you can spread things out and get them away from the center channel, which is — the money. If the money's in the middle and the room becomes bigger, it becomes more distinct.”
—Glenn Stilwell, A1 Audio Mixer and Engineer
Special thanks to Major League Baseball and Apple for this week’s episode. You can find MLB’s Friday Night Baseball, now exclusively on Apple TV+.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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The art of pitching is a high-stakes, nerve-wracking aspect of filmmaking, where ideas transform from concepts into potential projects. Joining us to help demystify the pitching process is Dolby Institute Fellowship winner Carlos López Estrada, hosting another insightful Satellite Session from April 2024. Carlos gathers an exceptional panel featuring film and television creators, each sharing personal insights and practical tips on crafting pitches, to offer invaluable wisdom on what it takes to pitch a project and navigate the journey from idea to production.
Joining today’s discussion are:
- Marvin Lemus – Director, Co-creator, and Co-showrunner of Netflix's Gentefied
- Sadé Clacken Joseph – Director of Rap Sh!t on HBO Max, CEO of Out of Many Media
- Francisco Cabrera-Feo – Writer for Acapulco on Apple TV+ and Gordita Chronicles
- Matt Braly – Creator and Showrunner of Disney’s Amphibia
- Jessica Virtue – SVP of Production at Walt Disney Pictures
This is another installment of our ongoing “Satellite Sessions” series, which we’re bringing to you in partnership with Antigravity Academy and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment.
Follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.
Antigravity Academy
CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment)
For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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You have probably heard about the Hollywood writer’s room, but what, exactly, goes on inside one? Joining us once again to demystify yet another filmmaking topic is our good friend — and Dolby Institute Fellowship winner — Carlos López Estrada, with another of his excellent Satellite Sessions — this one from March 2024. Carlos welcomes an impressive and diverse panel of film and television writers to share their experiences, break down how these rooms come together, and discuss how collaboration drives storytelling from inception to screen.
Joining today’s discussion are:
- Teresa Hsiao – Writer, Producer, and Co-creator of “Awkwafina is Nora from Queens”
- Charise Castro Smith – Writer, Director, and Academy Award®-winning Co-writer and Co-director of “Encanto”
- Amy Aniobi – Head Writer and Co-executive Producer of “Insecure.”
- Francisco Cabrera-Feo – Writer for “Acapulco” on Apple TV+ and “Gordita Chronicles”
This is another installment of our ongoing “Satellite Sessions” series, which we’re bringing to you in partnership with Antigravity Academy and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment.
Follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.
Antigravity Academy
CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment)
For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Pharrell Williams has had a remarkable life and career in music, which are chronicled in the film “Piece By Piece,” a uniquely animated documentary made entirely out of LEGO. Joining today’s discussion is Director Morgan Neville, Supervising Sound Editor Al Nelson, and Re-recording Mixer Pete Horner, to talk how Pharrell’s creative vision for using LEGO opened up exciting storytelling possibilities, the film’s imaginative sound design and immersive audio mix, and how they brought Pharrell’s experience with synesthesia to life through sound and animation.
“This film had so many more opportunities than a documentary normally [has]. Because of animation, I felt like we could time- and space-travel… That kind of freedom I got incredibly excited by. Normally we have so many constrictions, but both in terms of what I could do with sound, but also particularly with Pharrell, what I could do visually with sound. Both in terms of creating the synesthesia effect — which he sees color when he hears sound, and that we could actually see that — and by creating the beats, represented by physical objects of color, too. So that, from a storytelling point of view, was great.”
—Morgan Neville, Director, Writer, and Producer, “Piece By Piece”
Be sure to check out Piece by Piece, now in theaters and Dolby Cinemas in stunning Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Academy Award®-winning composer Hildur Guðnadóttir and executive music producer Jason Ruder join our guest host, music journalist Jon Burlingame, to discuss their extraordinary work on “Joker: Folie à Deux.” The sequel to 2019’s Oscar-winning “Joker” comes with high expectations, and Hildur and Jason talk about the challenge of evolving the sound of the Joker universe, while incorporating new elements like live-recorded songs and experimental instruments. They discuss how the music helps define the tone of the movie, blurring the lines between score and song to create an immersive experience.
“We really wanted to honor the sound world that we had already established [from the first film]... so we didn't want to go too far away from it. We knew that there would be strings and there would be a cello connection… Well, it just so happened that my instrument that I used in the first song got stolen a week before the recording session. So I had actually intended to just use the same instrument, but the Gods of Creativity forced me in a different direction… So I came up with this idea of creating what I call ‘the string prison.’ It’s literally like an electric fence that’s playable... an electroacoustic, large scale, playable string instrument that formed this prison cell of very, very, very hot strings, that I played through another instrument.”
—Hildur Guðnadóttir, Composer, “Joker: Folie à Deux”
Be sure to check out “Joker: Folie à Deux,” now in theaters, in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Director and co-writer Nora Fingscheidt joins her sound team to discuss their extraordinary work on the new film “The Outrun” — a moving portrayal of one woman’s struggle with sobriety and memories of a traumatic childhood, using sound design to explore the emotional landscape of its main character, Rona, played by the extraordinary Saoirse Ronan. From the quiet, wind-swept expanses of the Orkney Islands to the bustling streets of London, the team reveals how they crafted distinct sonic environments that reflect Rona’s turbulent emotional journey. The film was a standout at this past year’s Sundance Film Festival and is a masterclass in how to use sound design to tell a compelling, layered story.
Joining today’s discussion:
- Nora Fingscheidt - Director and Co-Writer
- Gregor Bonse - Re-Recording Mixer
- Dominik Leube - Supervising Sound Editor & Sound Mixer
- Oscar Stiebitz - Sound Designer & Sound Mixer
"As soon as we get together - this crew, with our composers - we see it as this merging [of an] audio landscape, between sound design, mix and music. And we start thinking, ‘how should this movie sound?’ Basically at the same time as I get together with the DOP discussing, ‘how should this movie look?’ It's 50% image, 50% sound, no matter what the budget is.”
—Nora Fingscheidt, Director and Co-Writer, “The Outrun”
Be sure to check out “The Outrun” now in theaters, in stunning Dolby Atmos®.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Legendary filmmaker, animator, writer, and voice actor Chris Sanders (you may know him as “Stitch”) joins his sound team — including our first-ever guest on this podcast, Randy Thom — to talk about their stunning work on the latest animated adventure/tearjerker from DreamWorks Animation, “The Wild Robot.” A truly visual spectacle, the film has an appropriately spectacular soundtrack, which Chris and the team relished in crafting its richness and complexity for over two years.
“We didn't have any score at all for a while. So one of the really neat things about the opening [reel] is that it's all sound design. It's all sound effects, which is really, really cool. I was impressed with how much detail — and it was necessary to have that kind of detail — and because we had the opportunity of getting as deep into this as we wanted to. So it's an especially good reason to go see this movie on a big screen as the sound of this whole film is really is so spectacular.”
—Chris Sanders, Writer and Director, “The Wild Robot”
Joining today’s discussion:
- Chris Sanders - Writer and Director
- Randy Thom - Sound Designer
- Gary Rizzo - Re-recording Mixer
- Leff Lefferts - Re-recording Mixer & Supervising Sound Editor
Be sure to check out “The Wild Robot” in stunning Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®, in theaters now.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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“The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars” is the first David Bowie studio album to be released in Dolby Atmos® and joining us today is Ken Scott, the original co-producer of the album (and many others from Bowie), as well as Dolby Atmos mix engineer, Emre Ramazanoglu.
Ken Scott is a legend in the world of music production and engineering, and he takes our guest host, Ben Givarz, inside the studio with David Bowie to explore the production of the original album and discusses how he wanted to create a new experience for listeners in Dolby Atmos, which also led him to the creation of brand new stereo mixes.
This interview is part of our new series, "Reimagining the Classics."
“If you're going to ask people to listen to a record in a different format, you need to give it to them totally in that format, not just take the stereo and just put things in different places. It should be something different so that they become interested in it again. And I think it worked, because Woody, [Bowie’s] drummer, he heard some of it — and his first words were, ‘I felt as if I was there with the band.’ He felt as if he was on stage, because it surrounded him so much. Which is exactly what we were aiming for.”
—Ken Scott, Record Producer and Mix Engineer
You can listen to these and many other classic and contemporary albums in Dolby Atmos, on enabled streaming services.
You can purchase the album, “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars,” here:
https://davidbowie.com/
https://rhino.com/
Many thanks to Mike Exeter for the B-roll of Ken and Emre in the mixing studio. The full video can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/LVcagYbrd6o
Interested in creating content in Dolby Atmos? Check out our free resources to give you a jump start!
- Dolby Atmos Music Accelerator: https://www.dolby.com/institute/music-accelerator/
- Dolby Atmos Essentials Course: https://learning.dolby.com/
- Dolby Atmos Music Support: https://professional.dolby.com/music/Professional-resources/
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode on our YouTube channel.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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“Sing Sing” — an independent feature film now in theaters — made a big splash at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival. Directed by Greg Kwedar, the film is notable for its unique casting approach, blending actors such as Colman Domingo with real-life, formally incarcerated individuals. It’s set in the Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York, focusing on the prison’s theater troupe. But one of the most interesting aspects of the production was how it was financed. And in particular how it used a profit-sharing model where all crew members, including those non-professional actors, received a share of the film's profits. Today’s discussion details how exactly that financing strategy worked, as well as the inspiring journey to getting the film made.
Joining today’s discussion:
- Carlos López Estrada - Moderator
- Valerie Bush - Moderator
- Greg Kwedar - Producer, Director, and Writer, Sing Sing
- Clint Bentley - Producer and Writer, Sing Sing
- Monique Walton - Producer, Sing Sing
Be sure to check out Sing Sing, now playing in theaters.
This is another installment of our ongoing “Satellite Sessions” series, which we’re bringing to you in partnership with Antigravity Academy and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment.
Follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.
Antigravity Academy
CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment)
For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Multi-platinum mixer and engineer Richard Chycki joins us to dive deep into his work with legendary rock bands such as Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Dream Theater, Mick Jagger, and, of course, the iconic Rush. Richard has been at the forefront of immersive audio with his Dolby Atmos® mixes of Rush classics like “Moving Pictures” and “Signals,” building upon his original surround mixes.
In this conversation with guest host Ben Givarz, Richard shares his process for respecting the creative intent of these timeless tracks while adapting them to Dolby Atmos, ensuring an immersive experience that translates seamlessly across various playback systems. He delves into how Dolby Atmos allows him to emphasize the sonic nuances of Geddy Lee's voice and bass, Alex Lifeson's intricate guitar work, and Neil Peart's legendary drumming, all while maintaining the integrity of the original recordings. Plus, he offers his insights into the future of music mixing, and his excitement for new, original compositions being created in Dolby Atmos from the ground up.
This interview is part of our new series, "Reimagining the Classics."
“One of the things about a technology like Dolby Atmos is it gives producers, mixers, engineers and artists a new way to express, creatively. A lot of the work I do is in mixing. And for me, rather than trying to reinvent ways to cram bigger and bigger sessions into two speakers, I now have a lot more real estate to work with. And that's gratifying. And it gives me a lot of new creative energy.”
—Richard Chycki, Audio Engineer and Mixer
You can listen to these and many other classic and contemporary albums in Dolby Atmos, on enabled streaming services.
You can learn more about Richard Chycki and his incredible mixing career here.
Interested in creating content in Dolby Atmos? Check out our free resources to give you a jump start!
- Dolby Atmos Music Accelerator: https://www.dolby.com/institute/music-accelerator/
- Dolby Atmos Essentials Course: https://learning.dolby.com/
- Dolby Atmos Music Support: https://professional.dolby.com/music/Professional-resources/
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode on our YouTube channel.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Mix engineer Ryan Ulyate joins us to dive deep into his work with the late, great Tom Petty, including his Dolby Atmos® mixes of Petty's “Highway Companion” solo album, “Wildflowers & All The Rest” Deluxe Edition, “Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Greatest Hits,” and the iconic “Live at the Fillmore 1997.”
Ryan has been a recording engineer and producer for over 40 years, with credits on over 120 albums, and has been at the forefront of immersive audio for over 20. In this conversation with guest host Ben Givarz, Ryan shares his journey of sifting through hours of multi-track tapes to create those incredible new immersive mixes, as well as his theories, best practices, and the creative process behind bringing a fully immersive experience to life in Dolby Atmos.
This interview is part of our new series, "Reimagining the Classics."
“What I realized about Dolby Atmos was that it's not something you do to overwhelm people. It's just something that allows you to put [the listener] in the space of where the music was being made… You can create more drama and get people really inside the music and create these little moments. I think that I've always looked at music visually. I just always see a picture when I'm mixing. And this just broadens the scope so much more. And it gives you such an emotional connection when it works. And that's all that the musicians that I've respected, and I've worked with, ever wanted. Just to find a great way - the best way - for people to connect with their music.”
—Ryan Ulyate, Record Producer and Mix Engineer
You can listen to these and many other classic and contemporary albums in Dolby Atmos, on enabled streaming services.
Be sure to also check out Ryan Ulyate’s Grammy Award®-nominated album “Act 3,” in Dolby Atmos:
- Apple Music
- Amazon Music
- TIDAL
- Immersive Audio Album
You can learn more about Ryan and his incredible mix studio here.
Interested in creating content in Dolby Atmos? Check out our free resources to give you a jump start!
- Dolby Atmos Music Accelerator: https://www.dolby.com/institute/music-accelerator/
- Dolby Atmos Essentials Course: https://learning.dolby.com/
- Dolby Atmos Music Support: https://professional.dolby.com/music/Professional-resources/
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode on our YouTube channel.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on
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Bob Clearmountain and Rhett Davies, legends in the world of music recording, production, and engineering, join guest host Ben Givarz to delve into the process of transforming Roxy Music's iconic album "Avalon" and Bryan Ferry's platinum record "Boys and Girls" into Dolby Atmos®.
They dive deep into the background of the recording and engineering processes they used on these and other legendary Roxy Music records in the 70s and 80s, as well as how they used the original multi-tracks to go from 5.1 mixes in the early 2000s, onto these incredible new Dolby Atmos mixes.
This interview is part of our new series, "Reimagining the Classics."
“It was a lot more complicated than what either of us had remembered from the original mixes. But still, it's always an adventure and I love a challenge. Especially when the music is great. This music, I still listen to it all the time. It's such a pleasure to listen to and to work with. I mean, we were in heaven.”
—Bob Clearmountain, Record Producer and Mix Engineer
You can listen to these and many other classic and contemporary albums in Dolby Atmos, on enabled streaming services.
Interested in creating content in Dolby Atmos? Check out our free resources to give you a jump start!
Dolby Atmos Music Accelerator: https://www.dolby.com/institute/music-accelerator/
Dolby Atmos Essentials Course: https://learning.dolby.com/
Dolby Atmos Music Support: https://professional.dolby.com/music/Professional-resources/
You can learn more about Bob Clearmountain and his incredible mix studio here.
And be on the lookout for his next collaboration with Bryan Ferry, the recently announced:
Bryan Ferry "Retrospective: Selected Recordings 1973-2023."
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode on our YouTube channel.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards®, “Ripley,” the new Netflix limited series from creator Steven Zaillian, is a masterclass in filmmaking and the art of sound. So it’s no wonder that two of those nominations are for Outstanding Sound Editing and Sound Mixing. And it’s clear why the sound team was given so much creative freedom to explore the sonic possibilities of the show, as many of those details and nuances were written directly into the scripts, and overseen by a showrunner with a sharp attention to detail.
“Without a doubt, Steve Zaillian pays attention to every footstep and every breath and every movement.”
—Michael Barry, Re-recording Mixer, “Ripley”
Today we are joined by members of the sound team behind the show, including:
- Larry Zipf, Co-supervising Sound Editor/Sound Designer and Re-recording Mixer
- Michael Feuser, Co-supervising Sound Editor
- Michael Barry, Re-recording Mixer
- Maurizio Argentieri, Sound Mixer
NOTE: This interview contains spoilers! So be sure to check out “Ripley,” now streaming on Netflix in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®, before listening.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode on our YouTube channel.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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How Hollywood studios work and operate can be mystifying, especially for emerging filmmakers. Luckily, Dolby Institute Fellowship winner Carlos Lopez Estrada returns for another of his excellent Satellite Sessions (this one from December), featuring executives from some of the biggest studios in the entertainment industry, all to help de-mystify how they, and the studios, find, develop, and produce their projects.
Joining the discussion are:
- Vanessa Morrison, President of Streaming, Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production
- Mika Pryce, Senior Vice President of Production, Paramount Pictures
- Sheila Walcott, Senior Vice President of Creative Development, Warner Bros. Entertainment
- Ryan Jones, Senior Vice President, Production Development, Universal Pictures
- Tara Duncan, President, Onyx Collective
This is another installment of our ongoing “Satellite Sessions” series, which we’re bringing to you in partnership with Antigravity Academy and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment.
Follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.
Antigravity Academy
CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment)
For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Pulitzer Prize-winning and Emmy- and Grammy-nominated composer Michael Abels joins our guest host, music journalist Jon Burlingame, to discuss the music of “Star Wars: The Acolyte.” The music for the series was a massive undertaking, made even more formidable by the knowledge that every cue would be compared to the work of legendary composer John Williams. But as a longtime fan of “Star Wars,” Abels jumped into the project eagerly.
“I'm one of those people who saw the original trilogy in the theater, so I've grown up with ‘Star Wars’ and with the music of John Williams… I think every fan actually has an assessment of what makes ‘Star Wars’ ‘Star Wars.’ So Leslye [Headland, creator and showrunner] and I talked about that… And we quickly aligned on that the music of ‘Star Wars,’ while it's not necessary that it be old-school or traditional or orchestral, that's something that we both valued. And so it was our intention to have the score be very traditional in places where it called for that and where that would work. And at the same time, there are definite ways in which this series explores new ground. It's all new characters. There's a method to the storytelling that's distinctly Leslye’s own. And so in those places, the score does what it needs to do to bring this new element to the story.”
—Michael Abels, Composer, “Star Wars: The Acolyte”
Be sure to check out “Star Wars: The Acolyte,” now streaming on Disney+.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Academy Award®-nominated director (“Raya and the Last Dragon”) — and Dolby Institute Fellowship winner — Carlos López Estrada brings together another exciting panel of film professionals. As one of the producers, Carlos joins fellow Academy Award®-nominated director (“Nai Nai & Wài Pó”) Sean Wang, along with members of the cast and crew, to discuss the herculean task of bringing their independent film “Dìdi (弟弟)” to life.
“It’s such a difficult thing to make your first personal film. It’s so impossibly difficult. And I think you really need to know that’s what you want to do. And if, in the depths of the night, you ask yourself, ‘is this what I must do?’ And if the answer comes out to be yes… then I think you adjust everything in your life in accordance with that goal. It’s just something you must do. If you get enough money, you make it bigger. If you don’t get enough money, you still make it. You make it a little more intimate. I think it’s just that necessity… to tell this story… We make narratives, essentially, to save ourselves.”
—Joan Chen, Actor, “Dìdi (弟弟)”
Today’s panel also includes:
- Sean Wang - Director, Writer, Producer
- Izaac Wang - Actor (“Chris Wang”)
- Joan Chen - Actor (“Chungsing Wang”)
- Valerie Bush - Producer
- Sam Davis - Director of Photography
and Moderator
- Carlos López Estrada - Producer
“Dìdi (弟弟)” was a recipient of the Dolby Institute Fellowship Award, our grant program for exceptional independent films to finish in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®. And we couldn’t be more proud of this film, even before it went on to win the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.
Be sure to check out “Dìdi (弟弟)” in theaters this Friday, July 26!
Wide release on August 16th.
This discussion was another edition of Antigravity Academy’s Satellite Sessions — free monthly conversations with high-level individuals in film and tv, whose objective is to decentralize resources/information and make them available to as many up-and-coming filmmakers as possible — co-presented by CAPE USA (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment).
Learn more about Antigravity Academy:
https://antigravityacademy.co/
Learn more about CAPE — The Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment:
https://www.capeusa.org/
Be sure to follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.
For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks, wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this and all our episodes on YouTube.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Perhaps the top colorist in his field, Stefan Sonnefeld joins us for our 200th episode!
If you aren’t aware of Stefan, you’ve almost certainly seen his work. Some of his recent projects include “Top Gun: Maverick,” “The White Lotus,” and “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3.” His credit list includes some of the biggest franchises in our business, including “Star Wars,” “Star Trek,” “Jurassic Park,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Transformers,” and many more. Just a few of the A-List directors and producers he has worked with are: Tony Scott, Ridley Scott, Michael Mann, Martin Scorsese, Zack Snyder, Tom Cruise, Michael Bay, Bradley Cooper, Steven Zaillian, Spike Jonze, Gore Verbinski, Tim Burton, Matt Reeves, JJ Abrams, George Clooney, Tony Gilroy, and Judd Apatow.
So what does it take to be a top colorist in Hollywood, working for some of the biggest personalities in the business?
“Well, it's not just the director, it's a lot of people now… So it's a team sport. Everybody plays a part in it. And it's why it's so enjoyable for me. You have to involve a lot of people, but in general, the director, let's say that's the main person. You have to have a good relationship with that person and you have to be able to interpret what they're saying and get that onto the screen. And to do it quite quickly too, because it's a lot of effort and work and money that goes into these projects. And some people talk in technical terms. And some people, like a Michael Mann for instance, talk through emotions. Like, ‘Hey, [the character is] very this [way] in the scene. And he's feeling this. And this is what's going to happen. And this is what just happened. And therefore this is what I want.’ And I'm sort of interpreting that, in a color way, and [I’ll] put it on the screen and he'll be like, ‘great, that's it!’ Or, ‘no, that's not what I meant. It should be this.’”
—Stefan Sonnenfeld, Senior Colorist, Founder and CEO, Company 3
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You can also check out the video for this episode.
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Documentary filmmaker Lance Oppenheim, as well as sound supervisor and re-recording mixer Paul Hsu, join us to discuss their new HBO documentary limited-series, “Ren Faire.” The show details the Succession-like power struggle atop the Texas Renaissance Festival, amid its founder’s impending retirement. It was filmed in an appropriately over-the-top theatrical style, and features some incredible sonic world-building, which — in true Lance Oppenheim style — very cleverly mixes real and fantastical elements... often leaving the line between the two quite grey.
“I've always been obsessed with Abbas Kiarostami's movies and ‘Close-Up,’ which is very formally different than this, but the idea with that film was embracing reenactments, embracing performance, as a form of truth. And to me, with this project, everything you're seeing on the screen is real. But I wanted to also acknowledge that the moment you drop a camera anywhere, you violate the reality. So it's absurd. All of it's absurd. Documentary filmmaking is absurd. Nonfiction storytelling is absurd. So if we can acknowledge that, can we push past it and find something new?”
—Lance Oppenheim, Director, Writer, and Executive Producer, “Ren Faire”
This conversation was recorded in-person, in front of a live audience at Dolby’s screening room in mid-town Manhattan, as part of our ongoing collaboration with the Artist Academy and Film at Lincoln Center.
Be sure to check out “Ren Faire,” with all three episodes now streaming on Max.
Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
Learn more about the Dolby Institute and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
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Academy Award®-nominated director (“Raya and the Last Dragon”) — and Dolby Institute Fellowship winner — Carlos López Estrada brings together another panel of working filmmakers and creatives, this time to discuss the hot button issue of AI in Filmmaking.
Joining the discussion are:
- Jorge R. Gutierrez (Filmmaker - “The Book of Life,” “Maya and the Three”)
- Isa Mazzei (Filmmaker - “Cam,” “How to Blow Up a Pipeline”)
- Paul Trillo (Filmmaker, Visual Artist - “The Hardest Part” music video for Washed Out)
- Dave A. Liu (Producer/Financier - “Dìdi (弟弟),” “Sasquatch Sunset”)
- Dave Clark (Filmmaker, Futurist, Educator)
- Joe Penna (Filmmaker - “Stowaway”)
“I see all of it as inevitable. And lot of things that are being put out there are frankly, I find, just not that provocative or interesting. And I think AI is being used in a very lazy way, which is totally fine. But, if you have the discipline and if you have the experience, you can take that experience use this tool as a way… to discover these ideas that you probably wouldn’t have made otherwise.”
—Paul Trillo, Filmmaker and Director of “The Hardest Part” music video
Be sure to check out Paul Trillo’s controversial Sora-generated music video for Washed Out, “The Hardest Part.”
This is another amazing conversation which is part of our ongoing “Satellite Sessions” series, which we’re bringing to you in partnership with Antigravity Academy and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment.
Follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.
Antigravity Academy
CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment)
For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.
You can also check out the video for this episode.
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