Definition June 2021 - Newsletter

GREYHOUND | PRODUCTION

If Wyman didn’t already have enough to do, the exterior noises – sonar pings, gunshots and aeroplanes roaring overhead – were all done in real time, with Wyman hitting waveforms on his Voice of God playback system to create a visceral experience for the actors on set. He explains: “I got some of the effects from libraries, but a lot of it came from sound editors, who really did their research. Even though the entire movie takes place on one ship, that doesn’t mean it is one location. There are some different sonic subtleties to each location, whether you’re in the CIC, pilot house or bridge wing.” The team also researched a number of military weapons on the ship, such as 5-inch/38-calibre guns, Oerlikon 20mm autocannons and K-guns. Through watching WWII footage, they recreated the heavy artillery sounds, using design techniques and other sonic elements. Another challenge was the set itself. Not only was it constantly moving – and therefore a struggle for the actors and crew to catch their footing – the pilot

the ship to relay and receive information, so the equipment needed to be weatherproof. Wyman explains: “We used huge Ritter fans, misters and fog machines on stage to simulate storm conditions. To record the dialogue, I placed a Countryman B6 (known to be waterproof) in the bell. “To make the headphones work, I replaced one ear with a working driver sourced from some Sony 7506 headphones, and left the other ear mute, so they could hear the set. I soldered new connections and replaced the cables with the oldest- looking balanced cable I could find. Headphone signal came from an IFB channel, which had the production audio feed and the mic transmitted over one of my Lectrosonics wireless channels. After careful drilling, all the lines came through the breastplate, so the actor could wear both the transmitter and receiver discreetly. “This system enabled the talker to hear where they were in the scene, regardless of exterior noise, receive information and orders from the pilot house and sonar room, and relay it with intentional overlaps for urgency to the crew.”

house, where the majority of the movie takes place, was exceptionally small. “It was a 10x10ft space, with a 7ft-tall roof. At any given time, it had between six to eight actors, two handheld cameramen, the director, and my boom operator, Betsy Lindell. She was fantastic, because she was literally cramped in the corners – desperately trying to get a boom in whenever there was a close-up or sound effect I wanted to capture. “She was also often running between the pilot house, where it was hot and stuffy, to the bridge wing – which was at the brunt of all the water and mist the special effects team were chucking at it. It was quite a challenge. But every department helped out the sound team. From the props crew allowing me to modify the equipment, to the set decorators helping me with the placement of the modified gear, it was a truly collaborative effort.” Wyman concludes: “Just like the story being told, there was a huge sense of camaraderie.” GREYHOUND IS AVAILABLE ON APPLE TV

JUNE 202 1 | DEF I N I T ION 23

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