All in Talking Film

Visiting Sony Pictures

Visiting Sony Pictures

Michael W. Bell
Talking Film, Talking Music, Music Production, Talking Technology

I recently took a trip to Los Angeles and had the opportunity to visit the Sony Pictures lot with my buddy in Culver City and wanted to share some of pictures I managed to take (we were prohibited from taking too many) and highlights from my time there.

I had initially gotten a little frustrated with myself as I was a little unprepared and after knocking on many of the studio doors (including Hans Zimmer's Remote Control Productions) and being told I needed an appointment, I came to realise I really should have reached out to these guys before I left for L.A. - I guess the excitement of finally visiting the United States and particularly California was a little overwhelming for me which lead me to be slightly unorganised about the whole thing; you can imagine my excitement when I was told yes I could visit Sony, and yes, I could take a look at the scoring stage as it was not being used that morning...

Film Composer Junkie XL On Film Scoring, Deadlines, Hans Zimmer & His Studio

Film Composer Junkie XL On Film Scoring, Deadlines, Hans Zimmer & His Studio

Michael W. Bell
Music Composition, Music Production, Talking Film, Talking Music, Talking Technology

Who remembers the opening raining blood scene from the 1998 movie Blade? I certainly do as Blade was an important movie for me as a then youngster at a time when the the big screen was just starting to fascinate me. Until yesterday, I had been totally unaware that the music from that scene was composed by Junkie XL and licensed for the scene; cue his initial interest in becoming a film composer.

Seasoned electronic music producer-turned-film composer Tom Holkenborg aka Junkie XL is being discussed more and more now in the film music world, what with his recent and ongoing collaborations with Hans Zimmer at Remote Control Productions for movies such as Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and of course his amazing solo work on Divergent and 300: Rise of an Empire, but it occurred to me that I had never really taken the time to look into his work.

Yesterday while doing my usual scout, I stumbled across a Collider interview with Tom (below) and found myself immersed in hearing about his start as both an electronic music producer and his transformation into a film composer. I found it humbling to hear that for him, at the time of entering the film score production circuit, his tracks were at number one in several countries and despite this, he took up work as an assistant for the likes of Harry Gregson-Williams to gain a better insigne of just how scores are produced in Hollywood, an amazing level of dedication and respect for an industry he clearly admires…

The Gravity Effect

The Gravity Effect

Michael W. Bell
Talking Music, Talking Film

So I went down to the IMAX last week to check out Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity. Like most films, before even getting into the movie theatre I suspected that I may spoilt the film for myself! I always spend far too much time reading about the post-production process and the production of the soundtrack that I usually know far too much about the film. I sometimes feel I should ban myself from the internet for a few weeks before a movie release but I digress.

“The 90-minute picture — unusually short in today’s world — is cited as having just 156 shots in total, with several that are six, eight and ten minutes long”
- Arri Media

What can I say? I thought Gravity was nothing short of awesome! Emmanuel Lubezki’s shots and his editorial team have in my opinion utilised every possible frame of the 70mm IMAX film stock to deliver some truly mesmerising visuals. From the very beginning we have an opening continual 17-minute shot where the camera maneuvers around the characters in space and none of the videos and interviews I had seen with Gravity’s re-recording mixer Skip Lievsay or composer Steven price could prepare me for what the film had in store sonically…

The Sound & Music of The Dark Knight Rises

The Sound & Music of The Dark Knight Rises

Michael W. Bell
Talking Film

Legendary sound designer Richard King and the prolific Hans Zimmer feature once again on The Soundworks Collection, this time discussing the sonic experience of The Dark Knight Rises. I have heard mixed reviews about the film with people saying they preferred the second, personally I loved it and I can still remember the sonic combination is King and Zimmer thundering through the cinema. Watching this has just made me want to see the film again. For those of you who struggled with hearing Tom Hardy's Bane performance, I would recommend visiting an IMAX cinema as I think you will be surprised at the difference in clarity with regards to the dialogue in this film.