Who watches the award shows and says to themselves: “I have no idea what any of these categories are?” You are not alone! Other than Best Supporting Actress and Best Director, many Oscar and SAG award categories are not self-explanatory. As a video production agency, we thought we’d break down one category we do know a thing or two about: sound mixing and sound editing. (Yes, technically these are two separate categories. You caught us!)
The difference between sound mixing and sound editing may be obvious to a group of people who frequently dabble in post production but we understand we are not the majority. So in honor of award season, here is one category explained. The rest you need to figure out for yourself.
Sound Editing
For Michael Bay-esque blockbusters sound editing can involve more than one person. The lead sound editor is in charge of deciding what you hear in movies, but there are several different roles involved with finding, recording and picking the right sounds for a movie. A sound editor is also in charge of choosing the right sound effects, dialogue, ADR, foley effects and music, as well as assembling all of the pieces into the film’s final cut. After all the elements are in place, the next step is mixing and blending levels,
Here are a few of the Oscar nominees for Best Sound Editing:
1.) La La Land
2.) Deepwater Horizon
3.) Sully
Sound Mixing
Sound mixing is another post production process, but it occurs after sound editing. The sound mixer tweaks levels on every audio file, which affects everything the audience hears including dialogue, sound effects, foley effects and the score.
Here are a few of the Oscar nominees for Best Sound Mixing:
1.) Arrival
2.) Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
3.) Hacksaw Ridge
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*information for this blog was pulled from “Sound Editing vs. Sound Mixing: What’s The Difference” (Premium Beat blog)
