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Dialogue Editing for Motion Pictures: A Guide to the Invisible Art?
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Hmm. The process can be long. Here's a book I'd recommend reading.
http://www.amazon.com/Dialogue-Editing-Motion-Pictures-Invisible/dp/0240809181
However in short, here is how I work my post projects.
Collect deposit OMF Import Track organization Track consolidation Dialog cleaning ADR recordings Easy / rough SFX placement Music overlay Review / fix sound edit Mix 1 Mix 2 Review/fix Export preview and send Get approval or notes for revision Export deliverables Collect final payment Send deliverables
LOCATION SOUND:
You will want to get the boom as close as possible using a boom pole and asking the cam op or PSM for a "boom line." The boom should be just out of frame pointed downwards at the speaking actor's mouth. Careful study of the script and a deft hand will allow you to pivot for lines and get every syllable on-mic. You will want a good shotgun for exteriors and a nice cardiod for interiors along with a suspension system and wind protection.
Lavs are great for when a boom is not possible or as a safety backup, but RELY ON THE BOOM. A $200 lav mic sounds like ass compared to a $1600 shotgun. Hide the lavs but use moleskin or various tape rigs to eliminate clothing noise. You want the lavs to be ideally right on the breastbone, not up by the neck. Neck micing sounds like shit and there is no amount of eq to make the actor sound natural if you use a tie rig. They will sound like a WWII pilot/crappy reality TV host if you mic them by the neck.
You will want to record all open mics to individual tracks using a multitrack field recorder. Print a mix track if you want but ISOs are most useful. Make sure all takes are slated and/or you run timecode to make syncing in post faster. For levels, make sure you don't let any channel clip (at mic, preamp, or recording - look up gain staging for more on this) and that you have sufficient volume to allow for headroom and keep the tracks out of the noise floor of the recording medium. If things are peaking around -12dB that is a safe area, but use your ears.
POST SOUND:
After everything is cut together you will get an OMF from the editor. Now the work will be divided to three categories: 1. Dialog Editing, 2. Sound Effects Editing, 3. Mixing.
For dialog editing you will want to make sure scenes play smoothly with no audible transitions between the various shots. Scene breaks are ok for harder cuts, use a 2 frame crossfade so there are no clicks on all "hard cuts." You will need to find fill, remove clicks, and generally clean up the recordings but DO NOT nuke them with iZotope like all the other newbie dialog editors. Your goal in this stage is to allow the production sound to carry the story without any distractions. Check out this book for all you need to know on dialog editing: https://www.amazon.com/Dialogue-Editing-Motion-Pictures-Invisible/dp/0240809181.
For sound effects you will need to cut background ambience, any hard effects, and perform Foley (if the budget allows, which is unlikely if you're doing everything yourself). Hopefully this will be in at least 5.1 so you will need to cut wide backgrounds for the specific format of the film. Hard effects like doors, guns, cars, etc are obvious. Record any sounds you need that your library does not have. The more you record yourself the better the finished product will be since it will have a unique quality.
I would suggest hiring out for Foley since it requires a lot of practice and good gear. But you can do some ghetto Foley yourself. You will want to record Footsteps, Props, and a Cloth track for the entire film if it will be distributed internationally. Cover every sound that is production plus implied sounds or else QC will flag the MnE and the producer will be confused/upset.
Finally when all of the sound editing is done it's time to mix. First start with the dialog. Shape it, smooth it, take some noise out (but not too much), deal with sibilance, add perspective and depth, and make sure it is playing at the right level. For streaming (Netflix, Amazon), try to get it around -27LUFS. Add verb where necessary but go easy and don't blanket an entire scene with verb "CUZ IT SOUND DOPE THRU MY LEX480."
Next you will want to mix the background ambience and music against the mixed dialog. Make sure it supports the story and you can still make out every word (looking at you Mr. Nolan). Finally mix in the hard effects and Foley. At this point it's time to show the film to the director, who will undo all of your hard work.
After mixing with the director and producer, you will need to print your files. Make 5.1 and stereo mixes as well as DME stems. If budget allows do a separate MnE mix. Then have a beer and enjoy the $25 you were paid for the project.
That is a nutshell overview. For any terms in the above you do not understand, check out this website: google.com. Also I would suggest apprenticing with someone who knows what the f they are doing. Faster, cheaper, and better than film school. Schools are for-profit institutions who will take your money and leave you with only the skills necessary to work at Sweetwater selling Korg Volcas to bedroom producers.
here's a 382 page book that will tell you everything you need to know.
I hate to sound like a dick, but I'm slightly offended by this post.
Here:
Give that a read. It'll clear this up for you. This is also a useful read:
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