THE AVIATOR and THE INCREDIBLES took the top feature and animated film sound editing award categories at the 52nd Annual Golden Reel Awards, doled out by the Motion Picture Sound Editors on Feb. 26, 2005, at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles. The Golden Reel Awards acknowledge the year's best work in the various areas of sound editing.
JIMMY NEUTRON fro Salami Studios won for a second consecutive year for Sound Editing in TV Animation, while the crew at Hacienda Post won for a second consecutive year in Sound Editing in Direct To Video for BIONICLE II: LEGENDS OF METRU NUI.
LOST won two awards Sound Effects editing in Shortform Television, and Dialogue/ADR Editing in Shortform Television. CSI MIAMI won for Sound Effects Editing in Longform Television.
The Verna Fields Award for Sound Editing in a Student Film went to Emma Meaden, from the National Film & Television School in London for LLOYD IN THE CORNER. This year, Associated Production Music underwrote the $1000 Ethel Crutcher Scholarship Fund for this award.
Not as many awards were given out in other categories of animation this year due to a lack of entries.
Richard Hymns presented Gary R. Rydstrom, who won a Golden Reel last year for his work on FINDING NEMO, with the Career Achievement Award. Rydstrom was reverent and the most entertaining throughout his acceptance. He said, Now I can look people in the eye and say, Back off. I have a Lifetime Achievement Award.!
Rydstrom has received numerous nominations and awards for his sound work, including six Golden Reels, two Cinema Audio Society Awards, five TEC awards, two British Academy Awards and seven Oscars from Best Sound and Best Sound Editing.
He studied film at USC, where professor Ken Miura recommended him to Lucasfilm 20 years ago. Rydstrom described the impact of working there, which eventually sub-divided into Skywalker Sound, Where revolution is status quo and the best work is achieved in unusual ways. He was given a chance to cut sound on a tree monster. He tried hard to impress his boss, Don Hunt, who told him the sound was great but was even better run backwards.
Rydstrom thanked three directors in particular, Steven Spielberg for making his crew always look great; James Cameron, who pushes everyone to their limits and Robert Redford, who talked to my parents on the phone. He explained his parents never quite understood if he did something important in filmmaking, until they talked to Bob on the phone.
He also thanked John Lasseter, My favorite collaborator, for allowing me to make a movie for the first time in 27 years. Rydstrom recently left Skywalker Sound to join Pixar Animation Studios as a first-time director on a film. When I lecture to kids interested in a fast track to directing, I tell them to check out sound, he quipped. I will carry this award to Pixar to bully my way around and get what I want!
Rydstrom told AWN he preferred cutting sound on animated movies because the editor has total control; he can create the sound from scratch. Youre not limited by what has been recorded on the set. You have a blank slate from which you can create, he said.
After watching a montage of the many groundbreaking films of George Lucas, recipient of the Inaugural Filmmakers Award, his presenter, Walter Murch said, When you see these films, you see the infinite echoes of what George brought to those projects. He commended Lucas for the pioneering concept that sound editors should start at the beginning of project along with the film editors, instead of coming in during the final stages.
Murch and Lucas attended USC film school. He and his animation classmates were astounded when he saw Lucas student animation film in 1965, LOOK AT LIFE. It blasted the classroom back, kinda like that guy in the chair in the Maxell ad. At that moment, we realized he had changed the nature of what you could do with film.
He acknowledged Lucas for being the first to think of film music as an album (AMERICAN GRAFFITI), setting the standard for film sound (THX) when there wasnt any; and making the EditDroid and SoundDroid, forerunners of tools now considered standard in post-production.
In film school, Murch competed with Lucas for a placement at Warner Bros. They made a pact that whoever won would help the other one along. Lucas, who wanted to pursue animation, landed at WB just as it was closing its animation department down, so he attached himself to Francis Ford Coppola. When they moved their families up to San Francisco to create films at American Zoetrope, Murch and his wife joined Lucas and Coppola with a truck packed with the editing equipment they had managed to scrounge up together.
Lucas went on to start Lucasfilm, Pixar (he later sold to Steve Jobs), ILM and Skywalker Sound, all spurring numerous innovations. For his impact and dedication to sound, the MPSE dedicated its first Filmmakers Award to Lucas.
Lucas repeated his claim that sound is 50% of the motion picture experience and went on to thank sound editors for often inspiring his creativity as a picture editor. He lamented that, Sound is given short shrift in the reel world. The work would be so much better if sound editors could start at the same time as the picture starts. He told the attendees to pursue sound, and filmmaking, only if you love it. I cant imagine any other reason to get into it.
And the winners were
Best Sound Editing in Feature Film: AnimatedTHE INCREDIBLESSupervising Sound Editor: Michael Silvers, Randy ThomSupervising Foley Editor: Suzanne FoxSound Effects Editors: Terry Eckton, MPSE, Kyrsten Mate, E. J. HolowickiADR Editor: Steve SlanecFoley Editor: Al NelsonMusic Editor: Stephen M. David
Best Sound Editing in Feature Film: Sound Effects and FoleyTHE AVIATORSupervising Sound Editors: Eugene Gearty, Philip Stockton, MPSESupervising Foley Editor: Frank KernSound Effects Editor: Wyatt SpragueFoley Editors: Kam Chan, Steve Visscher, Jacob Ribicoff
Music Editing in a Feature FilmTHE PASSION OF THE CHRISTSupervising Music Editor: Michael T. Ryan, MPSE
Dialogue/ADR Editing in a Feature FilmETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MINDSupervising Sound Editor: Philip Stockton, MPSESound Designer: Eugene GeartySupervising Dialogue Editor: Philip Stockton, MPSESupervising ADR Editor: Marissa LittlefieldDialogue Editor: Fred RosenbergADR Editor: Hal Levinsohn, MPSE
Sound Editing in a Feature Film (Foreign)HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERSSupervising Sound Editors: Roger Savage, Tao Jing, MPSESupervising Foley Editor: Jo MionSupervising ADR Editor: Wang Yu HongSound Editors: Steve Burgess, Vic Kaspar, MPSE, Ron Feruglio, Paul Pirola, Andrew Neil, Glenn NewnhamFoley Editors: Mario Vaccaro, Blair Slater
Music Editing in a Musical Feature RAYMusic Editor: Curt Sobel
Sound Effects/Foley Editing in Longform TVCSI: MIAMI "Crime Wave"Supervising Sound Editor: Ann HadsellSound Designer: Bradley C. Katona, MPSESupervising Foley Editor: Ruth Adelman, MPSESound Effects Editors: Bill Smith, Edmond CoblentzFoley Editor: Bill Smith
Music Editing in Longform TV TieA CHRISTMAS CAROL, THE MUSICALSupervising Music Editor: Joanie Diener, MPSEScoring Editor: Joanie Diener, MPSEandTHE MYSTERY OF NATALIE WOODMusic Editors: Allan K. Rosen, MPSE, Nick Viterelli
Dialogue/ADR Editing in Longform TV THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PETER SELLERSSupervising Sound Editor: Tim HandsSupervising Dialogue Editor: Victoria BrazierSupervising ADR Editor: Victoria BrazierDialogue Editors: Laura Lovejoy, Zack Davis, MPSEADR Editors: Anna MacKenzie, Zack Davis, MPSE
Sound Effects/Foley Editing in Shortform TVLOST "Pilot Part One"Supervising Sound Editors: Thomas de Gorter, MPSE, Trevor JollySound Effects Editors: Paul Menichini, MPSE, Roland Thai, MPSE, Marc Glassman
Music Editing in Shortform TVSEX AND THE CITY "An American Girl in Paris (Part Deux)"Supervising Music Editor: Dan LiebersteinMusic Editor: Missy Cohen
Dialogue/ADR Editing in Shortform TVLOST "Pilot Part One"Supervising Sound Editors: Thomas E. de Gorter, MPSE, Trevor JollySupervising Dialogue Editor: Christopher Reeves, MPSEDialogue Editors: Gabrielle Reeves, Troy AllenADR Editor: Troy Allen
Sound Editing in TV Animation THE ADVENTURES OF JIMMY NEUTRON BOY GENIUSSupervising Sound Editors: Jason Stiff, Gary FalconeSupervising Foley Editor: Jeff KettleSupervising Dialogue Editor: Michael PetakSupervising ADR Editor: Justin BrinsfieldMusic Editor: Charlie BrisetteSound Effects Editor: Paul Menichini, MPSEDialogue Editor: Tom Maydeck, CASADR Editor: Michelle SmithFoley Editor: Tom Maydeck, CAS
Sound Editing in Computer EntertainmentGOLDEN EYE: ROGUE AGENTSupervising Sound Editors: Paul Menichini, MPSE, Gregory AllenSupervising Foley Editor: Erik KraberMusic Editors: Gregory Allen, Tony AlvarezSound Editors: David Farmer, MPSE, Ann Scibelli, MPSE, Tim Nielsen, Roland Thai, MPSE, Mark Allen, MPSE, Derek Vander Horst, Shane Kneip, Jon TendrichDialogue Editor: Jeremy Hall
Sound Editing in Direct To VideoBIONICLE II: LEGENDS OF METRU NUISupervising Sound Editors: Timothy J. Borquez, MPSE, Roy BravermanSupervising Dialogue Editor: Eric Freeman, MPSESupervising ADR Editor: Doug AndorkaMusic Editor: Timothy J. Borquez, MPSESound Effects Editors: Tom Syslo, Jeff Hutchins, Brian Mars, Mark Howlett, Paul Menichini, MPSE, Gordon Hookailo, Michael Geisler, MPSE, Daisuke Sawa, Mark MailandFoley Editor: Jason Freedman, MPSE
Sound Editing in Special VenueNASCAR 3D: THE IMAX EXPERIENCESupervising Sound Editor: Peter ThillayeSound Designer: Ed DouglasSupervising Foley Editor: Andy MalcolmSupervising Dialogue Editor: Joe MancusoSupervising ADR Editor: Peter ThillayeMusic Editors: Will Kaplan, Andre KnechtSound Effects Editors: Chris Miller, Karl Mohr
For a complete list of winners and more information go to www.mpse.org.
