Dialogue Editing

What Are Noises? 189
Electronics
Brief but loud clicks caused by electrical disturbances or static
discharge
Clicks caused by bad mic cable connections (usually louder and longer
than static discharge clicks)
Radio mic breakup (usually a long-duration problem that most often
requires replacement of the shot)
Crew
Dolly pings
Camera pedestal hydraulic/pneumatics
Crew footsteps
Crew talking(!)
Continuity stopwatch(!)
Grip tool rattles
Another common source of damaged dialogue is sounds that don’t come
from the set, but we’ll deal with them later.
Finding Noises
Before you can fi x the noises in your dialogue, you have to fi nd them. In most
cases, eliminating noises isn’t diffi cult, but noticing them is daunting. It
sounds easy, but it’s a skill that separates experienced dialogue editors from
novices. Even if you pride yourself on your superhuman listening skills and
canine hearing, you have to learn how to listen for the annoying ticks, pops,
and screeches that besiege every dialogue track. They’re in there, coyly taunting
you to fi nd them.
First, you must discover as many noises as you have time, patience, and
budget for. Then, before blindly eliminating every one, you have to ask yourself,
“What is this noise? Does it help or hurt the story?” Period. It’s actually
as simple as that; you just have to stay awake and aware.
Focusing on Noises
Every step in the process of fi lmmaking is sorcery. It’s all about getting the
viewer to believe that this story really happened as shown in the fi nal print.
As a fi lm professional you like to think that you’re immune to this seduction.
You know it’s not real. Yet when you screen the offl ine picture cut or watch a
scene over and over, the most obnoxious noises might slip right past you. Just
like the average movie fan, you’re sucked in.