Dialogue Editing

The ADR Recording Session 265
More and more software-only systems are on the market. Most of them will
manage your ADR from spotting to printing and all the way to recording
and conformations. One, ADR Studio from Gallery Software, sits on the same
computer that houses Pro Tools and provides many of the ADR management
tools available in external hardware devices.
Working with the Studio Thankfully, you needn’t be overly concerned with
the ADR technology that a particular studio boasts. If the studio has a decent
reputation for getting the job done and the ADR recording engineer has the
experience and talent to capture a good sound match, it’s not that important
that the equipment is the most modern. People have been successfully recording
postsync for a long time. Besides, a dialogue editor doubling as an ADR
supervisor usually has little say in the matter of studio selection.
As with the mix, the key to a successful recording session is communication
with the ADR studio and particularly with the engineer. Find out how best
to organize the cues. For example, do they want you to separate interior from
exterior recordings? How much time do they need to program the ADR
information? In what format do they like to receive notes? Can you send them
by e-mail or do they have an FTP site? What about picture format? If the
picture needs to be digitized for nonlinear playback, the studio will need
time to load it.
Specify the audio fi le format you want to leave with (BWF, SDII, AIFF, etc.)
and tell the studio manager if you need to take the material with you on the
day of the session. Bottom line: Communicate with the studio, whether the
engineer or the client services liaison.
Learn a bit about the actors you’re going to loop. Any weird habits? Do you
have to provide Pop Tarts? Does he drink only Italian bottled water? Does
she insist that you not be in the studio with her but rather in the control room?
Let’s not go nuts, but it’s good to know whom you’re dealing with.
At the Session: The Talent, the Recording
Engineer, and the Director
Get to the session early in order to spot-check the programming of the
ADR cues and go over the sound issues with the ADR engineer. When the
talent arrives, keep your cool. If you’re dealing with a “star,” be neither starstruck
nor unaware of the imbalance of power. Introduce yourself. Explain
what you’ll be covering. Find out how the actor likes to work. Sitting? Standing?
Does she prefer to work ADR-style or looping-style (or, better yet, a