I remember scrolling through twitter last week and Groom posted an enthusiastic tweet about this interview with Jen Ralston. I didn’t know that it would be a full on investigation of sound and The Wire. My reflection is going to consist of how cool sound is and its major effects on sets.
Sound and Actors:
I know in animated movies, actors are constantly in the studio (or whatever it’s called) to record the sound of the characters. When Jen said that while filming The Wire, the actors were also rerecording their lines. I understand that they would do this for specific scenes but not the whole episode. At least i think that’s what Jen said, in case they had to add a line or the recording on set was bad. She also mentioned that the sounds on set come and go which make it very inconsistent. That makes a lot of sense because not everything in one episode is filmed all at the same time. So, yeah, there will be more traffic at one of the street than the other side. Sound is just too tricky. Another problem is the amount of sound. She mentioned that taking out the sound, if there is too much, isn’t always the answer. You have to add more sound to it. That was a little confusing but then again, taking out the sound completely would make the shot a little weird, right? Finally, equipment. Equipment is everything. The Wire was only filmed 13/14 years ago. They still used flip phones guys, FLIP PHONES. Microphones can’t be that advanced as they are now. Jen mentioned that now, the voices of actors are a lot more clear and direct because they have those wireless, mini microphones. Overall, i really enjoyed learning about all the effects that revolve around sound. It’s even better to hear it from a person who works specifically with sound on THE WIRE!
Market Scene:
One of the big things that Jen said was pay attention to the contrast of the sound in the market and out of the market. I’ve been to a bunch of markets similar to this one. It really did sound like a market. She also said that if you want to make the scene quiet, don’t take out all the sound. That would just leave the audience to believe that something bad was going to happen, which is so true. I thought about scary movies and the minute a scene gets quiet, you know the killer is going to pop out. Rather than take out sound completely, she said that if you want to make it seem quiet, make the sounds of things you would only be able to hear if it’s quiet, audible. Which in this scene was the opening of the doors, the ruffle of the newspaper and so on. Next thing i enjoyed how she mentioned that compare the sounds you hear when McNulty leaves the market and when his sons do. They’re only a block apart but it makes them sound many more apart, as Jen stated. McNulty’s sounds are much more anxious and chaotic because he’s frantically looking for his kids. On the other hand, when McNulty’s kids are out, it’s just normal sounds. Typically what anyone would here. That really got my attention. I never noticed that before and obviously I had to go youtube the scene and rewatch/listen.
Bubbles:
During this scene, Bubbles is sober, which is weird. Before listening to this interview, this scene immediately caught my attention when i watched the episode. For once, a scene that is calm and relaxing. Jen mentioned that since Bubbles is sober, we see him in a different world. That’s where the specific sounds of a normal day came in. When watching this scene, you can hear so many detailed sounds like: Kids, wind, trees, and pleasant conversations. All of this helps us get the image that Bubbles is sober and doing okay. I was amazed that those little details helped make the scene as tranquil as it was. Great job.
Overall:
like i said above, the biggest thing i learned was how major sound is to everything. Jen was right on when she said it’s really under appreciated. The interview opened my eyes to so many different aspects of sound. It’s not as simple as i aways thought it was which is why it is its own profession.
