What is Pre-Production Sound for Film?

Picture by David Sager - Sourced from Unsplash

When it comes to sound design for film, the pre-production stage is a subject you typically don’t hear too much about. Well, I certainly didn’t until I joined the team at Black Goblin. This is surprising given how crucial it is to the filmmaking process. But thanks to Black Goblin’s educational content I was able to expand my knowledge and develop a new interest. 

What is Pre-Production?

Pre-production is the second phase in the filmmaking process and it formally begins once a project has been greenlit [or given the green light]. At this point, the production team can begin to plan for the filming, focusing on tasks like establishing a sound team and location scouting [location scouting: the process of finding places or “locations” where the film will be shot]. In other words, Pre-production is when the creative process of sound really begins. 

Our Sound Design team at Black Goblin understands that the realm of sound design is often intimidating and the reason why so many creatives leave it to the last minute.  

But let us assure you that involving a sound team in the project is integral to the overall quality of the film. The earlier, the better, so don’t worry, we are here to help you get started. 

There are 3 aspects to bear in mind which, if taken care of, you can be sure that your project will run smoothly.

The Three Stages of Pre-Production

For a smooth ride

1. The importance of hiring a sound crew early-on 

The sound team should be involved right from the start. They will then be around to offer expertise and a unique point of view. Sound Designers will think, see and hear things that other members of the crew will not, as their focus lies in other areas. For example, a sound expert will pay attention to the acoustics of a location and what external factors could impact filming i.e. wind, traffic, etc., thus contributing to the overall output of the project. This forward planning enables full creative control and collaboration, allowing filmmakers to expand their artistic possibilities.

2. The Sound Team

In pre-production you will want to think about recruiting your dream team. The best teams are made up of a minimum of three members - the three musketeers of Location Sound or Production Sound.

These are: the Sound Mixer Assistant, Boom Operator and the Sound Mixer. For bigger films, a larger team should be recruited, with a second Sound Assistant and even a second Boom Operator who might be needed in certain situations e.g. when more than one camera is used to film. 

3. Audio Equipment

Right from the start you should invest in high quality audio equipment that meets the demands of your film. This can be the difference between a high budget and a low budget film. No matter how good the image is, if the audio is bad, the audience is simply not going to be interested. Necessities such as shotgun mics, boom poles, cables and a couple of miniature radio mics capable of being attached and concealed on actors, are all a great starting point to building your professional kit.

As a filmmaker, you are not required to purchase this for yourself. However, the production team needs to ensure that these minimum pieces of equipment are available either by corroborating that the sound crew has them available and can include them on the cost for their services OR by renting them as part of the production equipment.

The Script Breakdown

Another crucial stage in Pre-Production is the script breakdown. This is the process of annotating or “breaking down” the important components of your film script in terms of sound, allowing for notes on location sound and even early stage ideas for sound design to be written in the script. This means that the director and sound crew can refer to these notes when filming, allowing for potential issues to be addressed early on and for a more mindful capture of sound material to occur prior to the post production stage.

We will be delving further into the topic of script breakdowns in a future blog post, but for now we can consider the script breakdown as part of a checklist along with the three previous stages. Checking off each box on your list will have you well on your way to perfect sound design for your film.

Picture by Aman Upadhyay - Sourced from Unsplash

Where Can I learn More?

If you are interested in learning more about Pre-production sound for film, then check out “An Introduction to Pre-production Sound for Film” on Black Goblin’s Skillshare channel, where you can gain 30 day access through our referral link.

In this class, our Head of Sound Innovations Ana Betancourt, goes into much more detail on the topics discussed in this post. This course also contains a series of lectures to help the production team, directors, the photography department and even the first assistant directors to understand and work with sound as soon as possible and ensure the best possible results during filming.