Interview with John Neill, Sound Editor from Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

The first film in the Lord of the Rings trilogy was mixed in a state-of-the-art film dubbing facility at The Film Unit Ltd, just outside Wellington, New Zealand. On the eve of the film's release, we spoke with John Neill, Sound Department Manager, about this high-profile Dolby® Digital Surround EX™ mix.

The studio has gone through a total refurbishment in preparation for this mix. What equipment did you choose and how easy was it to interface it?

We have two dub stages and it was understood very early on that both would be required during this project. Our current console in the main room was an analog Otari Premiere with only 72 channels, so we needed a major increase in size and felt it was time to move to a fully digital console. We chose the Euphonix System 5 and Tascam MMR8s as recorders. New Zealand sound editing is mainly based on Digidesign Pro Tools and the Euphonix with the MMRs gives maximum flexibility. We will have three or four Pro Tools machines on the dub stage during the finals and these interfaces directly into the console without the need for the normal 888/24s. The Otari was moved to our smaller stage.

This is your first mix using the newly installed Dolby Digital Surround EX system. What was your initial reaction and how did you and the mixers become familiar with using the new technology?

I was initially nervous about adding yet another new element to the system, but on hearing the effect during the early predubs, I am very pleased we went this way. We are very lucky, as Chris Boyes, the lead-dubbing mixer, has worked on Surround EX titles before.

We have seen mixers enjoy using Surround EX in different ways. Some mixers like the accurate front-to-back panning, while others like the more discrete effect of having separate surround channels on the sidewalls. What benefits did the system bring to this film?

The advantage of having the discrete channels for the sidewalls has given Chris Boyes some very creative options. Creating a location has been an important aspect of the mix, as it's a big special effects film, containing lots of very creative work from the sound designers and dubbing mixers.

We have been running previews of some footage from the film all around the world using the new Dolby Digital Double-Head Screening Service. What effect did this have on the production process?

It was certainly easier to send a drive with an audio file on it than to have large reels of mag film. We were already dubbing to the MMRs in a format that could be handled by the Dolby Double-Head Service, so there was no need for mag transfers in real time. Also, knowing that a Dolby consultant was looking after the screening was a comfort to all concerned.