Multitasking & Impact of Music Choices

Defying Potential Setbacks 

My editor had to revise the rough cut many times to get it down to something we all approved of. We all agreed on wanting to screen our rough cut with sound to have the most feedback we can get. So, as our deadline for this draft approached, my sound designer expressed not having the ability to work as much as she would have liked to at this point because of the delay in sending her the rough cut. She was also absent on a day my editor distributed the film to my cinematographer and me for review via AirDrop, which we found to be the easiest and clearest way to send one another versions of the film. But, I still wanted her to have the most recent version my editor made so I suggested he send it to her in our group chat that way she could work on it and add in sound before the rough cut deadline, even if it was not entirely done. This way of sending it over was not the best quality, however, by doing so, a rough 'rough' cut was created in time and aided both of them to be proactive in their roles as editor and sound designer. 

Photo of the rough-"rough" cut created by my sound designer with edits and sound added ready for screening.

My sound designer before receiving the rough cut was doing independent research for the platforms she could use freely for audio download, which sped up the process of her sound design as she had the music options ready and had practiced using the Adobe Premiere Rush software. Multitasking the way my film crew and I have since the start of production has truly made such a difference in how we all work together. There is never a 'waiting period' for one to finish their role to get another to start — it is a union of multiple facets of production coming together in any way we can to improve it.

Choosing Between Music

Our film was intended to have two halves; one half being where the chess expert is on a winning streak and the other as the bad chess player makes a comeback, taking the win in a very sudden, humorous way. The sound design idea from the beginning was to use tense classical music for the first half versus hard rock for the remaining portion of the film. But as we looked over edits, because we had so many scenes cut out, the 'halves' became unequal, and sharp changes in sound would sound confusing to the audience without enough time for them to play fully.

My sound designer and I knew that two genres of music were going to be present but that it needed to play smoothly in the comeback scene to distinguish it from the rest of the film. We bounced off ideas of certain pieces of classical music; whether it should be an intense orchestra or a more lighthearted, humorous piece. She preferred the lighter piece because it created more contrast to the rock and roll music that would follow and believed she could smoothly transition the two. From there, we discussed potential 80s and 90s rock bands whose music could do well for the comeback scene; Guns and Roses, Aerosmith, and Deaf Leopard, but in the end rock music from a League of Legends game took the win.

Having conversations about what music could potentially work was important because once it was added in and compared side by side, it was clear how much a song choice changes the tone of the film. Reverting to lighthearted music at the beginning may deny expectations for the audience, first perceiving the film as just two, collected chess players having a peaceful game, and then transitioning to an intense, ridiculous duel of chess.

A table of some music genres and the effects they may produce, as well as emotions and objects they are associated with.

Using classical music as described in the chart is known for its precision and quality, as is the game of chess, which is what drew us to using it at first. Rock music on the other hand is connected to self-confidence, which made sense to use to depict the girl's sudden win against her opponent. What changes things though is the fact that our film is a comedy, so using music ironically (genres that do not necessarily match what is happening in the film) can actually heighten the humor of the film. As director, I learned that changes from our plan for the film regarding its cinematography, editing, and sound do not always take away the original ideas but rather enhance them with what we learn along the way.