Saw this piece on Gamasutra today, it is definitely worth a read, as it's a matter I've complained about many times in the past.
Gamasutra - Opinion: Team Audio VS The Milestone
In my personal experience, another method not mentioned here has been to simply bump the audio requirements for milestone to the next milestone (up until the last one, of course). There are issues with this, however - not least being developers often wanting to 'sell' their current milestone work to the publisher by adding sound. I even worked on a team once where it was common to receive requests to make sounds for assets that didn't exist yet, as a sort of placeholder to cover for them. Like how cheap animations will sometimes use a still shot of a car careening around a corner and have sound do the work of movement with tyres screeching and engine roaring. This occasionally led to some really awesome developments, where the animator would hear the sound, like it, and then animate to the sound effect. Much, much, much more often, however, it involved a whole lot of redesign. Which is okay early in the project when you have time to spare, but gets a bit stressful later when you simply don't have the time to redesign sounds.
In that respect, I think the separate 'Audio Milestone' is a pretty good idea... except setting it up like that has the potential to erode any collaboration you can get with the rest of the team as they create their assets. It's really really easy to become the closeted sound fairy that adds audio to the build you put under the pillow, but the very best sound design comes from working closely with the team, where they can communicate what audio cues they'd like and can in turn meet you halfway in things like firing rates or features or flybys (how much cooler could you make that flyby sound if it were a little slower/faster/came from behind?)
Another way, which has happened more often than not, is that audio doesn't even get included in the milestone schedule. I've never quite figured this one out, but I'll take it as a mark of trust that they believe Team Audio will get it all done in time.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Concert Report: The Music of John Williams
I've been negligent in my posting for the past month or so. I've been updating my resume and showreel for when my current contract ends, and showreels are one of those things that you can worry at endlessly, making a hundred little tweaks that eventually bring you in a circle.
And so, I am quite overdue on the latest concert report: A little over a month ago, I headed down to Sydneyagain for the day for a concert that has long been on my bucket list of concerts.
The event in question?
Again, I can't shake that suspicion that somebody has been reading my diary and making all of my wildest dreams come true. A John Williams concert in Australia is awesome in itself, but one hosted by Shaun Micallef? That is right up there with that Professor Layton versus Phoenix Wright crossover.
That said, it actually wasn't so many months ago that I would have quite happily never listened to the Star Wars soundtrack again - I have spent almost three of my six or so years as a sound designer working on various Star Wars and Clone Wars games. Time can apparently heal all wounds, as the prospect was quite exciting and I bought the tickets before fully registering my actions.
It was held, much like the Distant Worlds concert, at the Sydney Opera House, which is always a treat.
There were cosplayers! Who I unfortunately did not get pictures of, because we arrived with only ten minutes to spare. But there was little girl dressed as Princess Leia which was the cutest thing ever (and an equally adorable little Darth Vadar), and a sand person! A couple of generic Jedi wandering the floor too.
Had fantastic seats, only five rows back, dead centre. And I'm pleased to say that Shaun Micallef is as amusing live as he is on TV.
THE SETLIST:
Olympic Fanfare - written for the 1984 Olympics, I was more familiar with the 1996 Atlanta Games version, so it was nice to hear the original! You actually feel like the Olympics are starting when you listen to this piece of music. While listening, it occurred to me how surprisingly rare it is to hear such boldly brassy original compositions these days.
Theme from Lost In Space - Shortest piece of the set, highly enjoyable, though I cannot remember the television show to save my life.
Theme from Jaws - You wouldn't expect this to be that exciting as a full piece, but there was more complexity to the Jaws Theme than I recalled.
Highlights from Close Encounters of the Third Kind - a tediously boring movie, with a much more interesting soundtrack.
Adventures on Earth - Concert suite from E.T. (The Extra-Terrestrial) - Very nostalgic, made me want to watch E.T. again. Though the middle section had the effect of lulling me to sleep like a particularly pleasant lullaby.
Theme from Schindler's List - This piece of music is singularly moving and it is very important to never ever listen to it when feeling sad or depressed. The solo violin was performed beautifully.
The Raiders March from Raiders of the Lost Ark - Everyone knows the Indiana Jones theme, right? Sydney Symphony didn't put a single note wrong.
Theme from Jurassic Park - They did however, get some of the timing slightly off with this piece, though honestly, you would only notice if you'd listened to the theme a hundred times before. In that respect, the Sydney Symphony had quite the task before them.
Theme from Superman - Shaun Micallef has ruined this forever, as I will now be hearing 'Is it a bird, is it a plane, it's Su-per-man!' with every stab of the motif. This performance I could not fault at all.
INTERMISSION.
The second half started with the March from 1941 - I hadn't even heard of this movie, it was a military piece with a sort of Hogan's Heroes feel to it. Turned out Steven Spielberg directed the movie, will have to check it out somtime.
Then Hedwig's Theme from Harry Potter - I could have listened to this for the whole two hours. They did a stunning job with this. I'd heard it performed by the local Pops orchestra before, but it didn't come close to this performance.
Sayuri's Theme from Memoir's of a Geisha - this was a beautiful rendition of Sayuri's theme, and such a departure from John William's usual style, a wonderful meld of asian and western instruments. Proof that even after sixty years of writing music, he still has something completely new to offer.
Then, for the final run... Highlights from Star Wars. This section in particular was executed flawlessly, and fulfilled a lifelong dream to hear live. The very first soundtrack I saved up to buy with my own money was the two-disc special edition of Star Wars: A New Hope - which was fiendishly expensive for the time. I still have that CD today.
They started off with the Main Title, and dropped the concert hall into darkness... and then the conductor lit up a lightsaber, and conducted the first few notes with it!
The Imperial March was of course next, and the bar staff came out dressed as a very convincing Darth Vadar accompanied by a retinue of Stormtroopers.
Then Princess Leia's Theme.
Then the Catina Band Theme! True fact - I can listen to this music loop for hours at a time for months on end and not get sick of it. I know this because I have in fact done this, as I used it as placeholder music for one of the levels on The Force Unleashed.
They finished off with the Throne Room and End Titles. And so concluded an absolutely mind-blowing concert.
My only complaint is that there wasn't more. The encore was only a quick reprise of the Superman theme.
Maybe for the best, because then we had to race back to the airport to catch our flight home!
....One of these days, hopefully I won't have to travel 1000km to attend such concerts. I am trying not to be too cut by the revelation that Distant Worlds is going to play again in Adelaide late 2011, while Brisbane continues to languish in the film and game concert wilderness.
And so, I am quite overdue on the latest concert report: A little over a month ago, I headed down to Sydney
The event in question?
Again, I can't shake that suspicion that somebody has been reading my diary and making all of my wildest dreams come true. A John Williams concert in Australia is awesome in itself, but one hosted by Shaun Micallef? That is right up there with that Professor Layton versus Phoenix Wright crossover.
That said, it actually wasn't so many months ago that I would have quite happily never listened to the Star Wars soundtrack again - I have spent almost three of my six or so years as a sound designer working on various Star Wars and Clone Wars games. Time can apparently heal all wounds, as the prospect was quite exciting and I bought the tickets before fully registering my actions.
It was held, much like the Distant Worlds concert, at the Sydney Opera House, which is always a treat.
There were cosplayers! Who I unfortunately did not get pictures of, because we arrived with only ten minutes to spare. But there was little girl dressed as Princess Leia which was the cutest thing ever (and an equally adorable little Darth Vadar), and a sand person! A couple of generic Jedi wandering the floor too.
Had fantastic seats, only five rows back, dead centre. And I'm pleased to say that Shaun Micallef is as amusing live as he is on TV.
THE SETLIST:
Olympic Fanfare - written for the 1984 Olympics, I was more familiar with the 1996 Atlanta Games version, so it was nice to hear the original! You actually feel like the Olympics are starting when you listen to this piece of music. While listening, it occurred to me how surprisingly rare it is to hear such boldly brassy original compositions these days.
Theme from Lost In Space - Shortest piece of the set, highly enjoyable, though I cannot remember the television show to save my life.
Theme from Jaws - You wouldn't expect this to be that exciting as a full piece, but there was more complexity to the Jaws Theme than I recalled.
Highlights from Close Encounters of the Third Kind - a tediously boring movie, with a much more interesting soundtrack.
Adventures on Earth - Concert suite from E.T. (The Extra-Terrestrial) - Very nostalgic, made me want to watch E.T. again. Though the middle section had the effect of lulling me to sleep like a particularly pleasant lullaby.
Theme from Schindler's List - This piece of music is singularly moving and it is very important to never ever listen to it when feeling sad or depressed. The solo violin was performed beautifully.
The Raiders March from Raiders of the Lost Ark - Everyone knows the Indiana Jones theme, right? Sydney Symphony didn't put a single note wrong.
Theme from Jurassic Park - They did however, get some of the timing slightly off with this piece, though honestly, you would only notice if you'd listened to the theme a hundred times before. In that respect, the Sydney Symphony had quite the task before them.
Theme from Superman - Shaun Micallef has ruined this forever, as I will now be hearing 'Is it a bird, is it a plane, it's Su-per-man!' with every stab of the motif. This performance I could not fault at all.
INTERMISSION.
The second half started with the March from 1941 - I hadn't even heard of this movie, it was a military piece with a sort of Hogan's Heroes feel to it. Turned out Steven Spielberg directed the movie, will have to check it out somtime.
Then Hedwig's Theme from Harry Potter - I could have listened to this for the whole two hours. They did a stunning job with this. I'd heard it performed by the local Pops orchestra before, but it didn't come close to this performance.
Sayuri's Theme from Memoir's of a Geisha - this was a beautiful rendition of Sayuri's theme, and such a departure from John William's usual style, a wonderful meld of asian and western instruments. Proof that even after sixty years of writing music, he still has something completely new to offer.
Then, for the final run... Highlights from Star Wars. This section in particular was executed flawlessly, and fulfilled a lifelong dream to hear live. The very first soundtrack I saved up to buy with my own money was the two-disc special edition of Star Wars: A New Hope - which was fiendishly expensive for the time. I still have that CD today.
They started off with the Main Title, and dropped the concert hall into darkness... and then the conductor lit up a lightsaber, and conducted the first few notes with it!
The Imperial March was of course next, and the bar staff came out dressed as a very convincing Darth Vadar accompanied by a retinue of Stormtroopers.
Then Princess Leia's Theme.
Then the Catina Band Theme! True fact - I can listen to this music loop for hours at a time for months on end and not get sick of it. I know this because I have in fact done this, as I used it as placeholder music for one of the levels on The Force Unleashed.
They finished off with the Throne Room and End Titles. And so concluded an absolutely mind-blowing concert.
My only complaint is that there wasn't more. The encore was only a quick reprise of the Superman theme.
Maybe for the best, because then we had to race back to the airport to catch our flight home!
....One of these days, hopefully I won't have to travel 1000km to attend such concerts. I am trying not to be too cut by the revelation that Distant Worlds is going to play again in Adelaide late 2011, while Brisbane continues to languish in the film and game concert wilderness.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
A Reminder To Always Carry A Microphone
On Friday, having changed bags for evening classes, I completely forgot to bring my portable recorder with me.
Normally, not a big deal. But on this particular Friday...
On the way to lunch, I passed a demolition site. Where they'd broken out the wrecking ball.
During lunch, a trio of military helicopters flew overhead at speed, to practice for the air show for the River Festival launch the next day.
On the way back from lunch, the demolition crew had moved to some of the side buildings, and were taking out the windows with sledgehammers.
Needless to say, lesson learnt.
Normally, not a big deal. But on this particular Friday...
On the way to lunch, I passed a demolition site. Where they'd broken out the wrecking ball.
During lunch, a trio of military helicopters flew overhead at speed, to practice for the air show for the River Festival launch the next day.
On the way back from lunch, the demolition crew had moved to some of the side buildings, and were taking out the windows with sledgehammers.
Needless to say, lesson learnt.
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