A Sound Idea

http://www.digitalcinemareport.com/node/1748

 

Despite the fact that sync sound has been a mainstay of motion picture production and exhibition for almost a century, audio is still too often an underappreciated stepchild in the entire process. Too many filmmakers focus all their attention on the images in their movies; in the best cases they at least put concerns about the quality of the audio to experienced hands but in worst-case scenarios the soundtrack becomes an afterthought. Then the budget runs out before the audio can be its best. Too many exhibitors concentrate more on the concessions stand than they do on what's happening inside their theatres. In an effort to change all of this Dolby is offering filmmakers and exhibitors alike a new tool that can make a dramatic difference in the quality of a movie presentation. You can hear it for yourself later this month when Toy Story 3 premieres as the first feature film to be mixed and distributed in Dolby Surround 7.1.

Dolby debuted Surround 7.1 at ShoWest earlier this year and also announced that it was working with Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios to deliver the new audio format. 

"For 40 years Dolby has not only provided content creators with the tools to create a more realistic audio experience, but has also enabled the exhibitor to deliver audiences the ability to experience the content as the creator intended," says Page Haun, senior director, marketing, cinema market segment, Dolby Laboratories. "The release of Toy Story 3 in a discrete 7.1 mix will raise the bar for movie theatre owners and their patrons."

Dolby Surround 7.1 is supported in CP650 and CP750 processors, and increases the number of discrete surround channels in order to add more definition to the existing 5.1 surround array.

The new format will work with 2D versions of movies and will also work with 3D technologies that compete with Dolby.

 

Dolby Surround 7.1 provides content creators four surround zones to better orchestrate audio channels in a movie theatre environment. The four surround zones incorporate the traditional Left Surround and Right Surround with new Back Surround Left and Back Surround Right zones. The addition of the two Back Surround zones enhances directionality in panning 360 degrees around the theatre.

Dolby Surround 7.1 format comprises 8 channels of audio and has the following channel layout: Left, Center, Right, Low-Frequency Effects (LFE), Left Surround, Right Surround, Back Surround Left (new) and Back Surround Right (new). In order for exhibitors to deliver the new format, Dolby will be providing Dolby Surround 7.1 playback capabilities in the Dolby CP650 and Dolby CP750 digital cinema audio processor lines.

Two new discrete channels are added in the theatre, Back Surround Left and Back Surround Right. Use of these additional surround channels provides greater flexibility in audio placement to tie in with 3D visuals, and can also enhance the surround definition with 2D content. Existing theatres that are wired for Surround EX will already have the appropriate wiring and amplification for these channels. Those that are not wired accordingly will need to install additional amplifier channels and cable runs as necessary to enable these discrete channels.

The Bsl and Bsr channels are calibrated to 82 dB, the same as in a standard Dolby Digital Surround EX installation. When used in Dolby Surround 7.1 mode, 82 dB becomes the reference level for each of the four surround channels in both mixing and playback.

All Dolby Digital Cinema servers support Dolby Surround 7.1 playback, and any server that supports 16 channels of digital audio may be used with appropriate audio cabling.

Digital Cinema Packages supporting Dolby Surround 7.1 will be supplied with two Composition Playlists. One CPL will reference a 5.1 discrete audio track, and the second will reference the Dolby Surround 7.1 audio track. The theatre may be able to choose between audio tracks according to the equipment installed and the currently selected playback format, or will be given a single license (KDM) for either 5.1 discrete or Dolby Surround 7.1 audio according to the information supplied by the exhibitor to the content distributor.

Of course, Dolby is no stranger to motion picture sound. From its very beginnings as a company Dolby has sought ways to improve movie sound.

Dolby believed that many of the limitations in optical sound stemmed directly from its significantly high background noise. To filter this noise, the high-frequency response of theatre playback systems was deliberately curtailed. To make matters worse, to increase dialogue intelligibility over such systems, sound mixers were recording soundtracks with so much high frequency pre-emphasis that high distortion resulted. Their answer was Dolby noise reduction. 

The first film with Dolby sound was A Clockwork Orange in 1971, which used Dolby noise reduction on all pre-mixes and masters, but a conventional optical sound track on release prints. 

Callan in 1974 was the first film with a Dolby-encoded optical soundtrack. In 1975 Dolby released Dolby Stereo, which included a noise reduction system in addition to more audio channels; Dolby Stereo could actually contain additional center and surround channels matrixed from the left and right. 

The first film with a Dolby-encoded stereo optical soundtrack was 1975's Lisztomania, although this only used a Left-Center-Right encoding technique. The first true Left-Center-Right-Surround soundtrack was encoded on the movie A Star is Born in 1976.

Dolby Stereo Digital, now called Dolby Digital, was first featured on the 1992 film Batman Returns and in less than ten years, 6,000 cinemas worldwide were equipped to use Dolby Stereo sound. 

For its part, Pixar also knows something about technological innovations in movies.

Pixar co-founder John Lasseter, today its chief creative officer, created the company's first film in 1986 partly as an attempt to sell the high-end computer systems that Pixar was then trying to sell. Luxo Jr. is an iconic two-and-a-half minute computer animated film that features the hopping desk lamp that today is part of Pixar's corporate logo.

In 1991, after substantial layoffs in the company's computer department, Pixar made a $26 million deal with Disney to produce three computer-animated feature films. The first was Toy Story in 1995, which went on to gross more than $350 million. It was the first feature length movie to be entirely computer generated. But Pixar has proven over time that it is not just about the technology it uses. It seems more accurate to say that the company is about how truly creative people can get the maximum results out of new technology. 

To date, the studio has earned twenty-four Academy Awards, six Golden Globes and three Grammys, among many other awards, acknowledgments and achievements and has made $5.5 billion worldwide. It is one of the most critically acclaimed film studios of all time. 

Pixar has made 10 feature films and each one has achieved critical and commercial success. Pixar followed Toy Story with A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Monster's, Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille, WALL-E and Up, which was its first film to be presented in Disney Digital 3D. Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, and Up are among the top 50 highest-grossing movies of all times.

Now comes another first for Pixar, Dolby Surround 7.1. The goal is to enhance the movie going experience and create the kind of unique experience that 3D provides, to immerse the audience in the sound as well as the picture. I've seen about ten minutes of Toy Story 3 in 3D that incorprated a 7.1 mix. The difference is dramatic and I'll be very surprised if it doesn't help Toy Story 3 become another critical and box office success. 

More importantly, the movie will hopefully lead the way to more innovations in motion picture sound. The audio possibilities that digital cinema enables are almost limitless. Thanks to Dolby, Disney and Pixar, a significant first step has been taken.