I saw this this one zip by on Twitter… The BFI is hosting a presentation by Ben Burtt, the sound designer for the Star Wars movies.  Now if I only lived in England.

Say what you will about the newer movies in the series, I remember clearly how stunned I was by the music and the sound of the original three films.  John Williams became familiar to millions through his soundtrack music.  But I remember the soundscape at least as much.  And I remember seeing some of the behind-the-scenes documentaries showing Ben Burtt’s work on developing the sound effects.

In the early 80’s I read Dale Pollock book, Skywalking – The Life and Films of George Lucas.  In it, Lucas mentioned that sound provided at least 50% of impact of a film.  I thought this was surprising coming from a film maker.  But he was right Luke… he was right.  And of course the tech creations from Lucas/Burtt include THX, Skywalker Ranch studios, etc.

I’d love to hear comments from anyone who was able to attend.

The West Wing has been on my DVR for a long time.  Most of the episodes are a pleasure to watch and re-watch (but it is nice to be able to skip over the commercials).  Some of the episodes are just plain extraordinary! One of these is “Two Cathedrals” involving the funeral of President Bartlet’s long-time assistant Dolores Landingham.  There is a section toward the end where Bartlet is walking to a press conference, there’s a once-in-a-century tropical storm ripping through Washington and the soundtrack for the scene is “Brothers in Arms” by Dire Straits.  There’s something about this combination… and particularly Mark Knopfler’s music that literally brings me to tears every time I watch/hear this segment.