Making of Crash Course: Live Sound Design with the Team!

05 Sep 2024 (3 months ago)

Audio Processing and Editing

Callie, a sound designer, uses Ableton Live for basic mixing and editing and Adobe Premiere for sound design. (6m4s)
Callie receives audio files from the editor, Sarah, in an OMF format, opens them in Adobe Audition, and then exports them for use in Ableton Live. (6m41s)
Callie, the audio engineer, uses Adobe Audition to edit and mix the audio tracks, including music and voiceovers, to ensure a seamless and balanced sound. (25m24s)
Cie typically works on the audio of Crash Course videos in a specific order: host audio, then music, then sound effects. (49m47s)

Callie's audio processing for narration includes using an EQ to cut frequencies below 60Hz and above 18,000Hz, a gate to reduce breaths and mouth sounds, a compressor, and a de-esser. (7m30s)
Sarah's voice is already compressed, so it doesn't need much additional compression. (10m35s)
Cali does more de-essing on higher-pitched voices to soften their sound and sometimes boosts the low end for a fuller effect. (16m0s)
Cali uses a noise gate to remove breaths and mouth sounds, but this step is sometimes skipped due to time constraints. (16m33s)
Nolan manually removes noticeable mouth sounds and adjusts audio cuts in Premiere Pro before Cali receives the audio. (17m30s)
Cali uses compression to balance the volume levels in the audio, making loud parts quieter and quiet parts louder, especially noticeable with Hank's speech patterns. (18m44s)
Cali uses de-essing to reduce sibilance in voices, making them less harsh and fatiguing to listen to. (20m12s)

Music for each episode is sourced from a subscription service. (22m21s)
Bridget receives multiple music options and provides feedback on what sounds best. (22m43s)
Music used in the videos is sourced from Epidemic Sound. (31m0s)
The music in the videos is used to highlight important moments and elevate the content. (58m42s)

The sound effects used for the art history videos are custom made. (33m55s)
Callie chose paper sounds for transitions in art history videos because the visual effects often resemble paper. (34m42s)
Callie uses a variety of sources for sound effects, including her own recordings, free sound libraries like freesound.org, and a subscription service called Splice. (36m44s)
The "Canon Cannon" sound effect, used in the art history series to highlight artists, is a combination of various sounds, including a spark, a clunk, and the cannon firing. (38m42s)
A balance is struck between whimsical, funny, dark, and serious tones through the use of cheering and other sound effects. (41m16s)
Sound effects are used to highlight movement and visual details, such as a scratching noise for a scene depicting the removal of debris from art. (42m30s)
Each Crash Course series uses a unique library of sound effects, with some sounds, like "Arrow," appearing frequently across multiple series. (44m2s)

Bridget, the video editor, finds the rough cut stage, where sound effects and music are added, to be her favorite part of the editing process. (51m16s)
Cie combats ear fatigue by taking breaks every hour to remove his headphones and step away from the screen. (53m5s)
The audio and visual elements of the videos are designed to help viewers retain information. (57m9s)
Crash Course videos are moving in a direction to include more moments of repose to help viewers focus. (57m41s)

Limestone deteriorates easily when exposed to salt, which is a concern for the preservation of cave paintings on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. (10m59s)
Egypt's climate is warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world, threatening its historical sites. (11m16s)
Cecilia Jimenez attempted to restore a fresco titled Ecce Homo at her church in Borjas, Spain in 2012. (30m5s)