Rethinking the Blooper Reel Pt.1

Perfectly Imperfect

Video Breakdown

A video version of today’s Sound Byte, where I walk through my Pro Tools session and break down everything discussed in today’s newsletter.

Breakdown Buffet

Hello again, and welcome back to Sound Bytes. Today I am going to talk about everyone’s favorite, bloopers!

The way I always understood bloopers for most of my life was as a collection. A string of bloopers, one after the next. When I first started in podcasting, I did this a couple of times, stringing them together at the end of an episode as a kind of Easter egg for listeners who inexplicably made it through the credits. Probably because they were doing dishes at the time, hands wet, and could not hit stop. We have all been there.

But because our beloved podcast format is a playground of audio where you can do literally anything you can think of, I love it here, I have experimented with bloopers in different ways that break from this mold.

Originally, I planned to share four examples, three quick moments where I left the bloopers in and added extra zhuzh to heighten the humor, and one longer, denser build, a beefier sound story of sorts. Is it a story? You can be the judge next week.

As I worked on this, the newsletter started running long, so I split it into two parts. This week, I’ll focus on the three shorter builds, where the bloopers remain right where they happened in the recording, with small touches layered in to accentuate the moment. Next time, I’ll dive into the longer piece with more involved sound design.

And away we go.

Example #1

The first one today comes from an episode of Gaslit Nation. This is a political show and it can be heavy at times, but that does not mean we cannot have fun once in a while.

I think Andrea was tired that day or something. She is brilliant and a great host, truthfully one of the smartest people I have ever met. She is one of those people who can pull facts from history, politics, and literature in a flash. So there is absolutely no judgment on having a brain fart while trying to calculate this number.

We have all been there, and that is a big reason why I kept it in. Relatable, right?

For someone in my shoes, it is a natural instinct to cut this. The role of a dialogue editor is to make the hosts and guests sound like flawless orators as often as possible.

I have probably deleted moments like this dozens of times before I even thought about using them this way. Often I go on autopilot with dialogue editing and hear things like this, and without thinking I just cut it. What I’m hoping to do here is plant a seed, so that the next time you come across a moment like this, your first instinct isn’t “easy cut, move on,” but instead “can I shape this into something worth keeping?”

I also suggest not telling whoever is reviewing the episode that you are doing something like this. Let them experience it fresh.

I think you will be glad you did. I often get immediate feedback about how much they loved that I left bloopers in, which feels great of course! But it’s also a natural reaction you are getting. And the only way to get this is by not tipping them off. I actually don’t tell the crew ahead of time about nearly every sound design I do. Even when productions expect sound design, I never clear specific ideas.

I think if you tell them beforehand, you unlock a part of their brain that will make them listen more critically. I’m all about feedback and critical thinking, but I think the initial gut reaction is important because it shows you whether it works.

When Andrea reviewed this episode, as soon as she heard this part she texted me immediately and said, I absolutely love this. And I'm sharing that because I want to explain why I think she loved it. By keeping it in, you are telling the listener that Andrea is human. She makes mistakes, and she can laugh at them. This makes her relatable to the audience.

And as a listener, it feels like the curtain is being pulled back. They are reminded that this is a production with real people behind it.

For music, I picked a very soft loungy song to give it some extra flavor. This song cues the listener that it is not part of the regular show. I think you need a song, because if you just keep the flub on its own, it sounds like a mistake, like someone (me!) was not doing their job. Andrea even might have heard it differently if there was no music, maybe even as a mistake on my part as well. And chisel this in stone, if you need to explain the bit, then it is not working correctly.

For effects, I added some kind of retro calculator sound.

I have no idea what generation this thing is from. It sounds like some kind of calculator printer combo??? What is this thing???? Probably the size of a shoe box. Probably took thirty minutes to drain eight D batteries. Whatever, its funny because its over the top.

Then I added just a little ding to show the answer was generated or maybe a light bulb in Andrea’s head going off?

You could use this kind of build in many circumstances. It does not have to be number crunching of course. Maybe the host forgets a fact and pauses to look it up, you could try something like this in that moment provided they speak through it. Just swap the calculator for some digital data processing sound effects. Many directions you can go.

It will not work every time, but trust your instincts. You will hear it when the host mumbles just enough of their train of thought to justify a build like this.

Example #2

This one is from Fast Company, from a show I worked on called Most Innovative Companies.

This one pulls back the curtain again and reminds the listener that this is a production, something more than microphones and a record button.

And it is so simple. Keep the flub, cue the retake, and add a quick one kilohertz tone separating them.

You probably noticed Vari-Fi in there dipping the music. If you want to learn more about that plugin, I have an entire newsletter about it. The one kilohertz tone comes from Signal Generator in Pro Tools. If you want to see how that’s done, the video is your best bet.

I have one request with bleeps. If you take one thing away from this newsletter please let it be this. When you make bleeps, put small fades on both ends.

I hear this mistake in podcasts and on YouTube all the time. Without fades, that bleep is going from silence to full amplitude of the tone. That usually makes a snapping pop on one or both ends of the bleep which is very unpleasant to hear, especially with headphones.

While I am soapboxing, do not make bleeps too loud. They do not need to be turned up to the same level as the dialogue. Listen to where I have it in the sample audio, probably 4ish LUFS lower than Josh’s voice. Keep them quieter so they are heard but not sticking out.

OK soapboxing over.

The reason I think this blooper works is because our brains have been trained to connect bleeps with retakes from old blooper reels. As a kid I remember TV specials where actors would flub, laugh, and retake the line with a beeping sound in between. Our brains are already conditioned to what a tone like this implies.

Lastly, I think the funny part in this clip is that you can hear Josh, the host, struggling to save the line, eeking it out with every word. He keeps trying, and then womp womp. But then the retake is so short, snappy and perfect that I feel like that's the thing that actually makes me laugh. Everything is a setup for that line’s payoff.

Next one.

Example #3

This is from a recent episode of The Money with Katie Show by Morning Brew.

From time to time the host, Katie, would drop a complimentary adjective for someone in the credits, like producer Henah, shout out Henah, or myself. Katie might say “produced by the amazing Henah Velez!” or “sound mixing by the incredible Nick Torres.” I was ribbing her one day for not having done this in a while.

So in the next recording she added my adjective, but needed a second to find the right word. Here is how it went down.

Like the Gaslit Nation example, I kept the blooper in exactly how it was recorded. It was fun because she named me specifically, and I am essentially putting the show on hold until I get my adjective. The effect applied to the music makes it feel as if I suspended the theme song in time.

Funny story, I could have held it forever with this plugin effect. The plugin used was Sound Toys Echo Boy and the preset is called Infinite Space, an appropriate name. It can sustain audio basically forever.

I used it on the stereo mix of the theme song, which gets a little muddy but works fine. I usually use it on specific music stems. A cymbal crash, snare hit, or plucked string or synth works especially well. These instruments sustain better without the bass muddying things.

And did anyone notice the gap between Katie’s last word and the music coming back in? I really want to get in the habit of talking more about timings in general. Six frames of silence. One fifth of a second. But that tiny pause actually does some lifting.

It's giving the impression that I, fake Nick (I'm going to call myself that because I'm not that egotistical!), am considering what Katie has said. Pause. I, fake Nick, am satisfied with the compliment and we can continue the show. Music starts again.

And since fake Nick is happy about the compliment, the music should also be happy. That is why I chose the happiest moment of the theme song to come back in on. As if I'm so happy about this compliment that we should all be joyful about this together.

This is one of the benefits of this sustaining technique. You can pick the part of the song that suits your needs best to come back in on.

So with that gap and music edit in mind, listen again.

Sound design is built one small choice at a time, and those inches add up.

OK, thats it for bloopers pt1 but before I go I have a few things to talk about.

First off, if anyone wants to contribute to Sound Bytes, please reach out. I would love this to ultimately become a community of idea sharing. There are so many styles of podcast and radio production I have not worked on but would love to feature. Even if you are a student, or just starting out, if you have audio you are proud of and and want to make a Sound Bytes newsletter and/or video to be featured here please reach out. It will be all positive vibes, I promise you that.

It does not even need to be music and effects. It could be the way you cut an interview, the way you structured an episode, how you fixed problematic audio, the way you mixed and layered background effects, or how you used natural sound to bring your production to life.

I am just spitballing here, but if you have something worth sharing, let’s talk. Or at the very least, keep it in mind so that the next time you make something you're proud of, we can hopefully feature it here.

Just last week I had that feeling. I have many Sound Bytes in mind for future newsletters, but the one I did last week, I was like, this is hitting different. This is going to the front of the Sound Bytes line. And so that one will be coming after Bloopers part 2. So if you get that itch after making something that slaps, you know where to find me!

And speaking of itching, (I'm going to stop using that word kind of grosses me out), that's why I started Sound Bytes. I had that itch (no mas). I had something to say and genuinely thought there might be people out there with an interest in this kind of sound design. That's the reason I started this anyway.

But for the past month I have been honing in on what Sound Bytes’ actual mission is. And I think Ive started to land on what its purpose actually is.

The industry has been rocky these past few years. My condolences to anyone affected by the recent Wondery layoffs. I imagine many people are nervous about the NPR cuts, especially if your affiliate relies on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Maybe you are a former Gimlet employee. It seems like every month brings another big shift.

And to me it feels undeniable now, and maybe it has been this way for a while and Ive been too heads down to notice, that the industry is moving back toward its roots. Smaller budgets, smaller crews. And in my view we have to learn to be scrappy again.

Big budget productions will be less common, and smaller crews will be expected to do more in less time with fewer resources. Honestly, that is one of the things that drew me to podcasting in the first place. The ability to hear the sonic fingerprints of every member of a small crew in each episode.

So, the mission I am honing in on is this. Helping creators with small crews or working alone make every sound, every effect, and every musical moment work harder so the final production feels bigger than the team behind it.

That, to me, is what this medium has always been about.

So again, if anyone out there wants to join in that mission and share their own Sound Bytes showcases, you know where to find me! By exchanging ideas and experiences, we all get better.

Thank you for letting me get that out. Back to the fun stuff.

I'll be back next time with that denser fourth bloopers sound design (story?) example.

As always, if you have questions or comments you can reach me here or on LinkedIn, Nicholas Torres, lead audio engineer at Fast Company and Inc. Magazine, or by email at podsoundbytes@gmail.com.

See you next time.

Still hungry? Want more Bytes?

Sonic Flush: Spinning Down with Vari-Fi - This newsletter stepped through the plugin Vari-Fi, but more importantly it showed how to set up the music for maximum impact with the plugin.

Building a Fun and Effective Sizzle Compilation - Where it all started, my first Sound Byte that I put together while sick with COVID. I feel like shit, I KNOW ILL START A NEWSLETTER! It breaks down a sizzle compilation about consumption and waste. Who has more fun than we do?