Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 6

Well, I’m days away from the end of another restoration project, and as usual, the toughest issues always seem to come at the end of the project. Some of the original sound sources aren’t useable, which is frustrating, since they usually give the best results.

Since I’m working with (up to) 78-year-old film sound elements, they are unpredictable in their condition and quality. Lucky for me, I have some very good alternative sources I can go to. I will eventually get this wrapped up to everyone’s satisfaction. Look for the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 6 release in the fall ‘08. (BTW: if you don’t have volumes 1 through 5 yet, what are you waiting for??)

Next, Looney Tunes FAQ's for Mark.

1) Do you get a screen credit for restoring these gems?

A: Nope. My name is nowhere near the packaging of these classics, but since all I'm doing is supervising the audio restoration, I don't think it would be appropriate anyway. The credit for these babies still ALL belongs to the original crews who made them.

2) Are they appropriate for my kids to watch?

A: In general, yes, absolutely. However, given the era they were produced (the 30's through the 60's), there are a few times when I have to say to my kids, "we don't make fun of indians, do we." Or, "You do know that shooting somebody from that range won't just make them covered with gun powder and mess up their hair, right?" So far, so good.

My suggestion: you love these cartoons anyway, watch them with your kids. Then you can explain to them that dynamite isn't really so available in the real world.

3) Did you realize that you have the coolest job ever?

A: Yes, but unfortunately my time here is coming to an end. As for what's next? After this project I’m working on a few possibilities, mostly feature film related. As soon as I get a deal signed, I’ll share – I don’t want to jinx it – not that I’m superstitious or anything – although I generally stay away from all ladders, mirrors, black cats, anything with the #13 on it, and fruit smoothies with bananas.

New Projects Now Out on DVD

Last fall and early winter, I mixed a couple of indie features (one documentary and one drama-mentary), and they have finally come out on the market.

Morristown is a feature-length drama/documentary based on a ballet school in a small town of the same name. We had several sound challenges, but overall I think it came out sounding very good. (And myself being someone with a limited eye for dance, I think there's some great stuff of that sort in there too.) Check it out at: morristownthemovie.com. (no imdb page as of yet)

The Sophisticated Misfit is a documentary that follows the life and art of Los Angeles based artist Josh Agle (aka: Shag). He has a remarkable style that is often imitated, though never really equaled. (That's his work above.) See about getting the movie HERE. I have fallen into his fan-base, though unfortunately, I'll probably never have the opportunity to get one of his original pieces.

This film also had challenges in the production sound, but we got it dialed in pretty well, and I think the content of both of these movies makes up for any of the sound flaws. The filmmakers, Christo Garcia (Morristown) and Mark Chervinsky (Sophisticated Misfit) are now film partners, so they are collaborating on their projects. They make a good team.

WB's Academy Awards Animation Collection

This is one I worked on last summer. It's a collection of Oscar winners and nominees for animation since the early days. It's being released February 12th.

One great thing about it, is that it represents different worlds of classic animation, by including all the libraries under the WB umbrella. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies are here, but Popeye, Tom & Jerry, Droopy and Superman are among the winners and nominees as well. This is considered the best of the best.

Check it out.
The Academy Awards Collection

Looney Tunes Volume 5 Releasing Soon...

Another great Looney Tunes DVD collection is coming out October 30th.

It took about 7 months for me to wrangle the audio restoration of this volume. We had some tough issues with some of the old film elements, and that kept putting us off course. But eventually we managed to get 'em all together for this release.

I think it's a strong collection. It includes a couple of my 'Bugs' favorites, like "A Star is Bored" and "Buccaneer Bunny".

The new rumor is that we'll be starting on Volume 6 very soon. Little did I know when I watched these great cartoons as a kid, that I'd have the opportunity to work on them one day. I'm thankful for that!

Check it out HERE.

Okay, all time favorite Looney Tune... easy, "Rabbit of Seville".
Tell me what your favorite Looney Tune is...

Back At WB

Well, I'm back working at Warner Bros. Their slow summer is at an end, and now there are more shows to cut. I'll be working at WB Animation on two returning animated shows: "The Batman" and "Loonatics Unleashed", and on two new shows: a group of young teen super-heroes form the "Legion of Super-Heroes", and a new look for the Scooby crew debuts in "Shaggy and Scooby-Doo Get A Clue".


I'll also be beginning the audio restoration process on Volume 5 of The Looney Tunes Classics DVD's. So, there'll be 60 more vintage shorts to do.

We finished Vol 4 in June, so look for it to be coming out this November 14. It's a great collection!

Hoodwinked DVD Comes Out May 2nd

On Tuesday, May 2nd, one of the most clever animated films ever made will come out in the stores.

I might be a bit biased, because this is a movie I'm so proud to say I worked on from the beginning to the end of the process, and it was a GREAT journey. It's also the largest production I've been a part of, and my first feature. There will be a commentary by the directors: Cory Edwards, Todd Edwards, and Tony Leech, plus outtakes, and many extras. (please get the widescreen version so you can see the whole thing!)

I started out editing the whole soundtrack in the beginning, but when the production of Hoodwinked grew (as did the budget), Blue Yonder Films decided to take the movie to Skywalker Sound in Marin County for the complete sound package.

I was fortunate enough to be asked to stay with the picture, so I moved up north for about four months to continue as one of the sound designers as well as to wear a few other hats. I also cut the dialogue (twice, but that's a long story of many new voices joining the picture last minute), and I cut the Foley (you can learn about what 'The Art of Foley' is in another blog entry I made the other day).

One other thing that happened was that I made a great friend in Tom Myers from Skywalker Sound. He is a fantastic sound designer and re-recording mixer with many huge movies under his belt, including Star Wars Ep III, Monsters Inc, Toy Story I & II, and many more. Needless to say, I learned a lot from him as well as from some of the other great guys around the ranch.

I'll not soon forget the experience I had at Skywalker Ranch, and I hope to be back some day soon. My family LOVED visiting when they could. McKenna (our 8 yr old) actually learned to ride a 2-wheeler there a couple of years ago!