Posted on 03/06/2021 8:15:40 PM PST by BenLurkin
“Nomadland” production sound mixer Michael Wolf Snyder has died by suicide, according his father, David Snyder. He was 35.
Snyder’s body was found in his Queens, N.Y. apartment by his father on March 1 after friends and family had not heard from him for several days.
David, a psychiatrist, posted a message on Facebook on March 4. “Michael took his own life sometime in the last week and wasn’t discovered until I went to check on him Monday after he had dropped out of contact for several days,” he wrote. “He has suffered from Major Depression for many years. For most people, this is an illness that waxes and wanes over the years. I’m sure it was difficult for Michael that he spent most of the last year alone in his small, Queens apartment, being responsible about dealing with the coronavirus. In spite of this, we all believed he was doing well, and for most of this past year I think he was. He seemed especially joyful and invigorated in these last few months since he was able to return to work on several different film projects. He was certainly thrilled about all of the accolades for Nomadland and told us many happy stories about his work on the film and the amazing people he got to spend time with.”
Snyder also worked with “Nomadland” director Chloé Zhao on 2017’s “The Rider.” During ‘The Rider,’ Wolf suggested an idea we later took onto ‘Nomadland’ — recording room tones longer than we need as a chance to experience silence."
(Excerpt) Read more at variety.com ...
“In film and video production, the term room tone means the sound of an empty room, or a room in which all the actors are standing silently.
To a newbie, room tone means silence. To an audio professional, room tone means the subtle, low-volume sounds present in every room. Importantly, room tones are not all the same — every room has its own unique sound.
Room tone is normally recorded in every room used in a film. Typically, at the end of shooting a scene, the cast will stand silent for a few moments while the room tone is recorded. It is desirable to replicate the scene’s exact background noise when recording room tone. In theory this means all the actors are still present, lights are on and the camera is rolling. In reality this doesn’t usually happen — the actors may leave the scene first, the camera is often turned off, etc.
Room tone is used as a sound bed to accompany any new sound that is added to a scene in post-production, for example, re-recorded dialogue. If the new audio is recorded in a separate studio, the difference in background noise would be subtle but different enough to ruin the continuity. Placing the room tone underneath any new dialogue prevents this from happening (naturally you also need to avoid adding any new background noise with the new audio).”
https://www.mediacollege.com/audio/ambient/room-tone.html
Kidz of SzyKaiatrysts can apparently end up with “problems”.
Who knew?
I hate depression. I hope he has found peace. Or should I say Peace?
Don’t be mean. My sis-in-law killed herself at that same age, neither of her parents were shrinks. Hubby will never get over it and neither will the rest of us.
Depression sucks.
I just lost a classmate to it. I mean, at 60 we are rounding the third turn and heading for home. At this point I want to see what happens next.
What a shame.
“He spent most of the last year alone in his small, Queens apartment.”
Wow. Amazing. Major goof.
No person with depression should live alone.
Every person with depression should live with parents, brothers, sisters or uncles.
So the streaming services are absolutely killing the traditional movie studios (Paramount is creating their own streaming service in desperation). The fierce competition means that everyone has to produce or be disregarded. Or make something that will please the overlords in China.
” He seemed especially joyful and invigorated in these last few months since he was able to return to work on several different film projects.”
Doesn’t sound like he was out of work.
Streaming all movies would depress me...I love going to the movie theaters...
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I was in NYC a few years ago, obviously pre-covid, and went to a small party that was well attended by people in the music production side of things. One did musicals for broadway, his close friend worked on sound for TV and film. Long story short, we were talking about how easy it is for people these days to record music at home and the film/TV guy agreed and then said “soon they won’t even need us. It will be like ordering music from McDonalds. Just press this button for “scary music” and that button for “suspense” and that button for “sad” etc and the computers will create random sound sequences until you get the one you like and just stick it onto the film”.
A bit of an oversimplification, but the way he desrcribed it made it sound pretty realistic.
As for the story here, very sad for someone so young to go; by his own hands. Alone, in a small apartment, in a city that is half empty and entirely shut down, and likely without prospects for much work. Plenty of blame to apportion, but we all know suicides and attempts and depression are all very high thanks to these covid policies. As well as substance abuse. Having a mental illness makes it all the harder to cope I’m sure. Tragic.
Shrink parents aren’t the only source of “trouble”. Probably only a very small fraction.
But, on average, they do seem to more likely have troubled kids than most others.
Funny. I used to like going to movies. Not so much anymore. For one, few of them are really worth it. I’m over all the special effects. But mostly I don’t really like or trust crowds. Even before Covid I didn’t like having so many strangers sitting so close to me for hours on end. I’m not a germaphobe per se, but (some) people can just be generally annoying and distracting. Fidgeting, coughing, sniffling, using their phones, whispering etc). So I drive my wife crazy - when we go to the theater, I reserve the very last row whenever possible and then I buy up the 2 seats on either side of us and the 2 seats in front of us. If I can’t get the last row, then I buy 2 more seats behind our seats. Costs a dang fortune!
Good for you,but pricey.
My friend and I,both seniors,go to the first showing of the day....always plenty of room.
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Depression sucks. I don’t pretend to understand it. I’ve seen it’s effect on people, even people very close to me. Intimately close. I don’t know what the answer is, which is frustrating to someone with an engineer’s “fix it” personality such as me. It could be therapy, pharmaceutical, suck it up, or some combination of these. Maybe there is no “answer” no fix. I hope his family and friends can find peace.
I don’t think movie theaters are dead at all. I went to see The Lord of the Ring trilogy this week on 3 separate nights. It was great to be back in the theater once again. Most theaters are still closed but I think once product is released, people will flock from pent up demand. After all, Tom and Jerry made $14 million last weekend with few theaters open and it was also available for streaming. The theater experience is not dead.
Sounds cheaper to buy a very wide, high resolution, video screen and a good sound system and then wait a year or so to watch the production at home over HS internet.
That business model has gone the wayside. Everyone has wide-screen TVs and can access a movie with a click of a remote. I’d rather not go to a movie theater, where I’d pay $15 for a movie and another $25 just for soda and popcorn, when I can do both for under $5.
You stole that from the Babylon Bee. Hilarious - they are incredibly talented people.
No, honestly I did not steal it. It was a real, live, face to face conversation among many of nearly dozen people in a cramped NYC apartment - back in the days when such activity was still lawful. Maybe the guy who said it to me stole it from The Bee - I agree they are very talented satirists.
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