Book Reviews

The Magic of Cinema Sound

The many people who create sound,are likewise invisible to the public — even as their contributions are central to making onscreen worlds. They too are part of the occult magic of cinema. […]

Book Reviews

Post Moderne: A Resource and Reference Tool

When nonlinear editing systems first appeared nearly 25 years ago, a lot of people scratched their heads. Who could edit with a picture you could barely see and a hard drive that couldn’t hold even a reel of images, on a new-fangled personal computer that was likely to crash? […]

Book Reviews

Knockin’ on History’s Door

Sometimes a title can be misleading, but in the case of The Authentic Death & Contentious Afterlife of Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid: The Untold Story of Peckinpah’s Last Western — the title, including ampersand — is part and parcel of ACE member Paul Seydor’s exactingly told story. […]

Book Reviews

When Movies Opened Their Mouths

The technical, artistic and economic tumult that roiled through Hollywood with the coming of sound sometimes led to wildly unusual experiments and partnerships. The widespread adoption of literary works and stage plays was one product of the beginning of the talkies. […]

Book Reviews

Forget It, Jake

At a preview screening of the film Chinatown in summer 1974, an official from the City of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is reported to have remarked, […]

Book Reviews

A Cutting Room Colloquy

Steve Hullfish knows how to talk with editors. In addition to writing five previous books (all published by Focal Press), including The Art and Technology of Digital Color Correction and Avid Uncut, he has extensive post-production credits in both television and film. […]

Book Reviews

Planet Waves – Walter Murch and the Sounds of the Solar System

The title of Lawrence Weschler’s book, “Waves Passing in the Night: Walter Murch in the Land of the Astrophysicists,” is complex and slightly mysterious, fitting for an exploration into the mind of legendary picture editor, sound designer, sound editor, re-recording mixer, writer and director Walter Murch, ACE, CAS, MPSE. […]