Sarah Nadine Sadik's Lounge Discussions

This is my input 'from the outside looking in' as I neither work for a production company or live in LA.

1. As I spent 23 years at Exxon, my initial take is you learn and use the tools used at the company. Your background in your tools is used primary for considering you for the job. The assumption is, for example if you are expert in one or more DAWs/sequencers and many VSTs, then if they use others you can quickly come up to speed.

2. The tools and data formats you use are primarily important if you are part of a larger 'workflow' which most of us are. You get your 'stuff' from someone and you provide your product to someone else. So, you need to work with the formats you get and you need to insure the data/formats you provide are what your co-workers need to work with/expect.

As I, for example, am independent and not as part of a production company, those who dependent on me really don't care about that 'black box' in the middle as long as I score the scenes as directed and provide the audio editor with the files they need. They should not care, for example I that I use Sibelius with various VSTs and instruments - I am one of those 'types' that don't use a DAW/sequencer at all since I want to score once and potentially use the score for both electronic distribution and live performance (i.e., charts) :)

I am still a part of a larger 'workflow' so before I start after the cues are defined (or I am given the ability to create them on the fly) - I come to an 'agreement' with the person(s) who are providing me with the film -- locked or not, what format, file type, etc. And then I get agreement/buy-in on the type of WAV (or WAVs) and as these are short films (normally), whether I would pre-mix the levels (with pre-defined 'keyframes') so all the audio editor/mixer needs to do is put a single WAV file (untouched) into an audio track in the film OR whether they will be responsible for doing the mix and setting of the keyframes in the score.

Hi Sarah. I hear Logic is big in LA, and Cubase in London, though London seems to be becoming more Logic too now. Pro Tools is more generally used for mixing, mastering and the final mix than composing, though some composers use it for everything. What kind of jobs in LA are you looking for? As Joel mentions, if it's a scoring job then they shouldn't care too much what DAW you use. If it's some kind of production house, then either ask what they use, or look on their websites to see if it's mentioned or if you can sneakily see any pictures of monitors with a DAW open on them!

Cubase could be big in the U.K. because it is a product of Steinberg which is a U.K. company. Steinberg also now sells one of the top three notation tools, Dorico which competes against Sibelius (part of Avid which also sells Protools) and Finale.

Get the FilmicPro app. Ensure you save it to the FilmicPro video library and not your normal video library. Reason is the FilmicPro formats may not be recognized by your phone and your phone may try to change things thus wrecking your footage. And when using your phone, make sure you have plenty of storage available. Grab friends, or get recommendations from friends, on DP's and Sound/Audio and a good editor. Break a leg, Sarah!

If you are in L.A. and do not "have" to shoot it yourself, but intend to direct, you should be able to find dozens of newer cinematographers with gear who would collaborate to realize your vision. Remember than even in it's simplest form, like documentary or news, sound and camera are different jobs, and you should use 1 person who knows how to do each at a minimum. Only in a sit-down interview can a camera operator also deliver good audio. Have fun. You will grow exponentially better on everything you create.

Film & Produce it with all your angles / acting as good as you like it with your cell phone & re-shoot it if it needs it... Make it feel as real to your vision that you think is good & then after you edit the story then release it... (Do not put too much thoughts into being perfect or Hollywood like etc... ) Review it & then release the film on film groups that will help you & support what you're trying to get the viewers to feel & think... What is important that you got your 1st one out of the way & you'll love it... Treat directing / filming / acting / writing / editing like SCULPTING - chip away what doesn't belong ... Smooth out & polish what should be kept... Your vision will change every 6 to 9 months & you will grow because of the creative process & what it brings into your life... Figure out a way to film your daily progress in a VBLOG so that you can look back at that as well - You will find your ideas will change - what you thought was cool becomes a moment you want to rejoice or forget later on a year from now... Keep working at what you love about your "WHY" are you doing this & what it means in your life... You'll develop a feel & a vision that others will not have... Artists life is mostly being alone because people will not share your vision until you bring in the culture of you.... But when you hear 1 person mention how & what you did helped them... This is POWER!!!

The short answer is: Typically, you need to be in LA or NY to get an LA/NY agent. They not going to be willing to rep someone not there and able to make next day auditions, which is largely what they get. Hope this helps!