Dialogue Editing

306 PREPARING FOR THE MIX
Table 17-1 Benchmarks in a Reel for Confi rming Sync
Benchmark Description
Start mark Timecode of the leader’s picture start mark
Sync pop Timecode or footage of the head leader’s sync pop
FFOA Timecode or footage of the fi rst frame of the reel (unless it’s a fade
from black)
1st cut First internal picture cut
2nd cut Second internal picture cut
2nd to last cut Next to last internal picture cut
Last cut Last internal picture cut
LFOA Timecode or footage of cut from the last frame of action to the tail
leader
Tail pop Timecode or footage of the tail leader’s pop (if there is one)
it’s defi nitely a picture problem. Note the problem, tell the supervising sound
editor, and get out of the way.
If the fi lm begins in sync but sound and picture progressively drift apart, it’s
not a negative-cutting mistake; rather, the fi lm was running at the wrong
speed in the telecine. Stop. There’s nothing you can do, and if you try to sync
to this version, you’ll learn a hard lesson that you’ll never want to repeat.
Cuts inside a scene are usually more reliable sync references than are the
scene boundaries, which is one of the reasons you measured the fi rst two
internal cuts. Synchronize within a scene, and the reel will follow suit. It’s an
easy fi x if the beginning of the scene is a bit longer or shorter.
Long ago, when you began editing this project, you added markers to indicate
scene changes and used them to identify scenes for easy access and to control
scene transitions. Now you can use them to resync a new version. The markers
may be exactly a half frame early or late because of the telecine pulldown
sequence, but the cuts should hover around them. If you encounter a scene
change in the new version that doesn’t match the session’s scene marker,
you’ll know that the picture change occurred between the last marker you
checked and your current location.
Sync is elusive. The more you analyze a shot, the more you advance and
retard a region, the greater your focus on a shot, the less likely you are to get
anywhere. If you’re having a tough time nailing the sync, leave the room,
do something else, come back later. Bring fl owers. Chances are you’ll do
better with a fresh head. Some shots (and some actors) simply never seem to
be in sync. Do the best you can and try not to look at them during the
premiere.