Hyperbolic Audio Mixes & Records The Animated Pilot, Enchanted Thyme

Innovatively Integrating Skype & ISDN Technology Allowing Director Mark Simon
To Work Face-to-Face With an
Accomplished Cast Of New York-based Voice Over Talent

New York: Hyperbolic Audio was recently called upon by award-winning Florida-based animation director Mark Simon, when he needed to direct a who's who of New York-based voiceover talent for a new animated pilot entitled, Enchanted Thyme, a series based on award-winning playwright Ariane Smith's popular children's book of the same name.

Hyperbolic's engineer, Jeannine Guenther, and recently signed veteran mixer, Steve Bucino collaborated on the project. The team innovatively integrated Skype technology into Hyperbolic Audio's ISDN capabilities to provide the director and talent with a virtual on-site experience, which enabled Simon to evoke the kind of spot-on performances that could only be achieved with a face-to-face, on-site session.

Guenther recorded the accomplished roster of talent for the pilot, as Skype was employed utilizing a laptop with a built-in camera, positioned outside the recording booth window.

Although ISDN lines are commonly used to facilitate long-distance direction, this was the first time that this accomplished group of actors had ever had an opportunity to record a session with the benefit of real-time video feedback from an off-site director - And they all concurred that the one-to-one interaction that this technology allow them to maintain raised the caliber of performances.

Hyperbolic Audio's mixer Steve Bucino notes, " While I was finding sounds and building scenes in Mix Room A, Jeannine was in Studio B, editing together the dialogue and finding some extra walla to incorporate where appropriate. Since she was also the recording engineer, Jeannine was privy to Andy and Mark's directing sessions with the actors - so the efficiency of the entire process was maximized."

Enchanted Thyme initially came to Hyperbolic Audio as an animated storyboard. From the beginning of the project it was clear that the client's vision was to blurs the line between reality and fantasy.  Bucino knew that the shaping of the sound was key to creating a balance between the fusion of realism and flights of imagination that drove the style of the animated story.

"We see objects and actions that are grounded in a realistic existence, so I wanted to exaggerate their characteristics with some obvious- as well some unexpected - sound references," adds Bucino.  "I had a lot of fun experimenting with the sounds in Hyperbolic's Yamaha S90ES synthesizer, as well as experimenting with a variety of sound effects from our ever-expanding library," notes Bucino.