Kate Hopkins blog
Kate Hopkins started as a receptionist in a post-production company, she helped trim photos and sound transfers with the photo editor. Afterwards, she went on to freelance sound and worked on some horror, but her passion came from dramas and how sound would help tell the story. Soon after, digital was being popularised and she had to learn how to use computers and software. At this time, she was going between digital and film but started primarily using Pro Tools in 1994 and has been using Pro Tools since. She has worked on films such as Blue Planet II (was awarded a BAFTA, RTS, and 2 Emmy awards), Our Planet, Wolves at Our Door, and Frozen Planet (where she was awarded a BAFTA).
When we asked her questions, some parts jumped out to me and I have written about them below.
Hearing that you can only use recorded sounds from the same season as the film is something that makes sense, but I never thought about it. “Birds give it away and some other animals. People will notice even if one bird call is wrong.”
When asked, do you aim to represent a realistic field recording, or are they fictitious sounds which the audience will believe as real? Her response was: “It’s all real, it has to be accurate… Things are added for drama or tension, but when you’re recreating an animal or real object it has to be completely accurate.” I love the idea of recreating an animal, but then adding more for drama.
“It’s not all about the animals you’re looking at but everything around it. When a location changes you always have to change the atmosphere even subtly. You have to understand the geography and sound behind them.”
Kate Hopkins
The attention to detail in the environments is amazing, she spoke about when creating a jungle you have to recreate bird chirps, animal noises, bugs moving around, leaves moving, and much more to create a convincing reality. Because these environments really exist, it’s difficult to add something fictional and expect people to believe it.
When she showed her Pro Tools session, I found how there were three main sections interesting. Effects, atmosphere, and foley, when combined made every form of sound, minus music.
“The biggest challenge is to combine the best recordings that are right but also what sounds the best. You want the richest sound you are able to create and have an atmosphere with the right sounds.“
Kate Hopkins
It’s difficult to recreate an atmosphere, but the best way to do this is to use recordings on set and to get the people who recorded in the location to believe they’re there again.