[Libao Column | Famous Views]Open your ears and listen to the glorious voice of Taiwanese movies – Du Duzhi – Libao Media

Du Duzhi is Taiwan’s most famous film sound effects master, ushering in the era of simultaneous recording, Dolby Stereo recording and Dolby Atmos recording for Taiwanese films. In 2023, Du Duzhi won the Best Sound Effects Award at the 60th Golden Horse Awards with two new talents, Wu Shuyao and Chen Guanting, for the movie “May Snow”. This is his 13th Golden Horse Award, tying Hong Kong filmmaker Zhang Shuping. The record set by the two makes them jointly the winners with the most awards in the history of the Golden Horse Film Festival.

The “Sound and Color Box” in Nangang is the base for Du Duzhi to create sound magic. It has a recording studio and projection theater capable of producing Dolby Atmos sound effects. From the environment to the equipment, it fully meets the world’s leading professional standards. Important Taiwanese movies so far in the 21st century, such as “Cape No. 7”, “Monga”, “Assassin Nie Yinniang”, “Buddha Plush”, etc., have all completed their post-production sound effects here, and the three characters Du Duzhi, It has long become synonymous with “sound effects” in Chinese movies.

“I’m like a musician in a symphony orchestra. I perform when I should perform. I don’t need to steal others’ grace. My purpose is to make the movie good-looking, not to make people think my voice is eye-catching.” Du Duzhi, who lives up to his name, has always been sincere and sincere. Attitude, this is a footnote to the work that I still enjoy doing after nearly 50 years.

From post-production dubbing to synchronized recording, and from the analog era to the digital era, Du Duzhi has always been a leader on the road of sound effects production and design. While moving forward, he has not forgotten to support those who are behind, and has cultivated a group of people. Professional talents who are familiar with on-site recording, editing and mixing post-production. In recent years, under the new trend of transnational film co-production, Du Duzhi and his disciples have also expanded their cooperation tentacles from Taiwan to the world. “May Snow”, which just won the Golden Horse Award for Best Sound Effects and the Asian Film Awards for Best Sound Effects, was a work made by Malaysian director Zhang Ji’an who specially traveled to Taiwan to have To Dou-chi direct it.

⟪Snow in May⟫ is the second film by Malaysian director Zhang Ji’an. It tells the rise and fall of the well-known “Pu Changchun Troupe” Cantonese opera troupe, and brings out the most tragic racial conflict among Malaysian Chinese – the “May 13th Incident” that occurred in 1969 ”. Zhang Ji’an spent ten years excavating the scars of blood and tears that had been gathered in history. When the victims could no longer speak for themselves, most of the survivors who provided testimonies for him had not been to the killing scene, but hid in hiding places. He was “listening” to the cries for help floating around.

If “hearing” is the most important memory sense in the history of May 13th, how can the audience “hear” death? In the movie “Snow in May”, Du Duzhi used “voice” to take the audience into the atmosphere of that chilling era – people fled in panic, and people hiding in the theater had no way of knowing the situation outside, but the chaotic people Sounds, gunshots, screams, and cries, as if unknown death is approaching step by step. In just a few minutes, an “auditory” historical event is depicted, making “hearing” more terrifying than seeing! Through layered sound processing, Du Duzhi successfully brought the fear of hearing to the extreme. It is such profound skills that won him many film awards in one fell swoop.

“Sound effects are to serve the movie.” Du Duzhi said that the sound effects engineer’s job is to design and select the most dramatic sounds or the sounds that best fit the film’s situation, because the sound will lead people. Wherever the sound is in a picture, the audience will I will pay attention there, and the “line of the story” will be outlined more clearly. Therefore, Du Duzhi likes to listen to the director’s ideas. He will judge where to increase the beat of the story. If the editing cannot tell a good story, he will also discuss with the director to determine whether re-editing is needed.

Over the years, the “Sensual Box” has hosted many international filmmakers from all over the world like Zhang Jian. From big directors to emerging directors, they all witnessed the birth of their works in this magical space. In addition, through the “International Cooperation Investment Project (TICP)” of the Academy of Cultural Affairs, Du Duzhi and his team have jumped onto the international stage and shown their talents in foreign language film production. Through this recognized master of sound effects, filmmakers from all over the world have seen Taiwan’s post-production capabilities, and Du Duzhi has also opened up more possibilities in the film vocabulary of different countries.

“The Settlers”, which will be screened at the Golden Horse Film Festival in 2023, is the result of a joint collaboration between Du Duzhi’s team and Chilean director Felipe GÁLVEZ, facilitated by the Academy of Cultural Studies. This film tells the true historical story of the Tierra del Fuego indigenous people in Chile who were oppressed by Western conquerors in the early 20th century. Due to poor sound recording conditions during filming, environmental sounds and action sound effects had to be re-layed in the later stages. In addition to making the sound effects realistic , sometimes it also enters magical realism with the plot of totem ancestral spirits. The post-production of the entire film is exquisite and clever.

Thanks to the advancement of digital technology, the Source Connect technology used in the “Sound and Color Box” allows directors in both places to mix simultaneously with excellent sound quality through a Dolby certified recording studio, even if they are in two places. , actors or sound effects engineers are connected in real time, allowing sound production to break through geographical limitations, opening up the possibility of international production, and completing many transnational works.

All in all, from 2023 to now, five films completed in the “Sensual Box” have been selected for the three major European film festivals, Cannes, Venice and Berlin. This is an achievement that many larger recording studios in the world cannot match. It is due to the close ingenuity of Du Duzhi and the trickle-down convergence of Taiwan’s new film wave in the 1980s.

Edward Yang was one of the people who had the most profound influence on Du Duzhi. Edward Yang’s contribution to the film industry was not only his works. After being shortlisted for the Berlin Film Festival, he also used his own money to let the staff walk on the red carpet to participate in the exhibition, and personally experience the glorious moments of working in the film industry. . Du Duzhi also had a similar idea. He believed that walking on the red carpet was an honor and would be remembered in the hearts of filmmakers for a long time. Therefore, when the works of Sense Box were successively nominated for international film festival awards, he asked his colleagues to Going to a foreign country to receive the baptism of first-tier film festivals not only opened his horizons, but also created a sense of self-required mission. He said: “The sense of honor will enhance the production process of Taiwanese films. After experiencing the glory, every time when making, do you still have to let go?” If you have to fight hard, you will have a choice in your heart.”

In addition to international cooperation, “The Old Fox” and “The Magician on the Skybridge” produced in recent years have invariably reconstructed the sounds of Taiwan in the 1980s, such as the disappeared level crossing warnings, the sound of diesel trains running, and the sounds of street vendors, trying to bring the memory of old Taipei to life. and emotions are re-presented to the audience.

In fact, not only these two films, but almost all epoch-making films are all about the collection and reconstruction of sound. Du Duzhi has been dedicated to collecting and organizing various sound effects materials, directly leaving important records for the history of Taiwan’s sound.

In the early days of Taiwanese movies, there were very few background sounds, and they could only produce harsh and unrealistic sound effects. For a long time, Du Duzhi was ready to record anytime and anywhere whenever he went out. The purpose was to create his own sound sample data. Starting from him, he would create a sound sample for each movie. The sound is collected everywhere to generate material, making Taiwanese movie scenes more three-dimensional and vivid.

Over the course of half a century of filmmaking, Du Duzhi has gradually built a huge sound database, including not only local sounds in Taiwan, but also through various international cooperation, he has successively collected sounds from different regions. He digitized these sounds. For easy retrieval and use, it gradually creates precious sound memory assets for the Taiwanese film industry.

Not only that, Du Duzhi is also dedicated to improving the overall post-production environment and constantly innovating new sound technology. From recording, dubbing to mixing, Sound Box has the most complete sound equipment in the country. In recent years, it has built a seven-meter-wide and four-meter-high screen that meets the requirements of the industry. Although the cost of a Dolby-certified analog cinema is high as the final mixing venue, Du Duzhi hopes that film partners at home and abroad can enjoy the best post-production environment in Taiwan.

“Providing a high-quality Dolby mixing production facility with professional technology and mature production experience for Chinese-language films” has always been a wish. Du Duzhi has made a comprehensive plan to improve Taiwan’s audiovisual production conditions, and also actively donates sound equipment to museums and cultural institutions. Institutions that contribute to the construction and inheritance of sound.

For the new generation of creators who want to devote themselves to sound design, Du Duzhi said that sound effects are sensitivity training, and they must start from life memory to expand auditory practice. He said: “If you want to open your auditory sense, you must first turn off your vision and close your eyes.” , your hearing is infinite, there will be another world.”

Touching sound design may come from the “heart” feeling and love from beginning to end. This is also the only way to produce sound effects. The trait that Du Duzhi values ​​most is his sincere and meticulous observation of movies. Only those who love images and can be keenly aware of the emotions of movies can create moving works, because technical things can be taught, but emotional care is fundamental. Emitted from the heart, this is the key to how far the sound design can go.

From internationally renowned directors to young talents, from equipment and technology to global exchanges, our visit saw that Du Duzhi has spared no effort in the Taiwanese film environment. At the end of the interview, Du Duzhi was curiously asked a postulate and imaginative question: ” If you want to dub the sound for the movie “Du Duzhi”, how would you like to design it?”

Du Duzhi pondered for a while, and then he thought of the beautiful sky with colorful clouds. He asked playfully: “If the clouds have a sound, what do you think it is…?”

Following his question, it seemed as if one could see an entire patch of gentle sunset light, reflecting the murmur of the treetops, the fluttering of birds, and the crashing waves of the evening waves. The warm light is the soul of all things, just like Du Duzhi, who has been shining in the film industry for half a century, letting every existence make its own beautiful voice and making it full of vitality. If the magnificent clouds have a voice, I believe it is the warm voice of Master Du Duzhi who has been deeply involved in the Taiwanese film industry.

【This articleTaipei Cultural and Creative IndustriesReprinted with permission, original text published inthis】
※About Taipei Cultural and Creative Industries
Taipei Cultural Creativity has been deeply involved in the cultural and creative field for many years. With the purpose of “discovering and cultivating cultural and creative talents”, in order to encourage all creators, it has launched the “Celebrity Viewpoint” online column on the official website in 2015, interviewing people from music, film and television, and art. In the fields of literature and design, influential cultural and creative workers share their views on the industry and their own experiences.
※This article is a personal opinion and does not represent“Libao Media”position