Dolby Creator Talks

The sound of “Sinners” is bold, immersive, and essential to the film’s emotional power — a standout achievement that has earned the film a spot on the shortlist for Best Sound at this year’s upcoming Academy Awards®. We’re joined by re-recording mixer and sound designer Steve Boeddeker, supervising sound editor Benny Burtt, re-recording mixer Brandon Proctor, and production sound mixer Chris Welcker to break down how they layered music, dialogue, and sound design to shape the film’s mood, rhythm, and storytelling, including that incredible sequence conjuring musical spirits from the past and the future. “This comes back to Ryan being bold and taking big swings. From the effects standpoint, this was obviously a big music moment, so we were doing whatever we could to not mess it up. We started by being very specific with anything we cut, and anything we cut, we cut in rhythm with the music… And then Ryan really just wanted to be in Sammy’s head, so it ended up being effects getting out of the way almost entirely, with just a few moments standing out.”—Benny Burtt, Supervising Sound Editor, “Sinners”Be sure to check out “Sinners,” now streaming on HBO Max, in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®. Also, be sure to catch our previous episode about the music of “Sinners,” with Two-time Academy Award-winning composer Ludwig Göransson and Executive Music Producer Serena Göransson on YouTube. Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts. You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube. Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

After winning the Cannes Jury Prize in 2025, “Sirât” has been added to the shortlist of potential nominees for Best Sound at this year’s upcoming Academy Awards®, a rare achievement for an international feature film. We are delighted to welcome acclaimed filmmaker Óliver Laxe, sound designer & supervising sound editor Laia Casanovas, re-recording mixer Yasmina Praderas, and production sound mixer Amanda Villavieja to talk to us about how they crafted such an immersive and visceral track for this powerful film.“We wanted to make a genre film inspired by American cinema from the ‘70s…. I come from underground cinema, from documentary. I like reality. I’m quite an orthodox filmmaker. But we wanted to make a genre film. We wanted to make a popular film. We wanted to transcend the cinephile audience. So I was afraid. The proposition [from sound designer] Laia [Casanovas] was, ‘let’s make a sound that was crispy. That you really feel it. We are having an experience in the cinema.’ I like when you go to a theater and you feel with your body, with your skin. The images, the sound — that was the goal… I’m really happy because it’s not just a film, thanks to the sound. It’s a ceremony.”—Óliver Laxe, Director, Writer, Producer, “Sirât”Be sure to check out “Sirât” in Dolby Atmos®, where available. The film will be in theaters in New York and LA on Friday, February 6, followed by a nationwide rollout later in February.Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube.Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

GRAMMY Award®-winning producer, mixer, and engineer Ryan Hewitt joins us from his Nashville studio to discuss re-mixing the entire Oasis catalog in Dolby Atmos®. We dive into his journey from learning the craft from his father, to engineering the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Stadium Arcadium with Rick Rubin, to building his own Stratmosphere Studios. Ryan shares insights on Dolby Atmos mixes for artists like Noah Kahan, his meticulous work preserving the power and legacy of Oasis’ iconic albums, and his experience seeing their long-awaited 2025 reunion tour at Wembley.“The idea was to honor the original mixes, note for note, as much as possible. We couldn't do electron for electron in the console, but close enough. But it has to be, it's just gotta be great. That's all there is to it. You know, I wasn't there. I don't know exactly how everything was done. But I've made enough records that I can listen to it intently for a long time, many times, and figure out how it was done. Some of the songs, some of the records, we had notes for. Which were very helpful. And others we didn't even have track sheets for. So it was a really incredible audio archeology project.”—Ryan Hewitt, Dolby Atmos Mix Engineer, Stratmosphere StudiosStay connected!- You can listen to the Oasis catalog as well as many other classic and contemporary artists in Dolby Atmos, on enabled streaming services.- Follow Oasis on Instagram.- Follow Ryan Hewitt on Instagram.- Learn more about Ryan Hewitt and Stratmosphere Studios.Interested in creating content in Dolby Atmos? Check out our FREE resources to give you a jump start!- Dolby Atmos Music Accelerator: https://www.dolby.com/creator-lab/music-accelerator/- Dolby Atmos Essentials Course: https://learning.dolby.com/- Dolby Atmos Music Support: https://professional.dolby.com/music/Professional-resources/Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube.Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

Writer, director, and producer Bradley Cooper joins us to discuss the sound of his latest film, “Is This Thing On?” Audio became a primary storytelling tool in shaping the film’s deeply subjective point of view. In conversation with the film’s sound team, the director breaks down how perspective, texture, and restraint were used to place audiences directly inside the emotional experience of a man discovering stand-up comedy as his marriage unravels. For Cooper, that approach ultimately comes back to how films are meant to be experienced in theaters.“It’s really about the theatergoing experience — how you best tell the story in these rooms, in this theatrical space. And to me, I haven’t seen a better version than those two elements: Dolby Vision and Atmos. When Stefan [Sonnenfeld] and I colored the Dolby Vision, it was like, ‘Oh — there’s the movie.’ And when you do it in Atmos, in terms of mixing sound… the immersive experience — it’s just a whole different experience than a 5.1 mix. It’s not even in the same universe… And once you go there, you can never go back. I watched a movie the other night that wasn’t in Atmos, and I couldn’t stop imagining what it could be.”—Bradley Cooper, Writer, Director, Producer, “Is This Thing On?”Joining today’s conversation:- Bradley Cooper, Director, Producer- Dane A. Davis, Supervising Sound Editor- Tom Ozanich, Re-recording Mixer- Dean A. Zupancic, Re-recording MixerBe sure to check out “Is This Thing On?,” now in theaters.Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube.Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

Audio Director Chris Fox and Composer Olivier Derivière sit down with guest host Alistair Hirst to explore the immersive sound of “South of Midnight,” the groundbreaking action-adventure game from Compulsion Games. Set in the American Deep South, the score skillfully weaves together traditional Southern-style music and folk songs with a dark, otherworldly essence as the player faces the eerie creatures of Southern legend. In this conversation, Fox and Derivière break down how sound design, music, and a fully realized Dolby Atmos® mix work together to pull players deep into the game’s mythic world.“It really comes back to the idea that the entities — the magic entities — we wanted to make them a character. So the kids, the kid choir that Olivier put together and recorded down in Nashville, are the stars of the show, because they really are everywhere. A lot of what you hear — there are two different samples, actually. One is the agitated samples when you get close to an object or station, and the other is the vowels we were talking about… When you do your magic, they’re in tune with the backing, the non-diegetic music that’s playing at the time… We also played with that in combat. When things get agitated all around you, that’s not just in the front — it’s surrounding you. So there’s a lot of use of space to complement the score.”—Chris Fox, Audio Director, “South of Midnight”Be sure to check out "South of Midnight," available now in Dolby Atmos, on supported systems.Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube.Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. 

What does it mean to create art during times of global conflict? Guest moderator Abiram “Abi” Brizuela leads a thoughtful and timely conversation on how filmmakers respond to war, displacement, and uncertainty through their work. Spanning both narrative and documentary filmmaking, the discussion explores the emotional challenges of telling these stories and the enduring role of cinema in helping audiences reflect, connect, and understand complex human experiences.Joining the discussion: - Cherien Dabis – Writer/Director (“All That’s Left of You”) - Ramona S. Diaz – Director (“And So It Begins”) - Gregory Nava – Writer/Director (“El Norte”) - Bao Nguyen – Director (“The Greatest Night in Pop”)This is another installment of our ongoing “Satellite Sessions” series, which we’re bringing to you in partnership with Antigravity Academy and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment. Follow @antigravityacademy and @capeusa for more information on even more upcoming panels.Antigravity AcademyCAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment)For more inspiring Satellite Sessions just like this one, be sure you are subscribed to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube.Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. 

Legendary filmmaker Darren Aronofsky and cinematographer Matthew Libatique, ASC, LPS, join us to reflect on their three decades of creative partnership: from “Pi,” “Requiem for a Dream,” “Black Swan,” and “The Whale,” to their newest collaboration, “Caught Stealing.” In this wide-ranging conversation, they discuss the evolution of their visual language, how technology continues to reshape the craft, and the inspirations behind the kinetic, East-Village-in-the-’90s aesthetic of “Caught Stealing.” And as the industry stands on the brink of profound transformation, Aronofsky shares why he believes the future is full of opportunities for new kinds of innovative storytelling. “I think how we make films is about to change more than any other time in history. And there’s many ways that can go, many possibilities. So I think for storytellers, it’s really exciting because there’s a lot of discovery ahead of us. There’s the potential for lots of very specific, individual types of films. But I think there’s an absolute need for storytellers to be inventive and to be looking forward.” —Darren Aronofsky, Director and Producer, “Caught Stealing” Be sure to check out “Caught Stealing,” now streaming on Netflix, in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®. Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts. You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube. Learn more about Sundance Collab here. Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. 

Academy Award-winning composer Volker Bertelmann, known for his evocative scores, dives into his work on A House of Dynamite. He shares how he embraced unconventional textures and low-frequency resonance to amplify tension, explaining that 'mistakes' in his prepared piano became integral to the score's character. Volker recounts his collaboration with director Kathryn Bigelow, focusing on the balance between darkness and humanity, and discusses how live recordings and manipulated sounds crafted a rich soundscape that heightens the film’s emotional impact.

Guillermo del Toro, a three-time Oscar-winning filmmaker known for his visually rich storytelling, teams up with seasoned cinematographer Dan Laustsen, famed for his collaboration on films like The Shape of Water. Together, they delve into the striking visual language of Frankenstein, discussing their painterly approach to emotion-laden black tones and the use of large-format cameras. They share insights on lighting philosophy, emphasizing single-source lighting, and reflect on creating practical effects for set design, all while keeping artistic flexibility at the forefront.

Composer Max Richter joins guest host Jon Burlingame to discuss his luminous, emotionally rich score for “Hamnet,” the new film from director Chloé Zhao. In their conversation, Richter shares how early musical sketches shaped the production, how he blended period instruments with processed textures, and how the film’s psychological and natural landscapes guided his approach. And as Richter explains, Elizabethan-era music became a key creative touchstone for capturing the film’s folkloric sensibility.“Elizabethan music is one of my great passions, really. It’s an amazing moment in English music history where you have this community of composers writing just extraordinary things, both instrumental and chorally. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to go back and connect to that material… Which evoked what [director] Chloé [Zhao] called the witchy sensibility of the sort of folkloristic… maybe dark fairytale quality of the relationship with nature and the connection between human beings and nature.”—Max Richter, Composer, “Hamnet”Be sure to check out “Hamnet,” now playing in theaters in Dolby Vision® and Dolby Atmos®, where available.Please subscribe to Dolby Creator Talks wherever you get your podcasts.You can also check out the video for this episode on YouTube.Learn more about the Dolby Creator Lab and check out Dolby.com. Connect with Dolby on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.