It’s been 50 years, and Skywalker Sound’s inspiring story of creativity and innovation has only just begun.

“It starts with community.” For Josh Lowden — senior vice president and general manager of Skywalker Sound — the people are at the heart of what makes this company distinct.

“The culture is a really good entry point into understanding this place,” Lowden says. “In other markets like Los Angeles or London, the creatives move around between different facilities more often. Since we’re the only ones based in Northern California, our community of artists have been here working together for years. It’s the people, the setting at Skywalker Ranch, the technological infrastructure and support, and the filmmakers who come here with their amazing stories — that’s the combination that’s made the difference as we mark our 50th anniversary in 2025.”

Read the full story with Josh Lowden at Skywalker Sound’s Medium page.

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Sound designer and supervising sound editor Jon Borland has spent years working in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Writer Mark Newbold sat down with Borland to discuss Daredevil: Born Again, the long-awaited continuation of the 2015–2018 Netflix series, and how the project not only honored what came before, but pushed the soundscape forward into the broader MCU.

“It’s always challenging to step into an established world,” explains Borland. “If you step into a Star Wars project, there are rules. You know what things are supposed to sound like, so the challenge is how do you make something that sounds like it belongs in that world? How do you remain true to what’s been established while making something new that people haven’t heard before? That can be daunting.”

Read the full story on Skywalker Sound’s Medium page.

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The Motion Picture Sound Editors showed Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith for the first time in Dolby Atmos, bringing out Skywalker Sound special guests Ben Burtt, Matthew Wood (and General Grievous himself). Writer Clayton Sandell was on hand for the special discussion.

Wood fondly recalled Burtt’s instructions when it came to gathering sounds for Sith.

“When we were together, you’d have me go out in the field and just get things,” Wood explains. “When we were in Sydney, Australia, it’d be like, ‘Go out and just record things. I’ve heard that there might be some penguins down at this place.’”

Thousands of everyday sounds were shaped into a fantastic galactic library of ships, creatures, props, and environments.

“We all know that sounds spur the imagination,” Burtt continues. “It takes a little bit of thinking, but you can take any real organic sound and just shift it around slightly or put it in this other context. People won’t recognize it.”

Read the full story on Skywalker Sound’s Medium page.

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Skywalker Sound’s Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve Boeddeker, and David C. Hughes talk with writer Jay Stobie about their team’s role in bringing this musically-charged, supernatural period piece to life.

“I love that Ryan [Coogler] is a student of film in every aspect,” Burtt recalls. “We’ve been working with him on and off for a decade, and there’s a trust between us. We want to end up where he envisions a movie going, but he gives us freedom to use our best judgment for what we think a scene needs. He’s open to opinions and fresh takes.” Reflecting on their rapport with Coogler, Boeddeker concludes, “The Skywalker-Sundance connection made this relationship happen.”

Read the full story on Skywalker Sound’s Medium page.

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Congratulations to all of the 2024 Skysound MPSE Golden Reel and Cinema Audio Society Award winners!

MPSE Golden Reel Awards:

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Broadcast Short Form

WINNER – The Mandalorian: “The Return”

Disney

Supervising Sound Editors: Trey Turner, Matthew Wood

Sound Designer: David W. Collins

Sound Effects Editors: Luis Galdames MPSE, Kevin Bolen MPSE

ADR Editors: Brad Semenoff MPSE, Ryan Cota MPSE

Supervising Foley Editor: Frank Rinella

Foley Editors: Joel Raabe, Alyssa Nevarez

Foley Artist: Shelly Roden MPSE

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Broadcast Animation

WINNER – Star Wars: The Bad Batch: “Faster”

Disney

Supervising Sound Editors: David W. Collins, Matthew Wood

Sound Designer: David W. Collins

Sound Effects Editors: Justin Doyle, Kevin Bolen MPSE, Kimberly Patrick

Supervising Foley Editor: Frank Rinella

Foley Artists: Kimberly Patrick, Margie O’Malley, Andrea Gard

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature Effects / Foley

WINNER – Oppenheimer

Universal Pictures

Supervising Foley Editor: Christopher Flick

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Non-Theatrical Animation

WINNER – The Monkey King

Netflix Animation

Supervising Sound Editor: Eric A. Norris MPSE

Sound Designer: Tim Nielsen

The full list of 2024 MPSE Golden Reel Award winners here

Cinema Audio Society Awards

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing – MOTION PICTURES – LIVE ACTION

WINNER – Oppenheimer

Re-Recording Mixer – Gary A. Rizzo CAS

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing – MOTION PICTURES – ANIMATED

WINNER – Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Re-Recording Mixer – Michael Semanick CAS

Re-Recording Mixer – Juan Peralta

The full list of 2024 CAS winners here