As the new year approaches, it's important to reflect on what has occurred over the past year - partly for mental and spiritual closure, but mostly to show off all of the cool stuff we did :)
2014 was a great year for Pro Sound Effects! We completely revamped our website, released new sound effects collections, launched new varieties of content, sponsored and exhibited at seminal industry trade shows... it goes on and on. In case you missed any of it, here is a list of highlights from one of PSE's most Next Level years yet:
Tonebenders Hybrid Library Giveaway
(Dec 2014)
We'll start with this because it's awesome and also because it's still going on right now:
Team PSE’s favorite podcast, Tonebenders, is hosting a Pro Sound Effects Hybrid Library giveaway! Listen below to learn how to enter for a chance to win 56,047 sound effects on hard drive with online access and updates for life for FREE! The contest closes Jan. 1, so what are you waiting for?
The podcast also contains an interview we did with Tonebenders at NAB last year where we discuss our recent metadata enhancement initiative and more. View the original post here for more info.
Hybrid Library: Life Cycle and Pricing
(Dec 2014)
Speaking of the Hybrid Library, our previous blog post answers some questions we've been asked by some Hybrid Library owners and applicants.
Curious or confused about how pricing and features of the Hybrid Library change over the course of the year? This post lays down the cold hard facts. Check it out here!
Beau Borders: Not Your Average Film Mixer
(Dec 2014)
Our favorite racecar-driving sound designer, Beau Borders, made this hilarious video for Pro Sound Effects earlier this month. He's worked on huge, blockbuster films like Titanic and Lord of the Rings, he has a Sound Mixing Academy Award nomination for his work on Lone Survivor... not bad. In our humble opinions, this video is right up there with those other projects :) Watch it below or check out the original post here.
How Sound Designers Work (Dec 2014)
Another new and exciting series we began this year are the How I Work interviews. Inspired by Lifehacker, we ask Hybrid Library owners what inspires them and what tools and routines help them get work done from day to day.
In the first interview we talk to Matt Piersall of Gl33k (Austin, TX), and in the second interview we talk to Will Morton of Solid Audioworks (Scotland, UK). Check it out and learn what they had to say about their studio setup, workflow, favorite shortcuts, DAW of choice, finding inspiration, and more. And stay tuned for more interviews to come!
Sound Design Spotlight (Nov 2014)
In November we debuted our first Sound Design Spotlight video, featuring sound designer Ryan Billia of Rumble Audio in Brooklyn, NY. The series is a new and unique piece of content for PSE that we're excited to continue!
In the video, Ryan shows us his one-stop audio post studio, describes his workflow, designs an Icelandic geyser explosion for the indie film Land Ho!, and shares his thoughts on the overall state of indie film sound design. Watch the video below or visit the original post here.
New Catalog: Sound Bits (Nov 2014)
We were quite stoked to welcome the newest addition to the Pro Sound Effects Library: SoundBits. To coincide with the release in November we interviewed Saro Sahihi, sound designer and founder of the superb and prolific SoundBits catalog.
All SoundBits libraries just so happen to be on sale now through December 31. So if you're in need of some masterful production elements, look no further!
In the interview, Saro describes what SoundBits is all about, as well as details of his newest libraries – all interlaced with epic SoundBits whooshes, transitions, and impacts! Listen below or view the original post here for more info and a transcription of the interview.
[soundcloud]https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/176791631[/soundcloud]
New PSE Website (Oct 2014)
As mentioned above, 2014 saw the launch of a brand spankin' new Pro Sound Effects website! It's aesthetically pleasing, functional, and everything you could ever want a website to be. Check out some new features here.
New About Us Video @ Avid Connect
(Sep 2014)
In early September, we sponsored the Audio Collaboration Track at Avid Connect Europe and were asked to give a short speech on what we do. We took this opportunity to unveil a new About Us video.
The video does a great job encapsulating who we are, what we do, and why we do what we do – to help you more effectively tell your story. We worked with our go-to video guy Chris Lyon of Perennial Media to create the video, which you can watch below:
Hollywood Edge Joins the Pro Sound Effects Library (Aug 2014)
Update: As of June 30th, 2015, Hollywood Edge is no longer part of the Pro Sound Effects Library offering. We have decided to focus on developing and updating our own libraries (Online Library, Hybrid Library, Master Library).
2014 also saw the addition of the massive Hollywood Edge catalog (60,000+ sounds!) to the Pro Sound Effects Library!
Hollywood Edge (HE) sound effects were created by the Academy Award-winning studio Soundelux, whose credits include such productions as Mad Men, The Departed, Kill Bill, Braveheart, The Fast and the Furious, and more. Martin Scorsese and Oliver Stone are both ardent proponents of HE sound effects and have used them extensively in their movies over the years.
This new addition grew the PSE Online Library to over 215,000 sounds, created simpler licensing and fulfillment options, and more. Read the original post here for the full list of takeaways.
New Catalog: Quiet Planet (Jun 2014)
We were (and still are) extremely excited to introduce another new catalog to the Pro Sound Effects Library: Quiet Planet.
A moniker of self-described "acoustic ecologist" Gordon Hempton, Quiet Planet offers the most pristinely recorded nature ambiences on the market, and probably ever. As Hempton writes on his website soundtracker.com, he has "circled the globe three times over the last 30 years in pursuit of Earth’s rarest nature sounds - sounds which can only be fully appreciated in the absence of manmade noise."
PSE Clients with Multi-User Licenses now have access to this naturally splendrous catalog! Listen to the demo for the Nature Essentials library below, and check out the other Quiet Planet collections here for more.
Hybrid Animal Sound Design Competition
(Apr 2014)
Back in April we hosted the first ever (to our knowledge) Hybrid Animal Sound Design Competition, and it was a lot of fun. We asked entrants to invent a hybrid animal, like a snalrus (snail+walrus) and to create whatever sound they think it would make. The winners took home over $6,000 in prizes from Avid, iZotope, Rode Microphones, and Pro Sound Effects.
Listen to the entry from Grand Prize Winner Balasz Barna below, and check out the original post here for the runners-up. Thanks again to all who entered, and keep practicing until the next contest!
The Future of PSE
What a year, what a year... but we're only getting started!
Be sure to follow Pro Sound Effects on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to keep up with new releases, interviews, videos, contests, and who knows what else.
Happy New Year!
