How to Prepare Your Film for Audio Post-Production
Your film is shot. The edit is almost locked. But before sending it off for final sound work, you need to know how to prepare your film for audio post-production the right way.
At Hovah Digital Sound, we’ve seen how good preparation saves filmmakers time, money, and headaches. Whether you’re working on a feature film, series, or short project, follow these key steps to get the best out of your sound team.
✅ 1. Lock the Picture First
Never send a film that’s still being edited. Audio teams need a locked picture — meaning no more scene rearrangement, cuts, or time changes.
Why? Because every change affects sync, transitions, and timing of sound elements like Foley and music cues. A locked cut saves hours of rework.
✅ 2. Provide a Clean Timeline or OMF/AAF
Export your timeline as an OMF or AAF file with handles (5–10 seconds of extra audio on each clip). This helps us access raw location sound and dialogue edits.
Also, include a reference video file so we can double-check sync.
✅ 3. Organize Your Audio Tracks
Before you export, group your audio tracks into logical layers:
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Dialogue
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Sound effects
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Ambience or Room Tone
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Music (temp or reference)
Proper labeling makes your sound team’s job easier and faster.
✅ 4. Create a Spotting Session (Optional but Powerful)
If you have specific ideas for sound — a door creak, echo, mood change, etc. — create a spotting sheet or schedule a call.
Spotting sessions help us understand your creative vision and emotional beats before we dive in.
✅ 5. Share a Sound Report (If Available)
If you had a location sound recordist, they likely generated a sound report. This includes mic placements, takes, notes on noise, or wild lines recorded.
These reports help us prioritize what’s usable and what may need ADR or replacement.
✅ 6. Provide Any Temp Music or References
If you’ve added temp music or SFX in the edit, share those references. We may not use the exact files, but it tells us your intended tone, pace, and transitions.
This is especially helpful when scoring or syncing sound to motion.
🔚 Wrapping Up
Knowing how to prepare film for audio post-production makes a huge difference in your final output. It also builds trust with your sound team and ensures your story gets the sonic treatment it deserves.
Need help with dialogue cleanup, Foley, or full mixing for platforms like Amazon Prime or Showmax?
👉 Get in Touch with Hovah Digital Sound
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