VIDEO: Inside The Sound of ‘Ahsoka’

Join Mix contributor Jennifer Walden as she talks with the audio team of Ahsoka as they discuss their work on Episode Four, “Fallen Jedi,” which has been Emmy-nominated in the “Outstanding Sound Editing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (Half-Hour) And Animation” category. On-hand are Matthew Wood, Supervising Sound Editor; Bonnie Wild, Supervising Sound Editor/Re-Recording Mixer; and David Acord, Sound Designer/Re-Recording Mixer.

MATTHEW WOOD

Matthew Wood has been a dedicated employee of Lucasfilm and Skywalker Sound for over 32 years. He’s been nominated for Academy Awards five times in Sound Editing for his work on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, as well as Wall-E for Pixar and There Will Be Blood for Paramount.

Starting his career at Lucasfilm Games as a teenager, Matthew cut his teeth playtesting the video games The Secret of Monkey Island, Loom, and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Matthew was then handpicked by Skywalker Sound to work on the development team of SoundDroid, George Lucas’ audio editing system used on the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV show. Young Indy was the proving ground to test new technologies to prepare for the upcoming Star Wars prequels.

Wood worked with George Lucas and Ben Burtt on all three Star Wars prequels as supervising sound editor, but he is also known for voicing General Grievous in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.

Following the Star Wars prequels, Matthew continued working on Star Wars with Dave Filoni on The Clone Wars animated series where he reprised his role as General Grievous and every single Battle Droid in all their comic glory.

After working on the Star Trek reboots with J.J. Abrams, Matthew moved into the Disney era at Lucasfilm by supervising the sound and voicing several characters on all the Star Wars films thus far: The Force Awakens, Rogue One, The Last Jedi, Solo, and The Rise of Skywalker.

After the Star Wars sequels, Matthew has Supervised the sound for The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi series, The Bad Batch, Tales of the Jedi, and several LEGO Star Wars collaborations.

At Skywalker, he has supervised for Marvel, supervising Guardians of the Galaxy, and Ant-Man: Quantumania. He is a frequent collaborator with Rian Johnson and Paul Thomas Anderson, supervising Glass Onion and Phantom Thread.

Matthew and the Skywalker Sound team also won a Best Sound Editing Emmy Award for Star Wars: The Mandalorian.

Matthew continues in his role as Supervising Sound Editor at Skywalker Sound and Jedi Council member at Lucasfllm, as well as a SAG actor on many upcoming projects.

BONNIE WILD

Supervising Sound Editor & Re-Recording Mixer Bonnie Wild is a British-born Sound Designer and Re-recording Mixer. As a second-generation audio artist, she remembers little of life before the dub stage. With summers spent at her father’s studio, lacing reel-to-reels and examining the art of the mix, she has an innate connection to sound and storytelling.

Also an accomplished guitarist, Bonnie graduated from Leeds College of Music in 2003. She was soon working in the Post Production Sound Department at the ITV Leeds Studios, sound editing and mixing primetime UK drama.

After changing it all and starting a new life in San Francisco, Bonnie’s dream of working at Skywalker Sound became reality. Since 2012, she has worked on projects ranging from premium television and commercials to documentaries and features.

Through her work, Bonnie strives to connect with audiences and create authentic, emotional experiences through the art of sound.

DAVE ACORD

David Acord is a Supervising Sound Editor and Re-Recording Mixer who is known for his contributions to films like Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, and Licorice Pizza, as well as television series such as The Mandalorian, Loki, and Andor.

He has been recognized for two Academy Awards for Best Achievement in Sound Editing, one for his contribution to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and another for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Acord also has two BAFTA nominations and 13 Emmy nominations (including two wins).

Acord has played the voice of several characters including the stormtrooper FN-2199 from Star Wars: The Force Awakens as well as Two Tubes from Andor and Rogue One, among others.