Just Announced! From ‘Twister’ to ‘Twisters’: A Generation of Sound Art and Technology

The 11th annual Mix Presents Sound for Film & Television event will close with a show-stopper, as organizers have announced a one-of-a-kind panel presentation titled “From ‘Twister’ to ‘Twisters’: A Generation of Sound Art and Technology.” 

Featuring key sound editors and mixers from the 1996 original and the 2024 pseudo-sequel, the moderated discussion will take place as part of an all-day event focusing on the high end of audio post-production, to be held Saturday, September 28, at Host Partner Sony Pictures Studios, Culver City, Calif.

“This year we begin a second decade of presenting Sound for Film and Television at Sony, so we wanted to add something new, something big for our attendees,:” says Tom Kenny, co-editor of Mix. “I thought to myself, ‘Well, I love music festivals, and after a full day of bands, they always bring out a headliner…’ So we are launching an annual show-closing presentation called The Big Picture, sort of a second Keynote Conversation. And what better way to start than with ‘Twister’ to ‘Twisters?’”

When Twister premiered in May 1996, digital tools had become common in film and television production, but by no means everyday. Mag dubbers still filled machine rooms, though DAWs and hard drives had been moving in alongside. Neve introduced the DFC that year, and DVDs made their commercial debut. Netflix.com, which would deliver those DVDs by mail, was still two years from launch. By the time Twisters premiered in July 2024, re-energizing the thrill of going to a theater to see a summer blockbuster on the big screen, well…a lot had changed. 

In this special presentation, Kenny sits down with members of the sound teams from both films to talk about those generational advancements, while keeping in mind that though technologies may change, the art of sound storytelling remains the same.

From Twister (1996)

• Oscar-winning supervising sound editor Stephen Hunter Flick
• Dolby Atmos remix engineer Doug Mountain

From Twisters (2024)

• 4x Oscar-winning re-recording mixer Christopher Boyes
• Oscar-winning supervising sound editor Al Nelson

The all-day event includes a series of expert panel presentations, technology demonstrations, and profiles of the sound for many of the year’s top films and television/streaming series. It is held in the world-renowned re-recording facilities of Sony Pictures Post-Production Services.

Sponsors at presstime include Avid, Meyer Sound, Sweetwater, Women’s Audio Mission, Focusrite, ADAM Audio, Advanced Systems Group, FOX Studio Lot, Guitar Center Pro, Pro Sound Effects, Blackmagic Design, NBCUniversal, Citygate Studios and Remoto.

For more information on programming and to take advantage of early bird registration, please visit Mix Presents Sound for Film & Television.