Jim Henson Creature Shop Selects DPA Mics

The Jim Henson Creature Shop, founded by leading puppeteer Jim Henson and British illustrator Brian Froud, has been a leader in special/visual effects for more than 30 years.

The company’s effects designers have now launched Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge, an eight-week reality competition on the SyFy network. The series focuses on 10 creature designers from across the US, who compete in weekly challenges and screen tests in the hope of winning the grand prize; a job at The Jim Henson Creature Shop.
The sound crew selected a combination of DPA Microphones’ d:screet™ 4063 Omnidirectional Miniature Microphones for ENG, as well as the d:dicate™ 4017 and 4018 Microphones for booming, to provide dynamic audio and a low profile.
Given the style of the programming, which requires live shots in the design room, interviews with the contestants and a 'live' stage setup during the judging, Daniel McCoy, sound supervisor, credits DPA Microphones and his audio crew for creating a solution that fit the set environment.
"We had a really solid audio crew that could go back and forth from web interviews, to a stage screen test," he said. "We filmed at the Creature Shop where the contestants develop their creations, which is not on the Jim Henson lot, and on the Jim Henson stage, where there would be a new set every week to coincide with the theme of the week. There was a lot of behind-the-camera magic that happened seamlessly, a lot of versatility and multi-tasking, and all of the DPA mics handled the job beautifully. Even in the shop, where we had a lot of noise, or in some instances during screen tests when the judges wanted to hear the puppeteers perform in real-time, both the d:screet and d:dicate mics were able to give us live sound reinforcement without any feedback.
"I was really excited to use the same DPA mics that I’ve been using on film sets in a reality setting. Most reality TV shows don’t invest in high-quality mics, so it felt good being able to give cinematic tools to a reality show with a cinematic legacy. DPA mics help me be a better mixer and the d:screet 4063s were especially crucial as they are able to offer a higher resolution to the experience, which gives a more even response and a better dynamic range."
The d:screet 4063 was built to be used in a variety of settings including theater, television and close-mic instrument applications, as it is easily concealable. A low voltage omnidirectional capsule, which has low sensitivity, picks up sound with no need to be directly pointed at the audio source.
"The show goes beyond anything I’ve seen on reality programs and it has really sparked my imagination," adds McCoy. "Having grown up with the Henson legacy, it was an honor to be able to give back as their sound supervisor for the show."

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(IT/MH)