No more ADR try BDR!
Recording dialogue in the field is difficult at best. So many just don’t try and instead say “we’ll just ADR it.” (ADR = Automated Dialogue Replacement or Looping).
Don’t be that dude.
Actors hate it. It usually sounds unnatural and ruins performances.
Try BDR instead – Better Dialogue Replacement! Capture sound on location under more controlled circumstances. Shoot the scene for the visual and performance(s). Then dip the mic into the shot, nice and close to the talent, and have another go. In short, shoot the pretty pictures first and then shoot the pretty sound.
Chances are the actors will still be in the moment and deliver a very similar performance. It might be off sync a bit, but the emotion will be there AND you’ll get a better quality ‘wild’ line that you can slip in in post as needed. It’s far, far, far better than ADR.
Try it!
Update: And here is another take on ADR — doing it on the set. This is a great idea.
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[...] it’s often lifeless. I’m not talking about the performances, though (that subject is another essay on the cons of ADR). Location dialog recordings pick up the acoustics of a space, the room tone, and all the little [...]