Click here for an interview with Ben Burtt (sound engineer for the Star Wars saga) at MoviesOnline.ca as he talks about his work on the new Disney/Pixar flick, WALL-E. See below for the intro to the interview...
"MoviesOnline sat down with Academy Award-winning sound designer Ben Burtt at the Los Angeles press day for his new film, ?WALL-E.?
?WALL-E?s? expressive range of robotic voices was created by Burtt, whose memorable work includes creating the ?voices? of other legendary robots, such as R2-D2 from the ?Star Wars? films. Drawing on 30 years of experience as one of the industry?s top sound experts, Burtt was involved from the film?s earliest stages in creating an entire world of sound for all of the robotic characters and the spacecraft, as well as all environments.
Burtt is an accomplished filmmaker who has served as film editor on a vast array of projects. He began his work with director George Lucas in 1977 as sound designer of the original ?Star Wars,? earning his first Academy Award ? a Special Achievement Award. He rejoined Lucas 20 years later to supervise the sound work on ?Star Wars Trilogy? (Special Edition).
In addition to his work on the ?Star Wars? films, Burtt has worked on many film and television projects. He has won Academy Awards for Best Sound Editing in ?Raiders of the Lost Ark? and for Best Sound Effects Editing in ?E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial? and ?Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.? Burtt has also been recognized for his work with a number of Academy Award nominations, including Best Sound in ?Star Wars: Episode VI ? Return of the Jedi,? Best Sound and Sound Effects Editing in ?Willow,? Best Sound Effects Editing in ?Star Wars: Episode I ? The Phantom Menace,? and, as director of ?Special Effects, Anything Can Happen,? Best Short Subject Documentary.
Burtt has also been awarded a British Academy Award for Best Sound in ?Star Wars: Episode V ? The Empire Strikes Back,? a Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Effects Editing in ?Raiders of the Lost Ark,? and a British Academy Award nomination for Best Sound in ?Star Wars: Episode I ? The Phantom Menace.?'