By Fall 2019 is fast approaching, and with it, The Witcher’s season one premiere. It would be easy to think that the hard part is over with filming wrapped on Netflix’s much-anticipated release. However, there are plenty of painstaking hours left to put in. Every member of the team is hard at work adding the finishing touches on the series, from editors to special effects artists and everyone in between.
Below is a roundup of everything that’s been going into post-production of the season.
Post-production is in full swing
A member of the post-production team posted an Instagram story showing the “post schedule” for each episode. The schedule covers August 2019 and lists processes needed for each episode, three of which are visible.
Some labeled parts are directors Alik Sakharov (listed next to episodes one and two), Marc Jobst (co-director of episode one), and Alex Garcia Lopez (episode three). “KL” is likely executive producer Kathy Lingg while “Liana” and “Nick” are editors Liana Del Giudice and Nick Arthurs respectively. The “HC” in the VFX row could be Henry Cavill, who plays the series’ lead, Geralt of Rivia.
Lingg is part of Hivemind, which is the most recent incarnation of the Sean Daniel Company, who also produce The Expanse for Amazon. Long-time followers of the show’s production news will remember them being brought on board.
The calendar has plenty of blank spaces, which either means we’re missing some pieces of the puzzle, or that there’s still a long road ahead.
Automated Dialog Replacement (ADR)
Automated Dialog Replacement (ADR), the process where dialogue is re-recorded or added, is well under way. According to the cast’s social media activity, recording for ADR has been an ongoing process since filming on season one wrapped.
Some of the actors who’ve taken to social media to share their feelings on this process include Adam Levy (Mousesack), Jason Thorpe (Lord Ostrit), Jeremy Crawford (Yarpen Zigrin), and Blair Kincaid (Crach an Craite), who all praise the footage they’re seeing. Cavill also posted a shot of himself from the recording booth with a potential tease in the caption.
Showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich herself signaled that ADR for the series is ongoing. During the hype of San Diego Comic Con, Hissrich tweeted: “I woke up at 430am, signed off on a bunch of VFX and ADR for my friends in London, packed for @Comic_Con , and am now wandering around my house re-filling soap dispensers like a crazy person. #reallife”
End of an Era
If all the celebrating is anything to go by, the editing team at Hireworks seems to have hit a major milestone. Hissrich posted a group photo of the post production team in London, saying of the team: “This is post production. Editors, VFX, music, producers, and the amazing office that holds the whole project together, who work tirelessly for months after the ‘glamorous’ stuff is done. They are the final piece of the puzzle. It’s been a complete honor and treat to be with them.”
Editing PA Nathanial Jacobs followed suit, posting the group photo with the caption “…today has been an exceptional, special and wonderful day!” along with the hashtags “#EndOfAnEra #ItsNotOverYet #IfYouKnowYouKnow”. Could the team be celebrating something in particular? At this point in post-production, it’s unlikely special effects or color grading are finalized, so perhaps it’s as simple as making it across an editing hurdle or locking in an assembly cut of the season.
That soundtrack tho
Editing and ADR are cool and all, but we’re most curious about how the soundtrack is shaping up! Thankfully, Witcher composer Sonya Belousova is keeping us updated with her Instagram posts, which are a constant stream of exotic instruments and ultra-talented musicians giving us a taste of what they’ll bring to the soundtrack.
Joining Belousova in the booth is Joey Batey, who plays the soulful bard Jaskier. In between recording sessions for his own band, The Amazing Devil, Batey has been laying down sweet vocals for The Witcher.
That’s it for this post-production roundup! Keep an eye out for a little update on how season two (yes, you read that right) is shaping up.
Related article: Possible release date of The Witcher Season 1 and Season 2 filming rumours!
Joey’ post looks a lot like there’s a new trailer coming soon. Possibly the release date reveal trailer?