Post uncovered: ITN on Michael Palin In The Philippines (5)

ITN Post has brought the beauty and dark side of Philippines to homes across the UK with 5’s Michael Palin In The Philippines. 

The series, which debuted on 5 on 28 September and will run for three 60-minute episodes, was also produced by ITN, and follows the former Python as he travels across the Pacific islands. During his 2500-mile journey, Palin experiences one of the happiest and most beautiful countries he has ever been to, but also takes note of its surprisingly dark side. 

Bongbong Marcos, who Palin goes onto meet, is now president of the Philippines, despite his parents, Ferdinand and Imelda having been kicked out of power forty years ago. Almost 40% of the urban population live in poverty, 30,000 people have been lawlessly killed by vigilante anti-drug ‘death squads’ and a third of the country is on the UK Foreign Office ‘do not travel list’. 

For Eddie Hasleden, film editor for this series and all 14 episodes of Palin’s travel shows on 5, the main challenge was getting this nation of contrasts across to viewers at home. He said, “The Philippines is a country of extreme contrasts, and that shaped the edit more than anything. One day Michael’s somewhere that looks like a holiday brochure; the next he’s walking through the ruins of Marawi under military escort. Each location demands its own treatment, but what binds it all together is staying close to Michael’s own experience.

“Michael is at his best reacting in the moment, so a lot of our structural decisions came from his genuine responses rather than a plan made in advance. The journey gives each episode its spine, but the strongest encounters decide its emotional shape.

“While the pictures are glorious, a lot of atmosphere can be built from location sound. For example, the series opens in the middle of a tense protest, and to capture that intensity I spent a lot of time layering up the audio in Avid Media Composer. We had plenty of ‘dirty shots’ of protesters marching past Michael, so letting the sound wash over him puts you right there beside him. From the first frame, it drops you straight in at the deep end.

“The variety of scenes is what makes these series such a pleasure to cut. There are moments of urgent chaos, very cutty and embracing natural movement in the camera, alongside epic vista reveals, keeping the shot up to breathe in the location. The style can shift from scene to scene, keeping you guessing.”

Dubbing mixer Jez Spencer was charged with crafting this authentic sound: “One of the many challenges presented by the Michael Palin series is finding the right balance between making his words clear and preserving the atmosphere that makes the location feel real.

“Each series has its own unique set of challenges. They also have a character that is important to preserve, and getting the balance right is really the most important aspect of the job. The Philippines has lots of differing locations, from towns to beaches, all needing their own sonic personalities.

“The aim isn’t to make everything as clean as possible; it’s to make it feel as though you’re actually standing in that location with Michael.

“Joesph Morsman, the sound recordist, does an amazing job, but it’s inevitable that sound issues crop up, particularly as unscripted moments happen throughout the series and these are often the parts that take up the most of my time.

“I start an episode by importing an AAF file which essentially gives me the editors audio timeline from Avid Media Composer in my preferred audio software which is Avid Protools. My next job is to move all the audio into my template, splitting off dialogue, sync fx and music on to their own tracks.

“Once imported, the priority is to go through the dialogue tracks. I’ll focus on getting the balance right between clarity and character. It’s important to make sure all of Michael’s interviews are clear and understandable, but the balance has to be right in order to avoid things sounding unnatural.

“I use industry standard audio restoration software such as Izotope RX, Accentize DX Revive and a number of others to remove clicks and thumps and any other unwanted noises. Once I’m happy with that, I’ll go back to the start and incorporate any sync sound fx.

“It’s these production fx which really help nail the authenticity of the locations, so they have to be treated with the same care and attention as the dialogue. Joe, the sound recordist, will often record in M/S and whenever possible I use these recordings to provide an authentic soundscape. The M/S recordings allow me to have a stereo location, creating a more immersive and accurate representation of the scene. Working in factual TV, that sense of authenticity is what we are aiming to achieve.

“In order to help facilitate this, I always purchase sound fx libraries of the countries Michael visits so that I can create ambiences that are specific to those locations. There might be specific insects or birds which provide the background sound and I like to get as close to that as possible.

Spencer added on working with Palin, “The voiceover sessions are always an enjoyable process with Michael. He likes to go through the script with our director before we start, to ensure he’s happy with how things have been written, often suggesting small changes throughout. It also guarantees that he’ll be reading in his own conversational style. His personality really comes though in his voice over, which is obviously a crucial component not just of the sound, but of every series that he does.”

The show was graded in DaVinci Resolve, and overall the post team had to manage over 100 hours of footage during a 22-week edit. Head of post operations Sam Hardy said that an experienced team was key to the project: “Consistency is one of the biggest factors in the success of the Michael Palin travel series and now, five series in, that continuity has become a real strength. We’ve been fortunate to work with the same core team throughout on this latest series, with Eddie Haselden and Neil Ferguson leading the creative and Boyd Nagle and Jez Spencer across the finishing, bringing a deep understanding of the programme’s style and storytelling.”