UNIQUE WORKSHOPS : REEL WORLD DROPS BY SDSU FILM CLASS

When Walter Murch, 1980 Academy Award-winning sound designer for “Apocalypse Now,” conducted a workshop recently for a San Diego State University film class, he blended the practical aspects of his craft with his own poetic descriptions of that work.

He talked about how he recorded the sound of walking on a marble floor with special boots to simulate the sound of a robot walking for the film “THX-1138” and how he recorded the sounds of 40 military helicopters for the helicopter battle scene in “Apocalypse Now.” He described his involvement with sound design in movies since graduating in the late 1960s from USC’s film school with his friend George Lucas.

The visit by Murch, 42, whose film sound credits include “The Conversation,” “The Godfather” (I and II), “American Graffiti” and “Julia,” was arranged by Carroll Blue, San Diego State University professor of film and telecommunications, to give students in her Master Craftsmen Film Workshop the opportunity to learn on a personal, intensive basis from an expert.

When Blue was a film student at UCLA, she had the opportunity to study with artists working in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles.

“These people came to talk to our classes,” she said. “I was able to see and touch them in many ways. I remember David Geffen, who is a film, theater and record producer. He said, ‘It’s important to get into the traffic. It’s all chemical. You meet people and move along.’ That’s what UCLA taught me. I don’t want a kid from La Mesa to think this is a world he can’t get to. I want him to see these are other human beings. I want him to know he can go out and do it.”

So, Blue, an independent film producer herself (“Varnette’s World: A Study of a Young Artist” and “Conversations with Roy DeCarva,” both shown nationally on PBS and award winners) called the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and, with the cooperation of her department head, Hayes Anderson, was able to work out a special arrangement.

This semester, she and Denis Sanders, SDSU filmmaker in residence (and a producer, writer or director on more than 70 films), presented a rare experience for her 25 students in Telecommunications and Film 496.

Four weekend workshops, usually costing hundreds of dollars at private seminars and at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, were presented and led by five Academy members, three of whom are Academy Award winners. Blue chose the artists for their varied fields, she said: “I wanted a writer, an art director, a sound person and a director.”

Her first guest weekend lecturer, in February, was Albert Whitlock, an Academy Award winner for special visual effects for “Earthquake” and “The Hindenburg.” Whitlock also worked on “The Birds,” “Bound for Glory,” “The Sting” and other films.

“Albert Whitlock is a master matte painter,” said Blue. In the film, “Missing,” they needed a stadium full of people, but on the second day of shooting most of the extras did not show up, and they needed a full stadium. So Whitlock painted them all in.

“When he was invited to come here, he asked if he could bring his friend,” Blue said. “His friend turned out to be Harold Michelson.”

Michelson is a production designer and art director who won an Academy Award for his work on “Terms of Endearment.” He worked on numerous other films, including “Catch 22,” “Hair” and “White Nights.”

“Harold and Albert had both worked on Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’--in fact on all of Hitchcock’s last films,” Blue said. “Hearing their comments was a unique experience for the kids to have. Whitlock and Michelson really gave of themselves emotionally. They talked about how all of this relates to the family. They put it on a personal basis.”

In March, Daniel Mann, who had directed Shirley Booth in “Come Back, Little Sheba,” Anna Magnani in “The Rose Tattoo” and Elizabeth Taylor in “Butterfield 8,” spoke. (All three women won Oscars for best actress.)

“Mann talked about the Greek way of drama,” said Blue, “and afterward, Ron Jones, who teaches a directing class, said he could see a marked difference in acting in his classes after some of his students heard Mann’s talk.”

In addition, Mann brought his wife, Sherry, who is a literary agent. She works with writers in developing scripts for shows such as “Cagney and Lacey” and “Moonlighting.”

Her visit gave the students yet another dimension of the film industry. “The program just really mushroomed,” Blue said.

In April, Linda Seger, a script consultant whose clients include Ray Bradbury, gave a seminar she usually gives to the Writers’ Guild of America and the American Film Institute.

“When she came,” said Blue, laughing, “the kids were told they had to watch ‘Out of Africa,’ ‘The Color Purple,’ ‘Cocoon’ and ‘Back to the Future.’ Can you imagine such an assignment?”

Mark Wright, a student in the class and a senior majoring in telecommunications and film, said, “As an overall impression, I think the weekends have been invaluable. . . . These are talented individuals we wouldn’t ordinarily see. They are role models. I was inspired by Walter Murch long ago. I read material on him and did a 12-minute student film with 16 tracks. I went to the library and researched him intensively.

“I wish this (class) could be given each semester. Carroll is so creative and new--her personality brought this class here.”

Ric Robertson, coordinator for the Visiting Artists Program for the Academy Foundation, said the program, which was started on a limited scale in 1970, was designed to facilitate contact between working film professionals and students studying film all around the country. The program is arranging 30 to 40 visits a year to colleges and universities.

“For example,” said Robertson, “a composer is at Yale right now--and someone else at Duke. The San Diego program is unique, though. Usually it is one guest for a two- or three-day residency. Most are short term.

“These visits don’t involve an honorarium. These people do it because they like to. They often get as much from the visits as the students. The expenses are taken care of. They are split between the academy and the institution. The academy handles the transportation and the host takes care of other expenses.

“People will sometimes call us and say they want Robert Redford or Sylvester Stallone, and I’ll have to say, ‘Well there is a good chance they won’t be available.’ If they ask for someone from a specific area or craft, we have better success. And we can handle more requests.”

Why do artists like Walter Murch give of their time and expertise in this way?

“It’s partly selfish,” said Murch. “When I teach I have to articulate, so it’s a tremendous learning experience for me. It brings to a head a lot of what’s been brewing. And I like to spread the information I have.

“And also, I enjoy doing it.”