Handing Production Audio to Editorial: What to Agree in Advance

Agree the handover before day one

Editorial needs to know what material it will receive and how that material connects to the pictures. The sound team needs to know the expected format, organisation and delivery timing. Resolve these questions before filming, while the workflow can still be adjusted easily. The end of a recording day is not the right moment to discover that the receiving team expected a different channel arrangement.

Confirm the sample rate, file format, channel storage method and synchronisation information. BWF can carry metadata useful in professional workflows; polywav refers to multiple channels stored within one file. The suitability of a particular arrangement still depends on the software and the team’s agreement. A format name alone does not guarantee a trouble-free import.

Preserve originals and their context

Deliver the complete agreed material, including isolated tracks, the working mix, reports and supplementary recordings where these form part of the assignment. Do not deliver only a selection based on what currently seems best. Editorial may later need an alternative line or microphone whose value becomes clear only when a particular picture edit is assembled.

Do not replace source files with an undocumented conversion or discard metadata simply to make casual playback easier. If a derived working version is required, clearly distinguish it from the original. Preserve the track map and meaningful names. When changing folder organisation, check that the change does not break agreed relationships and that the recipient knows where the source material can be found.

Copying requires verification

Starting a copy successfully is not the same as completing a handover. Use the agreed verification method, check file counts and sizes and, where the workflow requires it, verify data integrity. Opening selected files is useful, but it does not by itself establish that every item is intact. Important material should have a defined verification procedure before transfer begins.

Backups should be genuinely separate copies, not two references to the same drive. Agree who holds each copy, who confirms receipt and when recording media may be reused. Do not erase source material merely because a transfer link has been sent. Confirmed receipt and the agreed retention conditions are what matter. This is an operational decision that should have a named owner rather than remaining an assumption between departments.

Test import and explain exceptions

For a new workflow, deliver a test sample before production starts. Editorial should check channels, metadata, synchronisation and behaviour inside the actual project. Any problem can then be resolved before a large volume of recordings exists. Apply the same principle when equipment or software changes during a longer production.

Include a short description of the final package, its coverage and any known exceptions. Identify missing recordings, synchronisation problems or unusual takes if they occurred. Provide a contact for technical questions and agree how receipt will be acknowledged. Good handover establishes clear responsibilities: the next team knows what arrived, where the originals are and which questions need resolving before editing begins. The aim is a dependable transfer of both sound and context, rather than a folder whose meaning has to be reconstructed later.

For remote transfers, check recipient permissions and link validity. Correctly uploaded files may still be inaccessible to the person who needs to import them. Combine handover confirmation with an access check and a clear contents list. If the package is supplemented, distinguish new items from those already received to avoid duplicate imports or uncertainty about which version is complete.