For Immediate Release
March 13, 2009

audioEngine Nabs Silver Telly for Coca-Cola
7.1 Surround Mix Transports Viewers into Immersive Coke Happiness Experience

New York City — audioEngine, Gotham’s full service luxe audio post facility, recently won a 2009 Silver Telly for Rex Recker’s 7.1 mix for Coca-Cola’s “Inside the Happiness Factory: The Documentary.” The 6:25 animated film provides diehard CC fans, visiting The World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta, with an immersive aural and theatrical experience with its behind-the-scenes glimpse into the characters that put the magic into every bottle of coke. The film, which screens several times daily at the Happiness™ Theater, is located within the museum-like complex created as a shrine to all things Coke in May 2007.
The humorous storyboard for the “World of Coke” was created by Weiden and Kennedy. The imaginary world is brought to life through beauteous animation, provided by Psyop, a dynamic orchestral score by Human Worldwide, and riveting sound design by Henry Boy. With this treasure trove of creative elements to work with, Recker added his expertise by providing the aural “glue” that would align all the elements and create an engaging multimedia experience for viewers.
The film is a take-off of the bonus behind-the-scenes segments that appear on DVDs. Featured are the characters, creatures, and all things in-between, who appear in the Happiness Factory TV commercials.. As Marc Mathieu, senior vice president for Coca-Cola Global Brand Marketing and Creative Excellence explains, “The new World of Coca-Cola embodies that sense of happiness that our brand stands for around the globe."
Recker’s input did not stop with the final studio mix. To ensure that the optimum sound quality was replicated in the venue, Recker was brought on site to Atlanta to supervise the installation of the soundtrack in the theater for the official opening. While there, he discovered a wiring issue which he was able to resolve before the opening.” By being on site, I was able to troubleshoot the problem and preserve the 360 degree panning I had worked out in the audio mix,” he explains. “The beauty of mixing in 7.1 is that it allows me to create a more enveloping and visceral aural dimension, one that transports you because it’s more like how things sound in real life. When something is panning around your head, it feels very 3-Dimensional.
Casting and scripting were off the beaten track, as well, according to Recker. To retain a realistic yet original quality to the characters voices, actual Coke employees were used as well as seasoned actors. Much of the dialogue was unscripted and improvised, not to mention, funny. The actor playing Wendy was even given a lollipop to eat while recording her lines because her character was drawn as doing just that within the film. “We wanted to get the effect of her slurping on a pop for authenticity’s sake,” pointed out Recker. Rex continued, “It gives me great satisfaction knowing my 7.1 mix is heard 32 times a day 7 days a week. That means the soundtrack has played over 30,000 times already. That’s pretty cool."