As millions prepare to celebrate 'May the 4th' Star Wars Day, Apple on Wednesday revealed how Skywalker Sound, situated in the rugged terrain of Nicasio, California is advancing sound artistry and reshaping the industry with sheer power of Mac devices.
With the power of approximately 130 Mac Pro racks, as well as 50 iMac, 50 MacBook Pro, and 50 Mac mini computers running Pro Tools as their main audio application, along with a fleet of iPad, iPhone, and Apple TV devices, Skywalker Sound which is a world-class sound design, editing, mixing and audio post-production facility, has built a sound library of more than 700,000 recordings.
The 153,000-square-foot, red-bricked building houses 130 Mac Pro racks, as well as 50 iMac, 50 MacBook Pro, and 50 Mac mini computers running Pro Tools as their main audio application, along with a fleet of iPad, iPhone, and Apple TV devices.
"The sound library system Soundminer, which allows for descriptive keyword searches almost poetic in their specificity, keeps pace with Skywalker Sound's ever-expanding library of nearly a million sounds," Apple said in a blog post.
Apple has released a documentary short film, 'Behind the Mac: Skywalker Sound', which takes viewers behind the scenes at the iconic company and their use of Macs across their workflow.
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The film is available on Apple's YouTube channel.
From Foley artists to sound designers and mixers, the film follows the ranch's storied community of creators as they use Mac to explore the possibilities of sound, and share the secrets behind legendary moments from the Star Wars galaxy and beyond.
"When you have a thought and you really want it out there on a blank canvas like that, you really need fast tools that can give you the results as fast as you think," said Sound editor Ryan Frias.
When gathering field recordings in nature, supervising sound editor Baihui Yang stressed the handiness of having a MacBook Pro on-site.
"We can bring the Pro Tools session with us in the field and watch and record and quickly put it together, to test whether it works or not," she said.
"If you bring all the recordings back to the studio, you don't know if you've missed the moment."
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Skywalker Sound has continuously revolutionised the art of cinematic sound, from documentaries to blockbusters and everything in between.
Skywalker Ranch is the vast facility owned and conceived by George Lucas, the creator of the epic 'Star Wars' universe.
