The Abandons Audio Post and the Legacy of Lonesome Dove

5 days ago

3 min read

With the premiere of The Abandons last week on Netflix, we're reminded that history has a habit of repeating itself. Over thirty years ago, in February of 1989, another mini-series premiered that changed the face of network television, transformed the Western genre, and shaped the destiny of a small boutique sound company called Smart Post Sound.

Sepia-toned production still from Lonesome Dove showing a rider on horseback entering a dusty western town with wooden buildings and open streets.

We won an EMMY for Lonesome Dove that year and went on to provide complete sound packages on many of the most important television projects for the next twenty years. RHI/Hallmark Entertainment, the production company of the mini-series, even set us up in London between 1998 and 2003 so we could provide the same high quality and budget friendly sound solutions overseas that we offered at home.

It can’t be overstated that we have an enormous respect for a well-produced western

The Smart Post Sound team onstage at the 1989 Primetime Emmy Awards accepting the Emmy for Outstanding Sound Editing for Lonesome Dove, with Joseph Melody speaking at the microphone and holding the award.

Lonesome Dove was viewed on four consecutive nights by forty million viewers each night. That level of appointment viewing had never happened before. It was the closest thing to binge watching long before the term existed.

Official poster for Lonesome Dove featuring the main cast, including the two lead cowboys in the foreground with supporting characters and western landscapes behind them.

But as important as Larry McMurtry’s classic was to the future of Smart Post Sound, we almost didn't do the show. Remembering how close we came to losing the job is a reminder that talent without a little luck doesn't go very far.

The post house originally selected to do the sound worked exclusively on film at the time. However, Lonesome Dove was cut on video and planned for a video finish because the creative team wanted to watch the color film on the mix stage rather than on video. Fortunately, we had already developed a workflow that made this possible.

Dialogue, Foley, and music were cut on film, and sound design was cut on multi-track tape. This facilitated quicker reel changes and allowed the director to stick to the mix schedule and budget. Completing three finished reels per day, including the M&E, was unheard of in those days.

The award quality of the film is a testament to what is achievable when everyone involved in the final mix is talented, on the same page, and…well… lucky. It was no small satisfaction when we were chased down at the EMMYS that year by one of the top feature film sound designers.

He said,

“We need to have lunch so you can tell me how you achieve such great quality on a television budget.”

That felt good!

Key art for Netflix’s The Abandons featuring the main cast in split imagery, with Lena Headey centered, western landscapes on the left, and a dark ranch house on the right.

In the case of The Abandons, while awards season has yet to render a verdict, professionals in our world who have heard it notice the detail in the tracks and the overall quality of the mix. They’re not just being polite.

With Yellowstone, The Abandons, The Landman, and the renewed interest in westerns created for streaming, the budget question is more relevant than ever.

Westerns are the quintessential period piece, where the worlds created by sound are completely open to creative interpretation, and that can come at a high cost... but not necessarily. As with Lonesome Dove, the challenge is to develop new workflows that produce the strongest creative results within the available budget.

Cast members from The Abandons on horseback in an open field, dressed in Western attire and facing the camera under a clear sky.

Even though appointment viewing is a thing of the past, reminder viewing is very much alive and well. We encourage you to take the time to experience The Abandons. It's an unforgettable Western that brings many of us back to Lonesome Dove, the mini-series that helped change television for a generation.

Our work on The Abandons audio post reminds us how much of our Western approach began with Lonesome Dove, and that while sound design is essential, ideas and innovation are what advance the craft.

Many thanks to Netflix, producer Craig Yahata, sound supervisor Erich Gann, re-recording mixers Peter Bawiec and Brian Harman, and the entire creative team at Smart Post Sound.

Watch Lonesome Dove on Peacock >> https://www.peacocktv.com/watch-online/tv/lonesome-dove/8263491674945878112