On Saturday, April 28, the Academy's Science and Technology Council will launch its "Sound, Camera, Action!" series at the Linwood Dunn Theater with a screening of John Frankenheimer's 1966 all-star racing-car melodrama Grand Prix.
"Sound, Camera, Action!" will highlight eight commercially successful films from the past four decades that have earned Academy recognition for sound. "While these films have often been singled out for their striking visuals, spectacular sequences or career-making performances," reads the Academy's press release, "their success owes a considerable debt to the ability of sound to augment and clarify action."
And to make you go deaf.
The films in the series — with the exception of William Friedkin's Academy Award-winning thriller The French Connection — are surely among the loudest ever made.
"Sound, Camera, Action!" also includes a 20th anniversary screening of Lethal Weapon — the violent thriller that, for better or for worse, turned Mel Gibson into a megastar — on Friday, May 4 at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. A rare 70mm archival print from the original release will be screened courtesy of Warner Bros. The event will feature a panel hosted by the film's screenwriter, Shane Black.
The complete list of screenings in the series is:
Saturday, April 28, 7 p.m., Linwood Dunn Theater
Grand Prix (1966)
Academy Award® winner for Film Editing, Sound and Sound Effects
Sunday, April 29, 7 p.m., Linwood Dunn Theater
The French Connection (1971)
Academy Award winner for Actor, Directing, Film Editing, Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay
Oscar® nominee for Supporting Actor, Cinematography and Sound
Jaws (1975)
Academy Award winner for Film Editing, Original Score and Sound
Oscar nominee for Best Picture
Friday, May 4, 8 p.m., Samuel Goldwyn Theater
Lethal Weapon (1987)
Oscar nominee for Sound
The evening will feature a panel discussion with producer-director Richard Donner; actor Gary Busey, who played Joshua; and sound rerecording mixers Les Fresholtz and Vern Poore.
Saturday, May 5, 7 p.m., Linwood Dunn Theater
Top Gun (1986)
Academy Award winner for Original Song
Oscar nominee for Film Editing, Sound and Sound Effects Editing
Platoon (1986)
Academy Award winner for Directing, Film Editing, Best Picture and Sound
Oscar nominee for Supporting Actor (two nominations), Cinematography and Original Screenplay
Sunday, May 6, 7 p.m., Linwood Dunn Theater
Total Recall (1990)
Recipient of Academy Special Achievement Award — Visual Effects
Oscar nominee for Sound and Sound Effects Editing
Speed (1994)
Academy Award winner for Sound and Sound Effects Editing
Oscar nominee for Film Editing
The "Sound, Camera, Action!" series will culminate on May 17 with "The Sound Behind the Image," a program hosted by Oscar-winning sound designer Ben Burtt and 19-time Academy Award-nominated sound mixer and Academy governor Kevin O'Connell. "The Sound Behind the Image" will explore "the extraordinary impact of sound in the history of the action-adventure genre" and pay tribute to the sound design of Star Wars. A panel discussion with key members of the Star Wars sound crew will be moderated by O'Connell.
Tickets to each evening of the "Sound, Camera, Action!" series and "The Sound Behind the Image" are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. Tickets may be purchased in advance, either by mail or in person at the Academy's ticket office, located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills.
The Linwood Dunn Theater is located at the Academy's Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study at 1313 Vine Street, Hollywood. Doors open at 6 p.m. All seating is unreserved. Free parking is available behind the building through the entrance on Homewood Avenue.
The Samuel Goldwyn Theater is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills. Doors open at 7 p.m. for the May 4 screening. For more information, call (310) 247-3600.
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