When the script for the uniquely sonic-minded Tuner made its way to sound designer Johnnie Burn, he was surprised to discover that the plot hinges on hyperacusis, the acute sensitivity to sound that leads the movie’s lead character make the shift from piano tuner to safecracker.
“I was like, “Oh my goodness – I’ve had this condition,’” Burn revealed at Deadline’s Contenders Los Angeles event. “In my late teens, I witnessed an explosion, and immediately I was 100% deaf. At the time, I went into my bedroom and played Public Enemy, and I could feel the speakers and I was like, ‘I can’t hear anything, but I can [feel the sound]’ So it was horrifying.
“Literally about 20 minutes later, my hearing came back, but for about four months I had this,” Burn continued. “So I was well aware of what it is, and it’s not the big sounds that you’re seeing here, particularly in the movie.
His experience helped Burn find his way into the film’s unique sound demands. “There’s a scene in the coffee shop, and it’s all the little sounds — the teacups and the people talking,” he said. “Those are the things that people with this condition are particularly affected by. It’s the quiet sound.”
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The film required Burn to study the intricacies of safes and their delicate tumblers and get a feel for their aural intricacies. “Yes, I listened to an awful lot of safes,” he said. “A friend of mine moved into a new office in an area in London called Bank that is in the city. His building, every room of his new office, had enormous safes in them because it used to be a bank and the safes were too big for them to remove when they refitted. So I had about eight different massive safes to have a go at cracking.”
Ultimately, his Tuner experience did not tempt Burn to consider a career pivot. “I thought working on the movie, if the sound thing doesn’t work out, at least I’d be good at cracking safes,” he laughed. “I think it is possible, but just not for me because I couldn’t quite get there.”
Check back Monday for the panel video.
RELATED: Deadline Launches Its Contenders London Streaming Site