TABLE OF CONTENTS
Audio Interview Tiers - Quality & Complexity
This recommendation and guidance is meant for a wide audience and may not apply to your production. Please reach out to your Netflix Representative with any questions.
Overview
Please note that this document references best practices from a technical standpoint only. We expect that you seek further advice from your Production, Post and Legal teams prior to implementing the technical guidance here in in order to follow both medical and civil regulations in each respective area of filming.
The goal of this document is to outline the necessary components and best practices for conducting interviews remotely with the best possible audio quality taking into account various limitations - availability of kit, the subject’s technical proficiency, their willingness to participate etc. The advice given here could be applied in cases where high-quality video capture may not be possible or desirable (either for logistical or creative reasons). A finalized kit procurement should be made in consultation with the show’s Sound Mixer or Technical Manager, to ensure all creative factors are accounted for. Since every production scenario is different, we encourage you to reach out to your Netflix Post Manager for specific guidance.
Audio Interview Tiers - Quality & Complexity
Option 1 - Best quality, most involved setup - subject uses external microphone and high quality recording solution. Requires two devices - one for recording and one for communication/interviewing.
- Local record on both ends with phone call
- Sound Devices MixPre3 or similar
- Zoom H4N or similar
- Voice Record Pro/Voice Memo phone app
- High Quality Audio Stream Apps
- Session Link Pro
- Source Connect Now
- Cleanfeed
Option 2 - Good to poor quality, moderate to light setup - subject uses external microphone with consumer video chat app.
- Best
- Discord (can record)
- Zoom (can record)
- Average
- Hangouts (can record)
- Facetime
- Poor
- Skype (can record)
Option 3 - Phone Tap - worst quality, requires dedicated hardware - Interviewer records a regular phone call.
- Phone Tap Hardware
Sound Recording
Built in phone mic can produce excellent quality for single subject selfie videos. An iOS device is recommended – Android device mic quality is spotty. It is not recommended to use headphones to record audio as the quality of headset mics is generally poor.
- Convenient and good quality
- Apogee Hype Mic - large diaphragm condenser
- Beyerdynamic FOX + Apple Lightning to USB camera adapter
- Sennheiser Clip Mic - Lavalier microphone which includes Apple Lightning connector
- Sennheiser MKE 600 + KA600i - Short shotgun + iPhone compatible cable
- Blue Microphones Yeti Studio Blackout USB Condenser Microphone - large diaphragm condenser
- AKG Lyra USB Microphone - large diaphragm condenser
- Rode VideoMic Me-L - directional smartphone mic
- Rode NT-USB - large diaphragm condenser
- Best Quality
- Any Sanken or DPA lavalier microphone
- Sanken Cos3 Lavalier
- Sennheiser MKH 50 or MKH 8040 or MKH 8050 or 416
- External USB Preamp
- Focusrite 2i2, One
- RME Babyface Pro
- Any Sanken or DPA lavalier microphone
File Collaboration Security
We recommend a digital asset management system where possible and backing up content via Content Hub or a similar Media Management solution. In cases where this is not feasible Google Drive or similar services can be used. See below for security best practices when creating Drives:
- Files shared must only be accessible to the individual(s) who need them. Once the folder structure is created use the ‘Advanced’ options to update sharing Settings to share directly with the intended audience.
- When someone completes their work on a project they should be removed from the project folders or any other place where they have been given access.
- Only provide “Editor” access to people with a need - this helps prevent oversharing.
- Do not email links to files in Drive. Emailing links will change permissions to files and allow for public access. Instead, setup file sharing permissions directly in Drive.
- Avoid moving files between folders - this changes permissions - and double check file permissions after any files are moved.
- Accounts storing files should be owned by the production company or by Netflix. Personal accounts should not be used.
If Google Drive is not feasible to store and share files, you should enable similar settings on the file collaboration platform you choose. Reach out to sis@netflix.com with questions.
Mobile Device Security
- iPads (content is copied directly to the iPad's storage)
- IOS and apps are the latest versions.
- Use a passcode (6 digit minimum) and/or biometric controls (TouchID, FaceID) for access and enable access throttling, where the device locks for a few minutes after several bad passwords.
- Enable ‘Find My’ functionality. This is available on iOS and it helps locate and/or wipe a missing device.
- Do not use any App Stores other than the official Apple App Store.
- Any lost or stolen device containing content should be reported to Netflix Studio Information Security. This includes personally owned devices as well as those issued by Netflix or our Production partners.
- Disable media sync with iTunes player