Why NCIS Sounds Right

Sometimes the little details are what make the difference.

I was watching my first rough cut for NCIS: New Orleans when I noticed it. It was a small thing that only someone actually in the Coast Guard would notice, but it stood out. The video was showing one of our boats with the blue lights flashing speeding towards the bad guys, but there was something off about it. The scene looked great but it sounded wrong.

The post team pulled library sound files that didn't match the boat on the screen. It's one of those things you'd never catch unless you already knew to listen for it. I noted the issue in my email back to the post coordinator and the show team.

Turns out, there was no library of audio that matched our boats and aircraft. Sure, there are things a post team can use that are the same. You could use the audio of a C-130 aircraft from any service to match our C-130s. The same goes for our MH-60 helicopters. There are enough in use around the world that the audio exists.

When it comes to our boats and our MH-65 helicopters, though, there is no library. In my note to the production team, I not only noted the audio issue but offered to take them out to get the correct audio.

I set up opportunities to record a whole range of equipment sounds for the show, and when we got new assets, I'd arrange new recording sessions. That one note updated an entire library that is still in use today, 11 years after I noticed that the clip sounded wrong.

Next time you are watching NCIS: New Orleans or NCIS: Hawai'i or a host of other shows featuring the Coast Guard, you now know why it sounds real.