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  "path": "/how-sound-and-rhythm-build-suspense-in-undertone",
  "publishedAt": "2026-03-16T23:45:04.000Z",
  "site": "https://nofilmschool.com",
  "tags": [
    "No film school podcast",
    "Podcast",
    "Interviews",
    "Undertone",
    "Sonny atkins",
    "Horror",
    "Horror sound",
    "_Sonny Atkins_",
    "Apple Podcasts",
    "Spotify",
    "Google"
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  "textContent": "\n\n\n\nIn this episode of the No Film School Podcast, host GG Hawkins speaks with editor Sonny Atkins about shaping fear through sound, rhythm, and restraint in the horror feature _u_ __ndertone__. Atkins breaks down how the film’s audio-first concept influenced everything from the script to the cut, why long pauses and musical timing can heighten dread, and how a deeply personal story about grief and caregiving evolved through the editorial process.\n\nHe also shares practical insights into working scrappy on a low-budget feature, using Premiere Pro’s Productions workflow, speech-to-text, temp sound design, and test screenings to refine both story and suspense\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n**In this episode, we****discuss:**\n\n  * How __undertone__ began as an audio-driven concept and why that immediately stood out in the script\n  * Why sound design became central to the edit, not just an atmospheric layer\n  * The challenge of building horror around what the audience hears instead of what they see\n  * How Ian Tuason’s personal experience with caregiving and grief shaped the emotional core of the film\n  * Discovering story solutions in post, including the addition of a saved voicemail from the protagonist’s mother\n  * Creating distinct sonic and visual worlds between the downstairs living space and the mother’s upstairs room\n  * What it took to make a low-budget Canadian horror feature feel polished and cinematic\n  * Why Atkins cut his first assembly extremely short, then built the film back up from its essential skeleton\n  * How rhythm, blank space, and even drum rudiments became part of the team’s language for suspense\n  * Using Premiere Pro’s Productions workflow to keep a feature edit organized and responsive\n  * How speech-to-text helped manage ADR, offscreen dialogue, and hundreds of audio files\n  * Why editors should mock up sound ideas early for test screenings instead of waiting for the final sound team\n  * How Frame.io helped organize notes with timecode-based feedback\n  * Why humor can be an important release valve inside horror\n  * Career advice on longevity, mentorship, process, and closing the gap between taste and ability\n __\n\n\n**Guests:**\n\n  * _Sonny Atkins_****\n\n\n\n\n\n\n****\n\n****\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n**Subscribe to the No Film School Podcast on:**\n\n  * Apple Podcasts\n  * Spotify\n  * Google\n\n\n\nGet your question answered on the podcast by emailing podcast@nofilmschool.com\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n_Listen to more episodes of the No Film School podcast right here:_",
  "title": "The Horror in What You Don’t See: How Sound and Rhythm Build Suspense in 'undertone'"
}