To coincide with the release of Gladiator 2', we wanted to highlight St phane Buchers work with director Ridley Scott. This collaboration began in 2020, for The Last Duel', a year in which nothing went according to plan. St phane Bucher wasnt even supposed to be working on this film! Since then, Ridley Scott has been working on one project after another, and St phane Bucher has become his indispensable French Sound Man'.
DPA: Hi Stephane, can you tell us a bit about your career? SB: I have a classic background with a BTS in audiovisual, specializing in sound. Then I started working as a boom operator for 7 years on TV films and series. In 2010, after becoming a sound engineer, I had the opportunity to work with EuropaCorp, Luc Bessons production company, collaborating on 11 films, including three with Luc. Whats interesting here is EuropaCorps working process in film production. These films are almost entirely aimed at a specific market, which means that working methods, film construction and shooting techniques are largely inspired by Anglo-Saxon practices. In particular, this involves the use of considerable resources, multi-camera shoots and a different approach to filming than we are used to.
In France, we follow a more traditional method, a craftsmans approach where the teams know each other well. Theres nothing pejorative to be said about craftsmanship, because it allows incredible things to be achieved, but the way it works is different. We often have rehearsals and discussions before shooting. Todays Anglo-Saxon methods, which were also used at EuropaCorp, are more frontal'. We use four cameras, the director sets up the actors, then the cameras are positioned, and the actors enter the scene. We shot immediately, with no prior rehearsal. Another notable difference is the size of the teams and how they operate. The scale is completely different.
1. The meeting during The Last Duel DPA: Your meeting with Ridley Scott must have been a significant moment, I imagine? How does a French sound engineer end up working with one of the worlds greatest filmmakers? SB: Its an interesting and rather funny story. It all started when a local French production hosting Ridley Scott for the filming of The Last Duel' was looking for a sound engineer. Ridley Scotts production wanted to cast a sound engineer. At the time, in December 2019, I had just finished making The Eddy' for Netflix, after working non-stop for a year without taking any holidays. I had planned to take a break at that point, so I went to the casting relaxed, telling myself that if I wasnt selected, it wouldnt matter because I was exhausted and needed a rest.
They explained to me that all I had to do was send in a CV, which I did, and three or four weeks later they called me back to tell me that I was on the short list, that there were only three sound engineers left, and that Ridley Scott now wanted letters of recommendation from three re-recording engineers. It made sense, because they are the ones who can best objectively assess the work of the sound engineer. Thanks to my experience at EuropaCorp, I met several of these mixers, including some big names in Los Angeles and London. I was easily able to get 2 letters of recommendation from Tom Johnson (12 Oscar nominations and 2 wins) and Dean Humphreys. But I was short of one, and having recently finished The Eddy', I thought the recommendation of the director, Damien Chazelle, would be relevant, as he is very well known in the film industry and passionate about sound and music. So, I wrote to Damien, and he said hed be happy to recommend me.
DPA: What was your first meeting with Ridley Scott like? SB: The story is quite amusing and stressful at the same time! A few days before shooting began, I approached the French production to ask them to do some location scouting, to visit the shooting locations to check the sets and anticipate any problems. The response was quite surprising: Oh no, the English production doesnt think its necessary for you to do location scouting'. I replied that this was a bit strange, especially for The Last Duel', but I was reassured that I could come the day before or two days before shooting, without any problem. I did, however, plan to prepare well in advance, being in Paris, whereas the shoot was scheduled in the middle of France, with an airport two hours away.
Sound team on The Last Duel : St phane Bucher, Claire Bernengo, Agathe Michaud and J r me Rabu. A week before the shoot, everything was ready, and I was still at the equipment hire company when I received a call from the production team announcing a day of pre-shooting... What is a pre-shoot? Its a Ridley Scott specialty: if we start the first day of principal photography on the Monday, the Friday before he adds another day of shooting. Its a sort of test day, to get the team into the swing of things and check that everythings running smoothly... It was Tuesday of that week, 3 days before the pre-shoot, and I still hadnt arrived. On Tuesday morning, the production team called me and told me that the American executive producer wanted to know where I was. They couldnt understand why I hadnt done any location scouting and why I wasnt already there! I reminded the production team that they had told me that my participation in the location scouting was not necessary. The producer then asked me: Can you catch the next flight here in two hours, its important! Fortunately, Id already packed all my stuff, and everything was ready. I said OK', got on my scooter, went home, got my suitcase all packed [laughs], hailed a taxi, rushed to the airport and that was the start of a crazy race.
Once I got there, I quickly realized the phenomenal scale of the project. Everything was there, the crews, the four cameras, the special effects, the horses, and I s
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
10/06/2026
DAZN-owned digital-media company launches three fan-first series leaning into cr...
10/06/2026
Clear-Com has announced the appointment of Jason Dino as Southwest Regional Sales Manager USA, covering Southern California and the Southwest region. Dino joins...
10/06/2026
An 11% decrease in number of global broadcast deals reflects the organization...
10/06/2026
The Women Without Boundaries Awards recognize women whose work is advancing the future of media, broadcast, AV, workplace technology, digital experience, and re...
10/06/2026
Today is match day minus two for FIFA and HBS. On Thursday, there will be two ma...
10/06/2026
SES is supporting broadcast distribution of the world's biggest football tou...
10/06/2026
NDI has announced that BirdDog has become the first hardware manufacturer to achieve full NDI 6.3 compatibility across its complete lineup of cameras, encoders,...
10/06/2026
Vince Caputo and Scott Carter, winners of the 2026 Sports Emmy for Outstanding Post Produced Audio have been announced as presenters for the 2026 SVG Advanced A...
10/06/2026
FOX One today unveiled a slate of new product features and enhancements designed to elevate the viewing experience for fans on the official streaming platform o...
10/06/2026
Primary production partners Dome Productions and Raycom Sports once again played...
10/06/2026
The Women in Sports Filmmaking Experienceship is an immersive professional devel...
10/06/2026
The league has expanded its HSAN architecture for the NBA Finals to manage more ...
10/06/2026
The inaugural MoonPay X Games League (XGL) Winter Draft will take place Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at Cosm Los Angeles from 7-9 p.m. PT. The event will strea...
10/06/2026
The University of Oklahoma (OU) Athletics Department and Learfield have announce...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has released TR-06-4 Part 8, a new specification for RIST Satellite-Hybrid: Out-of-Band Method. The specification creates a mecha...
10/06/2026
Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, supporting live medical proc...
10/06/2026
A still from The Doom Generation by Gregg Araki (Courtesy of Sundance Institute)
By Lucy Spicer
Have you checked out our Sundance Film Festival 101 list yet...
10/06/2026
Get Hands-On with Interfaces & Mic Preamp Brands
If youre after a new interface or preamp, then GearExpo UK is the place to be! Well have a whole host of au...
10/06/2026
November 13-14 2026, The Midway, San Francisco
Following their recent rebranding, MONO Music Conference (formerly Music Expo) have officially announced thei...
10/06/2026
Debut instrument free for limited time
deFORM is the debut release from newly founded developer ebbandflow, and it's being offered as a free download fo...
10/06/2026
Alone Australia Season 4: Meet the Cast
10 June, 2026
Media releases
WATCH THE TRAILER
Smash-hit survival series Alone Australia drops its highly anticipa...
10/06/2026
DEADLY THEN, DEADLY NOW, DEADLY ALWAYS: SBS & NITV IGNITE NAIDOC WEEK 2026 WITH ...
10/06/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF advance laser-based drone defense with THORIS LCS Rohde & Schwarz is showcasing THORIS at ILA 2026: A sovereign, end to end counter...
10/06/2026
MAHLE and Rohde & Schwarz develop application for sensor testing of modern drive...
10/06/2026
Production and Development Funding supports the creation of compelling, commercially viable, artistic and culturally relevant South African screen content. Deve...
10/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
10/06/2026
Accedo, Humans not Robots, and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) have announced the launch of Ecoflow X. Formerly an IBC Accelerator project, ...
10/06/2026
Frequency, the engine powering the world's leading streaming television channels, today announced that James Smith has joined the company as General Manager...
10/06/2026
At the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for live medical procedures s...
10/06/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media, and entertainment managed services, today announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform powered by Or...
10/06/2026
Klvr will showcase how venues, integrators and production teams are rethinking disposable battery usage at InfoComm 2026 (Las Vegas, June 17-19, booth #N6311). ...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has further enhanced the Reliable Internet Streaming Transport (RIST) protocol by incorporating a new feature, RIST Satellite-Hyb...
10/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
10/06/2026
10 Jun 2026
VEON's Banglalink Brings Every World Cup 2026 Match to Football...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
How to watch every ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 match live on Sky Sports
Where is the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 availabl...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
P RLA brings first-ever Beautifully Clean Oral Care'...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
Sky reveals pulse-pounding first teaser trailer for upco...
10/06/2026
Wuppertal June 10, 2026
Riedel Artist at the Heart of the 14th World Live Neurovascular ConferenceAt the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Li...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Showcases New Mobile Experience, Collections and Games Vision in APAC
Product
10 June 2026
GlobalSouth KoreaJapan
Link copied to c...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Ready to Join? The Netflix Fan Club Arrives at Cannes Lions
Business
10 June 2026
Global
Link copied to clipboard
Download all assets
N...
10/06/2026
Chemists snap together complex 3D molecules from highly reactive radicals-without losing their shape Scripps Research team develops stereoretentive radical-radi...
09/06/2026
Kiswe announces an expanded long-term partnership with ONE Championship (ONE), t...
09/06/2026
SiriusXM will broadcast FOX Sports' English-language commentary for all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches from June 11 through July 19, available to subscribe...
09/06/2026
EVS has announced it is changing its corporate name from EVS Broadcast Equipment to EVS, reflecting the company's expanded portfolio beyond broadcast equipm...
09/06/2026
Fox Corporation and the NFL have announced a multi-year agreement to bring NFL c...
To coincide with the release of Gladiator 2', we wanted to highlight St phane Buchers work with director Ridley Scott. This collaboration began in 2020, for The Last Duel', a year in which nothing went according to plan. St phane Bucher wasnt even supposed to be working on this film! Since then, Ridley Scott has been working on one project after another, and St phane Bucher has become his indispensable French Sound Man'.
