Simon Hayes, Production Sound Mixer

Les Misérables, Mary Poppins Returns, Fantastic Beasts (view more on IMDB)

“When Tom Hooper said he wanted to capture live vocals on ‘Cats’ while the actors were dancing in every style from ballet to street we knew we had to find a solution for mic’ing that not only captured every head turn perfectly ‘on mic’ but would not slip or move during energetic movements. We also wanted to provide the highest level of comfort because the mics would be fitted all day, every day for the whole production. After meeting with the URSA team, Arthur Fenn (1st Assistant Sound) and myself began a collaboration that has resulted in the URSA Head Strap. After months of testing in prep and rehearsals, the actors had a product for the shoot that was incredibly comfortable that enabled them to perform completely uninhibited movements while we recorded their vocals with a perfect mic position on every take”