The world-class recording studio at the heart of the university’s Pukeahu campus in Wellington.
Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie is a spinoff of the SpongeBob SquarePants children’s show and has been released on streaming service Netflix. As at 14 August 2024, the film had attracted 13.4 million views in just one week.
The film’s soundtrack was recorded at Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University’s Massey Studios, a world-class recording studio at the heart of the university’s Pukeahu campus in Wellington.
The original score was composed by The Phoenix Foundation members Sam Flynn-Scott, Conrad Wedde and Luke Buda, and features vocals by award-winning singer/songwriter Tami Neilson. The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (NZSO) also features heavily.
The recording was organised by Music Supervisor Karyn Rachtman of Mind your Music, with Massey involved in the initial conversations to form the scope of the project and the application for the funding to bring it to fruition.
Mr Flynn-Scott says it was a two-year process, working with director Liza Johnson and Ms Rachtman to determine what direction to head in.
“In animation you have to work to these unfinished sketched animatics, so you need to imagine the finished film. We wanted to be true to the freewheeling spirit of the original SpongeBob cartoon but also tap into the 80s kids films we grew up with. There is no way we could have achieved that without working with a real orchestra. It was a huge project, but deeply rewarding.”
The collaborative project has added a unique Kiwi touch to the global movie, which centres around squirrel Sandy Cheeks and SpongeBob’s quest to save Bikini Bottom from an evil CEO.
It wasn’t the first time The Phoenix Foundation have utilised Massey Studios. In 2020 they recorded the NZSO for their album Friend Ship, and were blown away by the facilities.
“It was a no brainer to come back for Saving Bikini Bottom. We have also used the studio for pre-tour rehearsals and having students help out with monitors and set up is quite frankly an absolute game changer for old lazy dogs like us,” Mr Flynn-Scott says.
He adds that the scale of the space and the Solid State Logic console make it one-of-a-kind for Aotearoa New Zealand.
“Having the two control rooms is amazing for a project of this scale. We had Karyn Rachtman, our music supervisor, set up in one room, where we could discuss big picture issues and just relax and enjoy the music. Then in the other control room we had our orchestrator Claire Cowan, our supervising conductor Brent Stewart and engineer Graham Kennedy. Their job was to focus in on every little detail and communicate in real time with the conductor Hamish Mckeitch.
“There isn’t a lot of time when you have a whole orchestra on the clock and 60 minutes of music to record, so having a studio of this scale is essential.”
Toi Rauwhārangi College of Creative Arts Project Manager James Coyle says it was a fantastic project to be part of.
“We believe the ability to record here at Massey with New Zealand’s premier orchestra is a key component to the job being brought to Aotearoa. We are immensely proud to be associated with such work and hats off to the local composers for bringing their unique sound to the world!”
Read more about Saving Bikini Bottom here.
Listen to the soundtrack on Spotify here.
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