Bad Foley Cues Drive You Nuts? Let’s Fix That! ??

For Foley Cueing, Mixing, Editing, and Sound Supervisors: Are Your Cues Wasting Valuable Time?

Did you know that 1 to 3 hours of every Foley session is often wasted due to inaccurate or poorly placed cues? That’s time that could be spent recording more sounds and enhancing the quality of your project.

As a Foley mixer, I pride myself on being one of the fastest and most efficient in the industry. Yet, one major recurring obstacle holds me back from the entire process: Inaccurate, neglected, and poorly descriptive cues. Unless I’ve personally trained someone or cued the project myself, it’s rare to receive cues that are truly frame-accurate. Why does this happen—and more importantly, how can we fix it?

The Root of the Problem

Here’s The Truth: most people in this industry approach their sessions with an individual mindset, preparing cues, without questioning how the workflow is, and their focus is to finish the cues as fast as possible. Many professionals prioritize finishing cues within 1–2 hours, assuming the Foley team will “figure it out.” or ”deal with it”. They either don't have enough time or the knowledge to make accurate decisions or simply have poor training! This approach wastes time, creates frustration, and disrupts workflows. Not to mention they are getting paid for a full day, yet I am amazed by how they manage to deliver so many inaccurate sessions.

My point is that those sessions defeat the purpose of having cues in the first place. Instead, people who cue for Foley should be considering the workflow of the Foley mixers and the Foley artists whom they are working with and preparing the cues for! Does this make sense to you?

Why Has This Become The Norm? Well, as a Foley mixer I mostly intend to stay positive and uplift the mood of the artists that I work with. So I pull up my sleeves and fix the cues on my end, during cloth pass or as we move forward. The plan is to have a smooth experience without too many disruptions. If I wanted to complain every day for every session I received and reject them, do you think I would have a career? I have tried to reach out politely and speak to many and only a handful of newcomers have felt it and they went out of their way to change their habits and adjust their cues to deliver a much more accurate session, which I'm so grateful for. For those who never asked or reached out to me and do what they think is perfectly fine, because they've been doing it for 15-20 years, it fuels their ego and confidence and they assume that it worked out perfectly and what they delivered was great! Especially when there’s politics involved behind it.

Worse still, these habits get passed down: poorly trained professionals train others, perpetuating a cycle of mediocrity. The result? An industry-wide disconnect between Foley Supervisors, Cuers, and their Foley Crew.

Why Frame-Accurate Cues Matter

The purpose of cueing is to make the Foley crew’s work seamless. Accurate, detailed, and concise cues enable:

? Recording more sounds.

? Improved quality and sync.

? Creative layering of sounds to enhance sound design.

? Time for pickups, watchdowns, and adjustments.

? Smoother sessions that save time and money.

Precision Impacts the Entire Workflow

As a Foley mixer, my role doesn’t stop with the Foley session—it extends to supporting and curating to the needs of the re-recording mixers. For example, when syncing Foley with production sounds (like a cup set down or high-heels footsteps), the Foley must align perfectly. If the sync is off, it can disrupt the final mix, wasting precious time on the dub stage. This is called “Topping it” This is one of the many reasons why precision matters. Another one is “Splitting”, meaning based on the drastic perspective cuts the re-recording mixer may want you to split the foley between 2 tracks on the exact frame of the cuts, so they can easily spot the area they need to process, pan, reverb or mute…

Let’s Break the Cycle

The solution starts with teamwork and a commitment to improving our craft. I’ve trained a handful of professionals who’ve embraced this mindset, and the results have been transformative. Now, I want to help you refine your Foley cueing, editing, and mixing techniques to elevate your sessions and stand out in the industry.

How I Can Help

I offer 1:1 coaching sessions where we’ll dive deep into:

• Creating frame-accurate cues that save time and frustration.
• Develop a short descriptive Foley vocabulary for the cues.
• Organizing sessions with clarity and purpose.
• Shortcuts and techniques to enhance your workflow.
• Marker placements that not only help the Foley mixers but also the Foley editors.
• Organizing your Props with certain categories, color coding and much more...

When you book a session, you’ll also receive an extensive, detailed PDF guide I’ve created, packed with tips, shortcuts, and cue descriptions to transform your approach.

No one has to know you took a session with me—it’s okay to fix habits you’re not proud of! Let’s fix this, one cue at a time.

Ready to Elevate Your Craft?

Click here to book your 1:1 coaching session or find the link in my bio:

For workshops, talks, or sessions, contact me directly at: [email protected]

Let’s make your sessions smoother, faster, and more professional.

Best Mixes,Arno Stephanian, CAS, MPSE