If you like to watch movies, chances are you’ve experienced Tod Maitland’s work.
Throughout his career as a sound engineer, Maitland has been involved with more than 100 films, ranging from “I Am Legend,” to “Seabiscuit,” to “Joker.” He also has four Academy Award nominations in the “Best Sound” category to his credit.
Before he began counting Will Smith, Joaquin Phoenix, and other A-list stars as co-workers, Maitland was a student at Alfred State. He acknowledges that the two years he spent at the college made an impact on him that continues to this day, which is why he’ll always be proud to be an Alfred State Pioneer.
A native of Long Island, Maitland initially wanted to pursue a career in marine biology. After seeing his father, Dennis Maitland, at work, Maitland decided to follow in his dad’s footsteps and become a sound professional in the movie industry.
“I came into work with him over the summer when I was 16 and loved it,” he said. “I was like, ‘This is what I’m going to do.’”
In 1975, Maitland enrolled in Alfred State’s audio visual technology program, which he says helped him to understand the details of his business.
“In thinking back to my curriculum there, it’s amazing how limited we were with what we had. I mean obviously there were no computers, so we were setting type and doing things that you think of as archaic now, but when you have to do things in the minute intimacy of small things, you learn a lot about details,” he said. “I think that, going through my photography class, my graphics class, and other classes really helped me learn a lot about the details, and in my business, everything is about the details.”
As a student, Maitland greatly enjoyed the community he became a part of at Alfred State.
film industry as a sound engineer for more than 40
years. He is pictured here on the right with Todd
Phillips, director of the movie “Joker,” left, and the star
of that film, Joaquin Phoenix.
“I think my years at Alfred were a great growing-up time,” he said. “It was a great time for friendships and independence. I lived up in the infamous cabins that were outside of Alfred Station and I also lived above the Old Mill Inn for a year. We were like our own little community. I think community was a really big part of my Alfred experience.”
Immediately upon graduating in 1977, Maitland began working in the film industry with his father. Together, the two worked on three movies, including 1982’s “Tempest” starring Susan Sarandon.
After three films, Dennis suggested that his son work with other sound professionals in order to see how they work.
“Working for your father, you can only go so far,” Maitland said. “He was definitely instrumental in me learning the initial tools that I needed to work, and I became a boom man, which is the person that holds the microphone over people’s heads.”
Holding a microphone is just one part of being a boom man, however, as Maitland notes. It also includes being very familiar with how microphones work, camera lenses, lighting, where to stand to be able to boom the shot, and more.
“You are right on the front lines,” he said. “You are right next to the camera, the actors, the director, so it’s a high-pressure situation, and it’s also a very rewarding situation because you get to see everything right in front of you, some of the great performances and incredible talent, and it’s all just happening right in front of you. That’s pretty amazing.”
What’s also amazing is that Maitland has worked and developed relationships with some of the biggest stars and directors in Hollywood, including Robert De Niro.
“I’d worked with De Niro a few times as a mixer,” said Maitland, who became a sound mixer in 1985. “Then when Bob decided to direct his first movie, ‘A Bronx Tale,’ he called me because of the relationship we’d developed on films I had done before with him, which is pretty much the way our business works.”
For Maitland, working with great people is one of the four best parts about his job.
“I’d say the people, the travel, the fact that it’s different every single day, and the creativity are my four favorite things,” he said.
As for his favorite movies that he’s worked on, Maitland has a long list that includes “Tootsie,” “The Greatest Showman,” and four Oliver Stone films that he considers some of the most influential of his career: “Talk Radio,” “Born on the Fourth of July,” “The Doors,” and “JFK.” A more recent film that Maitland worked on that has been both challenging and rewarding is Steven Spielberg’s remake of “West Side Story,” which is set to hit theaters in December 2020.
No matter how many films Maitland has worked on, however, he admits that he still gets butterflies on the first day of filming.
“You still have those first-day jitters and I get that it’s because we care so much about our work,” he said.
In addition to the work he does on set, Maitland also owns his own sound company called “New Deal Inc.” and teaches sound classes at New York University (NYU). In addition to shaping the next generation of great filmmakers at NYU, Maitland worked with his sister, Kim, and two brothers, Dennis Maitland Jr. and Dean, who have both passed away. Maitland is now helping to guide his nephew, Terence McCormack Maitland, who also works on sound for films.
alumnus Tod Maitland while filming “A Bronx Tale.”
