Jim Petrak

Jim Petrak is an ADR (automated dialogue replacement) recording engineer and 5.1 surround sound mixer specializing in Dolby digital for film. Jim kicked off his career in audio post production after graduating with a Cape Audio College Diploma in Sound Engineering. Jim started his first full-time job in audio at Chris Fellows Sound Studio’s in Johannesburg, where he progressed from foley recording to ADR recording and sound design. This progression allowed him to gain intimate knowledge of the audio design process, ultimately leading him on to becoming the head re-recording mixer at Kwazi Mojo in 2006.

Mentored by the late Jeremy Saacks, Jim has mixed many full length features, short films, documentaries, television features and mini-series. He has worked on many local and international films such as 'Stander', 'Lullaby', 'Hotel Rwanda', 'Catch A Fire', 'Red Dust', 'Mama Jack' and the Oscar-winning film 'Tsotsi', among many others. In 2007, Jim mixed' Drum' alongside Peter Maxwell. In 2010, he mixed 'State of Violence' in Paris, France, alongside Xavier Thieulin.

In 2009 Jim started Sound Surfers Audio Post Production. His passion, dedication, experience and comprehension of cinema sound mixing set him up to spearhead cinema sound mixing in Africa. Jim is a two-time SAFTA (South African Film and Television Awards) nominee for best sound design, and he has also recently brought home an AMAA (African Movie Academy Award) for best achievement in sound.