‘The White Lotus’: How Editing and Sound Helped Make Thailand a Character in the Story

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As Mike White shifted “The White Lotus” to Southeast Asia and introduced the new setting at the White Lotus wellness resort in Thailand for the third season, this proved to be the most demanding yet in terms of picture editing and sound design. The unique characteristics of the locations and a commitment to avoiding repetition presented significant challenges.

In each season, the setting effectively becomes a character in the show.

Editor John M. Valerio mentions that they intentionally aimed to make it seem unique, respecting Thailand’s essence and how the setting resonates with the narrative and characters.

Christian Minkler, the rerecording mixer, points out that since the location for this season is Thailand (as opposed to previous seasons in Hawaii and Italy), it introduced unique challenges regarding the sound design. These included developing a dense audio environment and enhancing the storyline.

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Christian Minkler, the sound mixer, highlights that working with Thailand as the setting for this season (instead of Hawaii or Italy) presented specific issues in terms of the soundscape. This necessitated the creation of a layered sonic world and ensuring it complemented the plot.

He remarks that there was constant background noise of insects and jungle sounds. We managed to incorporate these sounds creatively into our design work, as well as use them for transition purposes between scenes. This technique was utilized in almost every episode, proving incredibly beneficial for both artistic reasons and practical sound mixing throughout the entire season.

Due to the intense heat, several scenes had to be filmed with noisy air conditioners running. The difficulty lay in achieving a realistic sound environment, and once on set, it was the noise from the generators and air conditioners that posed a problem.

In the second-to-last episode titled “Killer Instincts,” Muay Thai, often known as Thai boxing, served as a narrative tool. The production team used additional footage of a Muay Thai fight that some characters attended, which Valerio referred to as a “recurring stylistic element” for the episode. This was significant in depicting confrontations among various characters such as Rick (Walton Goggins) challenging Jim (Scott Glenn), who he suspects of his father’s murder, and spa manager Belinda (Natasha Rothwell) receiving a questionable proposition from Greg (Jon Gries), whom she believes may have been involved in her wife’s death during Season 2.

Valerio explains that in our show, the surroundings often act as emphasized punctuation marks for scenes that reflect the mood being depicted. In particular, he mentions how Muay Thai footage was strategically inserted to underscore and intensify each small conflict we witness.

Meanwhile, as Jim and Rick engage in a discussion, the fighters are preparing. “Rick suggests to Jim, ‘Shall we head to the den for a chat?’ Soon enough, the scene shifts, and the gloves clash. The atmosphere grows increasingly intense, the fight escalates, and the scenes become more charged. The confrontation between them is unfolding.

According to Minkler, “The noise from the fight was artificial, yet it provided us the freedom to carry out our design as required.

The climax of the season comes in a 90-minute episode entitled “Amor Fati” (meaning “love of fate” in Latin), which was edited by Valerio and Scott Turner. They worked closely with White to wrap up each character’s storyline. Due to time constraints, they had to focus on the essential elements to complete the characters’ stories, resulting in the omission of a scene between Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook) and Zion (Nicholas Duvernay), who was visiting Belinda. This scene was initially longer but had to be shortened for the episode to fit within 90 minutes.

They gather together, and then she determines she desires to explore the world beyond her virginity. [However,] Piper’s story arc seemed to have been discussed during breakfast,” as she emotionally confides in her parents about her personal revelations and deciding against attending a monastery in Thailand, according to Valerio. “From there, it was essentially examining each scene meticulously and making adjustments.

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2025-05-31 21:16