Life on the West Island - A Quornucopia of sounds

Regular readers of this column may have visited one of the West Island’s iconic regions – the Flinders Ranges in the Festival State. If so, they may have experienced the joys of the little town of Quorn, around 40km north-east of Port Augusta.

This settlement of just over 1,000 people was once the crossroads of the nation. Both the north/south and east/west rail lines met in 1917 at Quorn, which became a flourishing settlement with many grand new buildings erected to celebrate the town’s prominence. Alas, eventually the town was bypassed when both lines were rebuilt with the construction of what have now become the celebrated Indian-Pacific and Ghan lines, which meet instead at Port Augusta. For some years, the remaining railway through Quorn serviced some northern areas as far as Hawker, but in 1979 even that service was replaced by road transport.

But Quorn’s railway history was not over. Rail enthusiasts established the Pichi Richi Railway and associated museum and gallery. Initially, tourists were taken by steam train to the spectacular Pichi Richi Pass in the rugged Flinders Ranges, then back to Quorn. The tourist railway became so popular that it now runs return trips through the pass to Port Augusta and has become a major tourist attraction.

The town promotes itself as the gateway to the outback Flinders Ranges and has become the home of related galleries and stores, with some 18 heritage listed properties as further attractions. The famous Heysen Trail (walking) and Mawson Trail (cycling) both pass through the town and it has been used for the settings of many well-known Hollywood and West Island movies, including The Shiralee, Gallipoli, Sunday Too Far Away, The Water Diviner and The Lighthorsemen, among others.

In its promotional materials, Quorn lists a number of prominent citizens among those born there, including politicians, activists, star footballers and explorers. But the person from the town who has made the greatest global impact is frequently omitted – and that’s just the way he likes it.

ABC News recently reported that John Simpson is a man who experiences the world through sound. The 59-year-old is a Foley artist, which means he makes the sounds of everyday movement in movies and television shows. Foley – named after the man who developed it, Jack Foley – is not special effects, but rather the recreation of noises such as gravel crunching underfoot, a saddle squeaking as an actor gets on a horse, the smash of a plate as it hits the floor. Simpson creates these effects in post-production, so he watches the on-screen action and makes the sounds in sync with what he sees.

The Foley expert has worked on many major productions in the past few decades, including The Lighthorsemen, Storm Boy, The Portrait of a Lady, The Truman Show, The World’s Fastest Indian and Mad Max: Fury Road. In between the big feature films, his regular television work includes Neighbours, for which he has recorded thousands of hours of sound. For the past 20 years, Simpson has worked out of a large nondescript shed in the middle of nowhere, near Quorn in the Flinders Ranges.

Although regarded in Hollywood as the best in the business, John Simpson enjoys the isolation of the Flinders ranges, partly because there is little background noise to compete with his Foley production. His “tin shed” is a 20-metre by 12-metre structure which seems commonplace in the bush. But inside is 40 years’ worth of collected sound paraphernalia, stored somewhat haphazardly. His recording studio is contained in a separate, soundproof part of the shed.

Simpson says the building contains seatbelts that click, jewellery that chinks, phones that flip shut, and taps that squeak, among thousands of other sound-producing items. In a recent interview, he said most of my stuff comes from op shops – it’s the greatest place for me for things like knives and forks and plates, because unfortunately, these things I need to break, so you have to buy $2 plates. I also get handbags, jewellery and all those bits and pieces that anyone picks up and wears and moves; it all gets re-recorded. You basically have to have almost everything domestic, things that you might find in your house. There is a kitchen sink in here somewhere.

Simpson says there is an art to what he does, being able to walk in the style of the person on the screen, maybe with a slight shuffle or limp, having an eye for detail and making sure he doesn’t miss anything in the action. He is currently working on the next film in the Lord of the Rings saga and the soundtrack for the ABC comedy Fisk.

He says that he doesn’t like the crowding and bustle of cities and prefers the more laid-back rural life: The fact that I can actually live and work here, it’s just the ultimate. I’m not someone who really likes a city; I can tolerate it but I just crave the fresh air and the space. I’m not good with crowds.

Working as a Foley artist is demanding – a half-hour television show can consume a day to complete and a movie will take 80 to 120 hours, depending on how many people are involved and how much action there is. And some animations can take up to 500 hours of Foley sound creation.

Simpson concedes that he can tire of the “conveyer belt” of constant working as a Foley artist so he has also set up his own sound company, Outback PA Hire, supplying and setting up sound equipment for music festivals. “It gets me out of the studio and gives me a break. You’ve got to have a life,” he says.

If you visit Quorn, you will enjoy an experience of real West Island outback life. But few people will get to see the tin shed or meet John Simpson, arguably one of our nation’s most influential artists through his Quornucopia of sounds.