JohnMcKay
- Sound
John McKay is a veteran sound editor, sound designer, and mixer. He abandoned an early focus on directing to build a diverse, respected career in post-production. His credits include significant contributions to iconic films The Quiet Earth, Footrot Flats, Kitchen Sink, and Lord of the Rings. McKay is notable for an approach which combines creativity with a high level of technical craft and organisational rigour.
Biography
"Sound Editor is a good name," says John McKay. "Not sound engineer, which is a technical term. To be an editor is to be a selector. I’ve never done options. Why have an option? That is creating forests rather than roads. I try to build roads."
Screenography
Awards
2025 New Zealand Screen Awards / Ngā Taonga Whakaata O Aotearoa
Best Contribution to a Soundtrack: Feature (shared with Matthew Lambourn): for The Rule of Jenny Pen
2003 Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards (United States)
Nominated for Best Sound Editing in Foreign Features (with 13 others): for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
“The worst thing you can do is just put your hand on the last thing that worked. I have always run on instinct – all my best moments have been mistakes or things done by chance, that I then recognise and explore.”