Cinema Audio Society (CAS)

Overview

The Cinema Audio Society (CAS) is an honorary professional society founded in 1964 representing production sound mixers, re-recording mixers, sound supervisors, and sound technicians working in motion pictures, television, and interactive media. Membership carries the "CAS" designation in screen credits, a mark of professional affiliation visible in the credit sequences of major productions worldwide. The organization operates as a peer society focused on craft recognition, education, and the advancement of sound mixing as a distinct creative discipline.

The CAS covers the sound mixing community specifically -- both the production sound mixer who captures audio on set and the re-recording mixer (also called the dubbing mixer outside the US) who creates the final mixed soundtrack in post-production. This distinguishes the CAS from the MPSE, which covers sound editors rather than mixers, and from IATSE Local 695 (Production Sound Technicians), which provides union coverage for production sound workers.

CAS Awards

The CAS presents annual CAS Awards recognizing outstanding achievement in sound mixing across theatrical features, television drama, comedy, reality programming, and animation. The awards are voted on by CAS members and are among the most significant honors specific to the sound mixing craft -- providing peer recognition that complements the broader Academy Award for Sound, which covers the full sound department.

The CAS Awards are particularly valued in the sound community because they recognize mixing as a distinct contribution from editing, acknowledging the re-recording mixer's creative role in shaping the final emotional and narrative impact of a film's soundtrack.

Production Sound and Post-Production Sound

The CAS's membership spans both the production and post-production phases of sound work. Production sound mixers -- who record dialogue and on-set sound during principal photography -- and re-recording mixers -- who blend dialogue, effects, and music into the final mix during post -- have different but complementary craft disciplines. The CAS brings both communities together under a single professional organization, reflecting the continuum of sound work from location recording through final mix delivery.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For directors, understanding the distinction between production sound mixers (CAS members who work on set) and re-recording mixers (CAS members who work in post) helps contextualize the sound team's contributions. Both roles involve significant creative craft that shapes the audience's experience of the film.

For sound professionals, CAS membership provides peer community, educational resources, and awards recognition that signal professional standing in the sound mixing community. The "CAS" credit suffix is a recognized mark of distinction in a field where credits can otherwise be opaque to those outside the sound community.

See Also

For the sound editing counterpart, see Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) in this directory. For union representation of production sound workers, see IATSE in this directory.