In 1988 Peter worked for AGFA when the company transferred him to Los Angeles to take over their North American motion picture division. Tom McCormick of NT Audio was his first customer for sound negative film. They always kept in touch and three years ago McCormick hired Peter to run his company.

“I bring a lot of experience to the company,” says Bulcke, “and after Tom brought me in, he kinda stepped back and said, you run it for me. It’s great to have the freedom to put everything I’ve learned into practice and see results. It’s very rewarding.”

NT stands for Nancy and Tom, husband and wife, who are still the owners. They started the business in 1971 and manufactured sound systems for commercial motion picture multiplex theater chains, laboratory and post production facility screening rooms. Tom eventually switched to optical recording (1983) and built a lab to develop optical film.

Today NT is well known for optical recording. They also do transfers between any audio format, as well as conforming and evaluation. Two years ago, the company added a theatre where they can check audio tracks – all four sound formats in one session, looking at the same screen. Although the company’s core business is audio, last year NT expanded its 7 year old video facility. Its Hollywood office has editorial rooms, offers telecine transfers and dubbing.

NT does optical sound tracks for many of the major feature film releases, so their customers are not only the studio post production people, but also the major LA labs Deluxe and Technicolor. Peter says it’s important to have a good rapport with other labs, because the time between finishing post production and the release is so squeezed, that one mistake can be lethal to the release. “Ultimately we are partners with the laboratories in order to serve our common customers,” he explains. “I think we find a very good way of working with each other.”

A source of pride for Peter Bulcke is the fact that NT Audio & Video has a very low turnover rate among employees. A family environment created and cultivated over the years has resulted in a team with the same philosophy. “In the grand scheme of business, I think the employee is the most important,” he emphasizes. “You take care of your employees and keep them happy and you automatically keep your customers.” Even though NT has sales people, Bulcke believes that all of the employees are sales people, because sooner or later, everyone in the company gets in front of the customer.

When it comes to membership in ACVL, Peter is very clear about the benefits. “At one time or another, you need an organization to take care of your interests as a laboratory,” explains Peter. “As a group you become a force to be reckoned with – in a good sense.”

Secondly, he believes that it’s important to have a forum to discuss issues and exchange ideas. He continues: “I have the task of making money for my company, so I need to talk with my peers to gauge what we are doing and what we should be doing.”

He says that ACVL is a group of good people and he enjoys being among peers because there are common threads. “For me personally, getting involved in ACVL has provided relationships outside of the normal day’s work. It’s important to know what’s going on in the industry.”

Peter & his wife Mia have three grown girls who have left home. Lately he’s been editing videos of his family through the years, still learning and studying like he always has and always will.

Running NT Audio & Video suits him and challenges him. He has passion for it and a sense of humor, summing it all up in a sentence. “So now I have picture and sound, I guess I’m a complete person!”

Indeed.