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What Is Sound?

• The aural effects of characters, objects, and settings• Sound operates on both physical and psychological levels• Sound and silence create the sound track

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Sound Production

• Design• Recording• Editing• Mixing

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Sound Design

• Sound should be integral to all three phases of film production• Image and sound can create different worlds• Image and sound are co-expressible

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Sound Recording

• Dialogue is the only type of film sound typically recorded during production

• Double-system recording• Digital (sound track) format

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Sound Editing

• Editor is responsible for the overall process of editing and for the sound crew; also works with the musical composer(s)

• Sound effects and music are created and/or added during postproduction• Sound crew

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Sound Mixing

• Combining different sound tracks onto one composite sound track synchronous with the picture

• Sound track – a single element that can be combined in a multitrack sound design

• Complex role of sound mixers

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Describing Film Sound

• Perceptual characteristics – pitch, loudness, quality, fidelity• Source• Type – vocal or musical

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Pitch, Loudness, Quality

• Pitch (level) – high or low; defined by frequency • Loudness (volume or intensity) – loud / soft; depends on amplitude • Quality (timbre, texture, color) – simple / complex; harmonic content

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Sources of Film Sound

• Diegetic versus nondiegetic• Onscreen versus offscreen• Internal versus external

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Diegetic Sound

• Originates from a source within a film’s world • Gives an awareness of the spatial and temporal dimensions of the shot• Internal or external / Onscreen or offscreen / Recorded during production

or constructed during postproduction

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Nondiegetic Sound

• Comes from a source outside a film’s world• Usually has no relevant spatial or temporal dimensions• Offscreen and recorded during postproduction • Assumed to be inaudible to the characters onscreen

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Onscreen versus Offscreen

• Onscreen (simultaneous)• Offscreen (nonsimultaneous)• Asynchronous sound

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Offscreen Sound

• Diegetic offscreen sound – effects, music, or vocals that emanate from the world of the story

• Nondiegetic offscreen sound – musical score or narration by someone who is not a character in the story

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Internal versus External

• Internal sound occurs whenever we hear what we assume are the thoughts of a character within a scene

• External sound comes from a place within the diegesis, and we assume that it is heard by the characters in that world.

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Types of Film Sound

• Vocal sounds• Environmental sounds• Music• Silence

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Vocal Sounds: Dialogue and Narration

• Dominates most films• Dialogue can be ordinary or highly artificial• Narration – onscreen or offscreen voices; omniscient or from a character

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Environmental Sounds

• Ambient sound• Sound effects• Foley sounds

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Music

• Large symphonic scores set moods or manipulate emotions• Irony often results from the juxtaposition of music and image• Musical themes are frequently associated with individual characters

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Silence

• Functions as a sound when the filmmaker deliberately suppresses the vocal, environmental, or musical sounds that we expect in a movie

• With careful interplay between silence and sound, a filmmaker can produce a rhythm for the film that calls attention to the characters’ perceptions

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