Feedback from Sound Design work

Feedback for Sound Journey:

Add more sound spots

Like the gradual build

End should be louder – more chaotic finish

Not obvious what is being listened to

Good progression so sound moves smoothly

 I agree with these comments, I think that I could've improved the foley making it more obvious what was being listened to. I think I could also improve by building the end up to be more chaotic

Feedback for Film Clip:

Beginning of piece is similar to sound journey

Add lightning effects

Low piano music to add dark effect

Comical take on dramatic scene – subverting the genre and works

Add more sounds to actions – example Jason getting out of coffin

Like that own recordings have been used

Add more heavy breathing and steps

Syncing could be more accurate

Wind sound – feeling of dread

Felt a bit empty

Very well mixed & synced

Knife sounds fit well and increase intensity

Sound spots are almost perfect

Could do with some reverb

More foreground sounds needed

To improve my film clip piece I could change up the beginning of the clip not repeating the same sounds, add lightning effects synced up to the lighting of the screen. I also need to add more action movement sounds and more dialogue to the scene. I could also add a soundtrack to create more of an atmosphere in this piece, and add reverb to some of the audio clips within my sequence. 

Foley to movie clip: Friday 13th - Reawakening of Jason

 I really enjoyed this task, so much that I completed the whole scene rather than a minute. I enjoyed the experimentation of sound choices to decide what sounded more like, for example, a footstep squelch in mud while raining. I think that this piece was successful, however I think I could've continued layering more sounds and therefore making it more descriptive, for example adding thunder, heavier rain and a variation of breathing patterns to match characters. To improve I would also use actors to voice the character's dialogue rather than my own voice. I learnt from this task that a range of material to choose from is best, as sounds that are recorded sometimes don't really sound like what you want them to, so it is good to have a range to fall back on and layer sounds if needed to. I think that I would definitely use foley sound in future film projects to exaggerate sounds.

Sound Journey Piece

This is the piece I have created through my own foley sound as listed in the previous post. I layered the noises over each other and played around with the loudness and pitch of each audio clip. I used the lighter audio clips at the beginning and built up, using the louder foley sounds towards the end of the clip. I was unable to use Auditions to edit due to an issue with licences, therefore I edited this audio piece on Final Cut Pro. To improve I would use Auditions and create more foley to have more of a build up.

Creating Foley Sound

Foley Sound ideas to recreate Thunderstorm:

• plastic bag - wind/thunder
• batteries in plastic box rolling around - thunder
• rice moving in metal box - rain
• pots and pans banging together - lightning
• foil shaking - thunder/rain
• shower water - rain
• shaking a leather jacket - thunder

Sound Design 22/9/15

Sound Design HW

The cinematography in The Conversation, is shown from above whereas the sound is captured from below and in the van as shown in the clip.

I think that the distortion is effective with the audience - because you don't really know what is going on until you have seen the ear pieces, microphones and vans. I like the juxtaposition of the sound being captured from below and the cinematography from above in the first few seconds of the scene.

If I were to recreate this I would use white noise instead of the digital distortion heard throughout the extract as I don't think it makes it obvious to the reader what is happening - I would also include a distortion similar to when a microphone gets too close to a speaker when the spies are too close to the couple. I think the white noise would slightly confuse the audience as the image would not be distorted. I would also use more ambient noises such as people talking, breathing, walking in the beginning - I understand that the music is very loud, but I don't think that a busy street would not include people talking while music is being played. I think I would also include sounds of fabric touching fabric and muffling when the couples touch each other or are close to each other to show that one of the pair are wearing a microphone. I would cut the music completely when are protagonist that gets into the van when he does not have on the earphones to hear what is being said, highlighting that he is the protagonist and who the audience should be following, also creating a sense of mystery. I would also not use the piano at the end of the clip, instead replacing it with ambient noises and picking up on some key sounds when passing certain parts in the extract, for example hearing parts of a conversation when passing a group of people.




To improve this extract in Blade Runner, I would exaggerate the sound of the fan rotating above the man, as it is a close object to him, but that is not reflected in the sound. In class we debated as to whether or not the exaggerated heartbeat was diegetic or non-diegetic. I would argue that the heartbeat is diegetic, as it is in the film world. There is also nothing to suggest that it is a heartbeat, it could be the rotating fan above the pair. One of the characters speaks while the heartbeat is exaggerated and the voice slightly echoes, which the character's voice hasn't echoed before and it is only at that point - so if the heartbeat is non diegetic so is that voice, but the other character in the scene can hear the voice - the voice is only echoing to him, which means that he is feeling disorientated and hears specific key sounds that are to him, including his own heartbeat - the close up of this character also shows that we are only concentrating on this character and what he can think, feel and hear. I would make the first gunshot sound more like a gun shot instead of it sounding like something from Star Wars guns.

Sound Design 21/9/15

Sound is immaterial. Perception of sound relies on sound. We recognise things through sound information by the sound they make. Sonic information - imbued in objects + events, especially when we see them. Sonic information - more subjective visual information. You can picture an event by hearing key sounds.

Sound Journey:

• No non-diegetic music
• No more than 1 minute

1 minute extract of film scene:

Think about:

• Sound/feeling
• film sound
• diegesis
• the mix

John Cage 4'33'': When viewing this it felt very surreal. I constantly felt like I was waiting for something to happen. Similarly to the exercise in class where we remained silent and focused on what we could hear - although there is supposed to be no sound - there still is sound - people breathing, fidgeting, coughing - it eventually becomes very irritating and annoying as you want to complete the silence. 

Similarly - this song The Ballad of Richard Nixon by John Denver does the same.

The Architecture of Films Soundtrack:

1. Background - atmosphere and ambience
2. Foreground - sound spots and dialogue (including music payed in diegesis)

Spot sounds - specific sounds played in foreground