Sound terminology
Sound terminology notes:
What is sound?
Sound is everything you can hear
-Location sound
-Musical score/soundtrack
voice over
dialogue
sound effects
Dialogue-
Words spoken by characters within the scene, Dialogue can be used to establish character definition.
Voice over
This is when a omniscient narrator or character is talking over the images you are seeing on screen.
Usually recorded in a studio.
Music (score)
Music is used to heighten the emotion and drama of a scene.
Audiences are experienced in decoding the style of music to interpret the mood/genre e.g scary music when a villain appears.
Sound effects
Sound effects are recorded sound other than speech or music which is added to the soundtrack to enhance the narrative or make a creative statement.
DIEGETIC AND NON-DIEGETIC SOUND
Diegetic sound has a physical origin in the film world, on or off screen.
Non-diegetic has no origin in the film world, it can be used to create ambiguity.
DIEGETIC SOUNDS IN SHAWN OF THE DEAD
-dialogue
-breathing
-TV
-curtain
-footsteps
-zombie noises
-phone button
-collapsing on sofa
-camera shot
-falling over
-blood splatter
ADR- automated/additional dialogue recording
When you record dialogue and sync it up with the footage.
Absence of non-diegetic sound
The absence of non-diegetic music can therefore be used to make scenes seem more realistic
for example in No country for old men.
on/off screen sound
On screen sound- We can see the source of the sound in frame
Off screen sound- We hear it but it is outside of the frame
Direct sound:
Direct sound is the sound that is recorded when the filming took place
Post-synchronised sound:
Post-sync sound is sound added after filming in post production
Contrapuntal sound-
The opposite of what you see, contrasts with the mood/tone of the scene
for example, in reservoir dogs there is a scene where somebody is tied up with blood on their face and the 'kidnapper' turns on the music and the radio plays "Stuck in the middle with you" which comes across as a very happy song.
The 'bad guy' is knelt down by a dead body and then stands up and starts dancing, this is a contrapuntal sound as the music does not fit the emotion/mood of the scene as it is very tense and we do not know what is going to happen next with the person who is tied up.
Parallel sound:
Reflects the mood of the scene that we are watching
for example in Doctor Who the doomsday episode, at the beginning they have very tense music as the scene is building up tension whilst Rose and The Doctor are holding on whilst the breech was being closed.
However, when one of the levers gets pushed and Rose fixes it she gets pulled in to the Breech before being saved by her Dad (Pete) who is on the other side.
From here the music changes to quite slow sad music which fits in with the scene as Rose is crying and her and the doctor have their ears to the wall to 'hear' each other. The tone changes throughout and creates a emotional response on the audience.
Exaggerated/pleonastic sound
Sounds that draw attention to whats happening or to heighten emotion or meaning in a scene
for example a cape in a superhero movie, a cape doesn't actually swoosh but they bring it in to heighten the tension.
Foley sound
using something to create a different sound e.g coconuts for horse hooves
the boom operator ONLY records dialogue
Emotional Realism:
What is emotional realism?
Emotional Realism is the sound that serves a physical emotional meaning in a film. The sound reflects the overall mood. The sound reflects the overall mood or can reflect a characters emotion even when the sound does not completely reflect it in the film.
An example is Edwards scissorhands the ice dance scene. The scene uses a musician called Danny Elfman to create a sense of happiness.
Analysis of music from a scene
In this scene it isn't long after the doctor has regenerated and has already started saving the world. As he finds the villain on the roof the backing music starts to build up and create tension and leaves the audience in suspense.
As the doctor faces the villain and all the doctors are on the screen the music matches which is known as parallel sound.
What is sound?
Sound is everything you can hear
-Location sound
-Musical score/soundtrack
voice over
dialogue
sound effects
Dialogue-
Words spoken by characters within the scene, Dialogue can be used to establish character definition.
Voice over
This is when a omniscient narrator or character is talking over the images you are seeing on screen.
Usually recorded in a studio.
Music (score)
Music is used to heighten the emotion and drama of a scene.
Audiences are experienced in decoding the style of music to interpret the mood/genre e.g scary music when a villain appears.
Sound effects
Sound effects are recorded sound other than speech or music which is added to the soundtrack to enhance the narrative or make a creative statement.
DIEGETIC AND NON-DIEGETIC SOUND
Diegetic sound has a physical origin in the film world, on or off screen.
Non-diegetic has no origin in the film world, it can be used to create ambiguity.
DIEGETIC SOUNDS IN SHAWN OF THE DEAD
-dialogue
-breathing
-TV
-curtain
-footsteps
-zombie noises
-phone button
-collapsing on sofa
-camera shot
-falling over
-blood splatter
ADR- automated/additional dialogue recording
When you record dialogue and sync it up with the footage.
Absence of non-diegetic sound
The absence of non-diegetic music can therefore be used to make scenes seem more realistic
for example in No country for old men.
on/off screen sound
On screen sound- We can see the source of the sound in frame
Off screen sound- We hear it but it is outside of the frame
Direct sound:
Direct sound is the sound that is recorded when the filming took place
Post-synchronised sound:
Post-sync sound is sound added after filming in post production
Contrapuntal sound-
The opposite of what you see, contrasts with the mood/tone of the scene
for example, in reservoir dogs there is a scene where somebody is tied up with blood on their face and the 'kidnapper' turns on the music and the radio plays "Stuck in the middle with you" which comes across as a very happy song.
The 'bad guy' is knelt down by a dead body and then stands up and starts dancing, this is a contrapuntal sound as the music does not fit the emotion/mood of the scene as it is very tense and we do not know what is going to happen next with the person who is tied up.
Parallel sound:
Reflects the mood of the scene that we are watching
for example in Doctor Who the doomsday episode, at the beginning they have very tense music as the scene is building up tension whilst Rose and The Doctor are holding on whilst the breech was being closed.
However, when one of the levers gets pushed and Rose fixes it she gets pulled in to the Breech before being saved by her Dad (Pete) who is on the other side.
From here the music changes to quite slow sad music which fits in with the scene as Rose is crying and her and the doctor have their ears to the wall to 'hear' each other. The tone changes throughout and creates a emotional response on the audience.
Exaggerated/pleonastic sound
Sounds that draw attention to whats happening or to heighten emotion or meaning in a scene
for example a cape in a superhero movie, a cape doesn't actually swoosh but they bring it in to heighten the tension.
Foley sound
using something to create a different sound e.g coconuts for horse hooves
the boom operator ONLY records dialogue
Emotional Realism:
What is emotional realism?
Emotional Realism is the sound that serves a physical emotional meaning in a film. The sound reflects the overall mood. The sound reflects the overall mood or can reflect a characters emotion even when the sound does not completely reflect it in the film.
An example is Edwards scissorhands the ice dance scene. The scene uses a musician called Danny Elfman to create a sense of happiness.
In this scene it isn't long after the doctor has regenerated and has already started saving the world. As he finds the villain on the roof the backing music starts to build up and create tension and leaves the audience in suspense.
As the doctor faces the villain and all the doctors are on the screen the music matches which is known as parallel sound.
