Basic types of sound  Realistic sound – derived from actual sources (footsteps, voices, cars, etc.)  Synthetic sound – invented and have no counterpart in real life (light sabers in Star Wars, for example)

Types of Sound (more specific)  1) Dialogue – characters speaking - Voice over narration – monologue that accompanies images that may or may not be delivered by someone on screen - Character Speech - Consistent with characters - Hamlet (1996) vs. Dazed and Confused (1993)

Types of Sound (more specific)  2) Sound Effects - Falls into one of two categories: - Effects design – creative manipulation of sound sources (layering sounds in instead of a direct, live recording - Foley technique – direct recording of live sound effects that are performed in synchronization with the picture after filming is complete

Types of Sound (more specific)  3) Movie Music - Has always been a part of film, dating back to silent film era, however not original music was used - used to follow action on screen and to illustrate a character’s emotions

Codes of Sound Design  1) The Sound Hierarchy - Dialogue – most important - Music – 2 nd - Sound Effects – third Robert Altman’s Nashville (1975) plays with this hierarchy

Codes of Sound Design  2) Sound Perspective - Sound that embodies the properties of the physical spaces seen on screen - use of sound to convey information about physical space - often, but not always, correlates with visual perspective (long shot = sound farther away from audience)

Codes of Sound Design  3) Synchronous and Nonsynchronous Sound - Synchronous – matched with a clear source on screen - Non – does not match with any source

Codes of Sound Design  4) Sound Bridge - dialogue or sound effects are laid across, or bridge, two or more shots or scenes - shift of synchronous and non-synchronous in a way that establishes unities of action and time across the edit Alternative Sound Bridge - Switch to non-synchronous occurs before the cut, rather than after it - The Graduate (1967)

Codes of Sound Design  5) Off-screen Sound Space - the area just beyond the frame of the line whose existence is defined through sound - non-synchronous - Blade Runner (1982)

Codes of Sound Design  6) Sound Montage - editing of sounds into highly intricate and complex patterns that create meaning and emotion - Apocalypse Now (1979)

Movie Music  FUNCTIONS OF MOVIE MUSIC: 1) Setting the scene (using authentic instruments particular to a certain locale) 2) Adding emotional meaning 3) Background filler 4) Creating continuity (use of a leitmotif, a musical label that is assigned to a character, a place, an idea, or an emotion) 5) Emphasizing climaxes

Contemporary Movie Music  The debate rages over the use of contemporary pop music vs. traditional symphonic soundtrack  Forrest Gump (1994) and Natural Born Killers (1994) vs. The Dark Knight (2008) and Star Trek (2009).  Robin Hood: Prince of Theives (1991) – “Everything I Do…”