The Soundscape
Sound In Film
There is a saying in the film industry. "You can get everything perfect with your visuals, but you mess up sound, and the public will never forgive you." Most really don't understand how important sound is to a film or video. You could strip away all the visuals, remove all dialogue, and remove all scoring (background music) and still tell the story.
In everyday life we lean on sight so much that we don't really notice how much we use our hearing. We don't realize how important sound is to us. Ever heard something and not see what it is but no what direction it came from? Your sense of hearing does more to give you bearings and sense of direction than any of the 5 senses combined. This is why Hollywood will spend millions on sound and music for their films. It enhances the visuals in ways that only sound can. With the right sound or the right music, a simple stubbing of the toe can be made to feel like a death blow to the character and gain sympathy from the audience. Which leads us into what Sound Design is.
Designing The Soundscape
Designing the sound in a film or video is a thing of art and science. To illustrate my point, do a little experiment on your own. Put on a movie that you're not familiar with. Close your eyes so you don't see any visuals. See if you can tell what is happening on screen just by listening to it.
A great sound design will communicate with the viewer things they don't even realize are happening and being communicated. The reason for this is because the goal of Sound Design is to make the visuals feel as natural as possible. So, if the Sound Designer(s) has done the job well, you won't even notice their work because your brain just expects to hear that cup being set on the table. Next time you watch a TV show or a movie, listen when the character is walking. You'll hear footsteps initially, but after a few steps you won't actually hear them anymore. Your brain will assume it's there and make you think you heard them. Knowing when to do this and when not to do this is what a Sound Designer does. Essentially, if there is motion on the screen, the sound designer has a sound for it.
To get the sounds though, someone had to be paying attention and record that sound to make its presence felt to the viewer. This leads us into the Recordist.
The Recordist
When people think of sound in a movie, 9 out of 10 times they will immediately picture someone holding a pole with a microphone on the end of it with some kind of audio recorder strapped around their body. This person is the recordist. They read the script, envision all the movements that will take place during a scene and set out to capture every sound they possible can to match it. The primary job for a recordist on set though is capturing the dialogue.
Much of the sound, and dialogue is actually recorded after the film is produced. Most dialogue in Hollywood is what is known as Voice Overs. That's when the actors watch themselves on screen and say the lines in time with their performances. This is to capture the dialogue in a controlled environment, thus gaining "Clean Audio". Meaning no background noise from cars passing by, dogs barking, people talking, etc. Many of the sound effects are done in a similar way as well. Especially Foley.
The Foley Artist
The Foley Artists are solely responsible for every sound a character's body makes during a film. That rustling of a coat, sitting in chair, walking across the room, tapping a glass with a finger, or setting the keys on a hook or table. These are all done by the Foley Artists. Watching the film, and using some creativity, they can make a sound that doesn't even exist, or create the sound your mind thinks should be there.
They will record the sound of a watermelon being smashed with a mallet, then record the breaking of 3-4 celery sticks and send those sounds off to the engineers and designers for that skull cracking sound that goes with the Visual Effects and helps sell the person on screen actually being hurt when they aren't. I told you the Soundscape was a magical place.
They usually have a warehouse loaded with stuff for creating these sounds. In fact, they use a myriad of microphones and recorders to do it while watching the film with no sound. Once all the sounds are done, and the engineers have layered sounds to create a sound that can't safely be recorded or doesn't exist, it's shipped off to the sound designer. Their timeline is a sight to behold. Dozens upon dozens of tracks and audio clips everywhere. It seems like total chaos, but in reality, it's a well-planned orchestra of sound that will delight the audience and raise the value of the film in their minds eye.
Critical Investment
The Recordist
$300
Full Day On Set
Professional Grade
Field Recorder
Sennheiser
Microphones
Boom Pole
High Quality
Headset
XLR Cables, Battery,
Accessories
The Foley Artist
$350
Full Day Recording
Professional Grade
Studio Recording
Various Microphones
High Quality
Headset
Specialty Items
The Engineer
$350
Full Day In Studio
Editing, Mixing,
Mastering
Voice Overs
Effects
Application
Quality Assurance
The Sound Designer
$400
Full Day In
Studio
Layering
Voice Overs
Syncing
Effects
Application
Mixing And
Mastering
The Soundscape Package
Collaborative Discussion Required
Needs Assessment
Setup and Tear
Down
Staff On Set
Preproduction Planning
Postproduction
Delivery
* For insurances purposes we do not rent equipment. Audio services include equipment and the operator.