Dialogue

 Music

 Sound Effects

Mixing:

Score:

Movies were never "silent"

 Musical cue sheets: 

•   Critical Debates over Film Sound:

a)        Disadvantages:

                         Aesthetic aspects:

1.        Affected the mobility of the camera-negatively impacted film

style

2.        Sound-talking-impeded the visual elements

                         Economic aspects:

1.        High costs-compete with vertically integrated studios

b)     Advantages:

                           1.        A dreamy fusion of sonic and visual expressionism

                                    2.        Musical instruments occasionally stand in for the characters'

voices while there is no recorded dialogue

Conceptions of Sound:

Sound and Image

Film sound usually corresponds with the images onscreen in a natural manner. These are five ways filmmakers can choose to contrast sound and image to emphasize or manipulate the meaning of a scene:

•   Onscreen and Offscreen Space

1.                  sound can be used to point to unseen details

2.                  offscreen sound helps create the illusion of the world of the story

3.                  example: Breathless- recurring sound of police sirens

•   Objective Images and Subjective Sound

1.                  sound can reveal a character’s subjectivity even when he/she is performing actions objectively

2.                  usually in the form of voiceover

•   Diegetic Details and Non-diegetic Sound

1.                  non-diegetic sound directly addresses the audience

2.                  diegetic sound defines setting and reveals character traits

3.                  noticing whether sounds are diegetic or non-diegetic can help you determine when/how the filmmaker is directly addressing you

•   Image Time and Sound Time

1.                  image and sound can simultaneously present two points in time

1.                                    example: Memories of Underdevelopment- Sergio listening to the recording of his wife after she has left

2.                  scene transitions

   sound bridge:

sound from one scene bleeds over into next scene

•    Image Mood and Sound Mood

   pairing contrasting sounds and images produces a jarring effect - creates tension and irony

2.                  example: Moolaade- radio playing upbeat western music while Colle’s husband berates her

Dialogue

•    Text:

the words a character says, as they are written in the script

•    Line reading:

•    Subtext:

the unstated meaning behind the words-what is really being said

•    4 sonic attributes of the human voice

      Volume

When a character’s voice is louder, it signifies greater emotional intensity, such as anger, fear, or passion

▪                                       When a character’s voice is softer, it signifies a timid or more carefully considered response, and can be linked to tenderness, diffidence, sophistication, fear, or guile

◦                     Pitch: 

The position on a musical scale,  bass (low/deep) to soprano (high)

▪                                       A deep voice is associated with power, authority, or evil

▪                                       A high voice is associated with weakness

▪                                       Can be significant to establish relationship between characters

Accent:

Diction:

▪                                       Vocal tics

▪                                       Rhythm of voice:

Acoustic Qualities:

Reverb:

•    Voiceover

Guides the viewer through the action to clarify what may not be easily understood from just the image

◦                     It is considered diegetic if a character within the realm of the story recounts events from their point of view

▪                                       shares immediate thoughts and feelings so audience feels engaged with the character

▪                                       can be a non-central character so the audience sees things through their point of view

◦                     It is considered non-diegetic if a detached voice not belonging to the world of the story narrates the action. This is often heard in documentaries.

Sound Effects

•    Foley artists:

produce sound effects by creatively manipulating various materials

•    The most common manufactured sound effect in films is walking, which is why Foley artists are often called “Foley walkers” (Cook, p. 966)

•    Direct sound:

•    ADR

•    3 main functions of sound effects

◦                     Define location

Sound effects can signal an array of environment, allude to particular places at specific points in time, and evoke emptiness of a setting

◦                     Lend mood to an environment

Sound effects can cultivate emotional cues of a scene, create suspenseful atmospheres for horror films, and produce other moods for films of different genres 

◦                     Portray the environment’s impact on characters

Action films use explosions and gunfire to illustrate stress and tension that the characters feel. Sometimes they can also be important motifs. They establish how surroundings have a direct impact on the characters

•    4 characteristics of sound effects

◦                     Acoustic qualities

The audience should be able to tell and describe what they hear. Sometimes acoustic qualities change for the context of the films. Such changes can vividly enhance cinematic experience

◦                     Volume

Dialogue tends to overwhelm sound effects so those rare moments when sound effects compete with dialogue are important. It suggests that the environment starts to engulf the characters within it. Sometimes the volume can go down for expressive purposes

◦                     Regularity

Most sounds in real life do not follow a pattern. If sound effects have rhythmic consistency, the viewers’ attention will be drawn toward the film

◦                     Verisimilitude

High degree of verisimilitude means that the audiences assume that sounds that accompany images are true to life. Sometimes the filmmakers make departures from verisimilitude in order to produce more expressive and metaphorical effects than physical reality

Film Music

•    Used to engage audience but also threatens to make film artificial

•    Soundtrack must complement images

•    Should not interfere with the story

•    Purposes of film music:

◦                     Establish historical context

◦                     Depict geographical space

◦                     Define characters

◦                     Shape emotional tenor of a scene

◦                     Provide distanced or ironic commentary on a scene’s visual information

•    Establish historical context

◦                     Helps define setting and time period

◦                     “Audience should associate diegetic music with the story’s time period, since, in the name of historical accuracy, most filmmakers will try to ensure that the music characters listen to would have been popular during the time when the story takes place” (p.256)

•    Shaping space

•    Defining character

◦                     Leitmotif - (leading motif); 

•    Shaping emotional tenor

◦                     Helps audiences know how to interpret the mood of a scene

◦                     Can help emphasize dramatic shifts in emotion from scene to scene

•    Distancing the audience

◦                     Exploits a contrast between sound and image

◦                     Severing connection between sound and image distances audience; audience sees images from more critical perspective

•    Patterns of development

◦                     Musical themes are often repeated, establishing motifs and parallels

◦                     As motifs evolve, they signal important changes in the story

◦                     Important strategy is to notice when theme appears and is it associated with character or setting, emotions, visual imagery

•    Lyrical content

◦                     Since late 1960s, soundtrack relied more on popular songs instead of scored material

◦                     Often filmmakers choose songs with lyrics relevant to screen images

◦                     Can be powerful indicators of mood of turning points in plot

•    Tempo and volume

◦                     Tempo – speed

◦                     Fast tempo melodies convey energy and rapid movement; chase scenes usually rely on non-diegetic uptempo music

◦                     Slow melodies are more relaxed or lack of energy

◦                     Volume usually characterizes aura of space surrounding characters; loud music swallows characters while soft music is more intimate

•    Instrumentation

◦                     What instruments are used to perform the music

◦                     Can create different moods

•    Cultural significance

◦                     “A specific song or type of music may conjure up shared cultural knowledge” (p.262)

◦                     Can rely on clichés and stereotypes