AS media studies

1. Sound in film

2. What is dubbing and when does this happen?
• Dubbing, mixing, or re-recording is a process used in filmmaking
and video production in which additional or supplementary
recordings are "mixed" with original production sound to create the
finished soundtrack. This process is completed in post production.

3. Why might the diegetic sounds of say a party be faded
down? Although false, why does it seem realistic?
• This is so the dialogue between the main characters can be heard
and will not be overpowering the dialogue between the characters
as what the characters say is key to the storyline and more crucial
than the diegetic noises of the scene.
• This may seem something false when we see and hear it but it
seems realistic as the sounds make the scene have an atmosphere
and a general mood, which makes the audience feel as if they are
part of that atmosphere. Also, the sounds themselves are natural
and realistic, which again makes the audience feel involved in the
scene and the audience can relate with the mood and situation
which makes the film realistic and understandable through the
main characters dialogue.

4. What effect does a ‘mixed’ soundtrack have on the
final product?
• Mixing methods include but are not limited to: setting levels,
setting equalization, using stereo panning, and adding effects. If it is
dealing with actual music, minor adjustments in the relationship
among the various instruments within the song can have dramatic
impacts on the listeners and will be more effective when played
within the scene and will enhance the atmosphere of that scene.

5. How is the sound physically controlled during the
dubbing process?
• The process usually takes place on a dub stage. After sound editors
edit and prepare all necessary tracks (dialogue, automated dialogue
replacement (ADR), effects, Foley, and music), the dubbing mixer or
mixers proceed to balance all of the elements and record the
finished soundtrack. Dubbing is sometimes confused with ADR, also
known as "additional dialogue replacement", "additional dialogue
recording", and "looping", in which the original actors re-record and
synchronize audio segments.

6. What is the overall purpose of controlling the sound?
• The purpose of sound control is actually has three parts to it – Stimulating reality, creating illusion and mood.
• Stimulating reality example: In a western barroom fight, the hero is hit over the head with a bottle.
The bottle is fake. It becomes real with the addition of an actual glass bottle crash from the sound editors library. In gun
battles the weapon actually is actually loaded with blanks and what is called quarter loads which means one-fourth of
normal amount of gunpowder contained in a real bullet. The actual sound is just slightly louder than a cap pistol until the
sound editor has completed work.
• Creating illusion example: A man and a woman walk into a café. Several other people are sitting at various table in
deep conversation. The main couple sits at a table and a series of close ups for their conversation are presented.
By adding the sound of the off-scene diners the audience is convinced that they are still in the café. Obviously, the
producer does not want to pay a group of extras to sit off camera. The sound editor places them there with his crowd
walla for the sound.
• Mood example: A cowboy sits around a small campfire. The mood of a campfire is warm.
Add an off-scene owl and it becomes lonesome.
Add a wolf howling in the distance and it perhaps harken danger.
Cut a gunshot and you are telling the audience that another human is nearby. Is he friend or foe?

7. Sound effects and terminology
• Fade up/Fade down/Fade in/Fade out - a film-making and broadcasting technique whereby the volume of sound is gradually
increased from zero, or vice versa. Its used to change the mood of a scene or to enhance another piece of dialogue or sound
but is used to make the scene more realistic.
• Pitch - the quality of a sound governed by the rate of vibrations producing it; the degree of highness or lowness of a tone. This
is used to impact the audience whether it is to make them feel disorientated if its very high or to make it tense and eerie if
very low.
• Timbre - the character or quality of a musical sound or voice as distinct from its pitch and intensity. The timbre may also have a
psychological effect on the audience – if it seems sharp or flat, it can make the audience on edge.
• Acoustic - not having electrical amplification or the properties or qualities of a room or building that determine how sound is
transmitted in it. This can make the sound louder and purer depending on the depth of the room and the material the room or
instrument is made of.
• Perspective -A sound’s position in space as perceived by the viewer given by volume, timbre, and pitch. This can make the
audience seem as if they are involved with the scene and the sound surrounds them to make them welcomed into the world of
the film.
• Speech - Scenes where dialogue is replaced using dubbing also feature Foley sounds. Automatic dialogue replacement (ADR) is
the process in which voice sounds are recorded in post production. This is done by a machine that runs the voice sounds with
the film forward and backward to get the sound to run with the film. The need for Foley rose dramatically when studios began
to distribute films internationally, dubbed in foreign languages.

8. In ‘Sound editing – aiding continuity’ how can a jump
cut be made invisible?
• A jump cut could be made invisible by the overlay of non diegetic or
diegetic sounds between the transitions. This makes the jump cuts
more subtle and smoother. The sound can be overlaid later in post
production if their have been imperfections made such as a
character stuttering or a wrong sound has been used.

9. In ‘Sound Effects – establishing mood’ how can sound
affect the emotional mood of the scene?
• Sound effects make the mood more realistic whether it be happy
sad, suspicious or care free – the sound effects all add to the mood
to make it as naturalistic as possible so it has an impact n the
audience. Also, sound effects, especially in horror, add a lot of
tension whether it is in full volume or just a pin drop, it adds
suspense and tension to the overall atmosphere and makes the
audience on edge wanting to know what is going to happen next.

10. In ‘Sound music – establishing mood’ explain with examples
what kind of music makes what kind of mood?
• Sound really does affect the mood and atmosphere, they
metaphorically, go hand in hand. The simplest examples of this are
found in thriller and horror films, which employ dissonant,
screeching sounds we unconsciously associate with animals in
distress.
• A 2010 study by the University of California found that human
sensitivity to non-linear alarm sounds, such as ones made by
groundhogs to warn about predators, is being employed by film
composers to unsettle and unnerve.
• In films like Hitchcock's 1960 classic Psycho, straining strings and
overblowing brass are mimicking the noise of panic in nature.

11. Why is it important that musical style matches what is
seen on screen? What can happen when it doesn’t?
• Musical styles are critical when trying to match the scenes they
correspond with as if the musical style is not right, the whole
atmosphere and mood could be jeopardised as the music needs to
be a portrayal of the story in musical phrases and needs to pretty
much narrate the scene as it goes along.
• Background music may aid viewer understanding by linking scenes.
For example, a particular musical theme associated with an
individual character or situation may be repeated at various points
in a film in order to remind the audience of salient motifs or ideas.