1. SOUND KEY TERMS
Images and Definitions for Revision
L/O: to know and understand sound
key terms

2. Key Terms
• Diegesis
• Sound Scape
• Atmos effect
• Score (music)
• Diegetic
• Non-diegetic
• Volume control
• Crescendo
• Diminuendo
• Tempo
• Timbre
• Pitch
• Dialogue
– Speech, language and accents
• Mode of address
• Direct Address
• Voiceover
• Ambient Sound
• Sound bridging (part of continuity editing)
• Sound perspective
• Sound effects
– Naturalistic vs unnatralistic
– Foley
• Synchronous
• Asynchronous
• Incidental music
• Sound motifs
• Parallel Sound
• Contrapuntal sound

3. The power of sound
• Is part of the production process but mostly
with the POST-PRODUCTION process
• Like good editing, it is invisible
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6ZSZbNfSpk You don’t realise how things are made!

4. Purpose of sound
• What purpose does sound have in TV/Film?
• Set mood/atmosphere
– Romantic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBseVbq-5I8
– Thrilling http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCfWHqrYUqo
– Sad
– Heroic/triumphful http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCjoOOrgVMM
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDC47NsoRE0 slumdog (what mood?)
• Emphasize reality
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3q17gkuOcc matrix

5. Diegesis/Diegetic world
• The world of film/TV programmes we see on
screen is known as the DIEGESIS or the
diegetic world.
• We can only see a section of this world.
• The things that make up the diegesis are
diegetic elements
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juVb1SDHWrk (diegesis)

6. Sound Scape
Scape = the wider scene
•The whole set of sound used
•Like ‘Mise-en-scene for sound’
Sound scape = ALL the sounds in a text

7. Atmos effect
• Sound effect to generate a certain atmosphere
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9NlVu2
UEu0

8. Score (music)
Music composed, arranged and played specifically for the
production
Example:
1) Adele = Skyfall (James Bond)
2) Celine Dion = My heart will go on (Titanic)
Basically, any music that is written for TV/film…..
Purpose = sets mood and atmosphere to a scene

9. Diegetic sound
• Sounds that characters CAN hear.
• Sound that comes from a person or object in
the diegesis and seen within the field of
vision. (can be seen in screen)
Example:
1) Matrix = hearing helicopter sounds

10. Diegetic sound examples
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=276mzf_Go8U top gun
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRI15yhjeNQ night club
• Don’t make assumption that music is non-diegetic!

11. Non-diegetic sound
• Sounds that characters CANNOT hear
• Sounds that are not in the diegesis
• Example: score (music) and voiceovers.
– Score/music will often set mood/atmosphere

12. Non-diegetic sounds
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6-M8lXAE8k twelve trailer
• What parts are non-diegetic?
– Third personal narrator
– Score music to set mood
– Text on screen
– Text on black screen
– Sound with countdown (numbers)
– Transition sound effect (swooshing)

13. Volume Control
• The control of how quiet or how loud sound is
• This is to set or emphasize mood/atmosphere
• *Usually parallels with PACE (editing)
• When would sounds be quiet? Why? Effect on audience?
• When would they be loud? Why? Effect on audience?
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMx-Az5Da4M how does the volume level change? Why?

14. Crescendo/diminuendo
• Gradual increase of volume control
• Diminuendo – decrease….

15. tempo
• Speed of music

16. timbre
• Sound of instruments

17. pitch
• High and low notes

18. Dialogue (speech & language)
• Dialogue is speech made from characters when talking
(what they say)
Consider:
• Language (what they say and meanings of words)
• Tone (aggressive, serious, sympathetic)
• Accent (where from?)
• Volume (whisper or shouting)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sNf-MwxTSE
compare the dialogue between the men

19. Mode of address
• This is the manner in which the narrative comes across to the audience.
• Style of language used by character or narrator
– If characters are represented of an educated class perhaps they will use
more sophisticated and complex vocabulary and are well spoken than of
lower class
• The mode of address might cover accent used by characters of a particular
regional identity (example liverpool)
• Mode of address would also cover the way in which a narrator speaks to an
audience ……think of the tone
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_-7QtC2oms dove
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F08U2yCxbYg armani code

20. Direct address
• When a narrator and character speaks directly to audience (looking at camera)
• Brings reality and diegesis together
• This technique breaks the verisimilitude (the world of the show) and
acknowledges the presence of the audience.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG0y8efmMAQ miranda

21. Voiceovers
• Where voice from outside the diegesis gives the audience
information. Often this voice tells us a story (narrator) or may be
from a character in the story to communicate their thoughts or
feelings.
• Example: this was common in film noir in 40/50’s and could give
audience information about their thoughts (that perhaps only the
audience should know)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV1436VsnZY (diegetic)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bkwke3UCbCQ sex and the city (narrating = non-diegetic)

22. Ambient sound
• Background sound in diegesis
• Does not have to be in field of vision
• IN field of vision = crowd in restaurant
• OUT of field of vision = traffic outside
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bkwke3UCbCQ identify the ambient sounds

23. Sound bridge
• Where sound (diegetic or non-diegestic) continues across one or more
cuts/transitions.
• PART OF CONTINUITY EDITING
• Called bridge because it connects and continues the sound like a bridge
• It is applicable in ANY shot reverse shot when a character is talking
• Example: scene in freedom writers when guy was reading diary, and there was
shot reverse shots between him and the classmates this is part of continuity
editing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9f8liieRepk
• Example: in love actually christmas scene = playing silent night continues
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KtVKu9CfDA

24. Sound perspective
• Sound recording that helps us place a sound
as either near or distant or coming from a
particular place within the diegesis
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w_73ROcJuo

25. Sound effects
• Sounds added to the visuals in the editing
NATURALISTIC SOUND EFFECTS UNATURALISTIC SOUND
EFFECTS
-sound of traffic outside the window added
in editing
-punching http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42oR8ZCmQpI&safe=active
-boing sound (for comical purpose)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qSB-JPQWbU
-whooshing sound in a flashback

26. Sound effect examples
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbliAXRxRhQ fighting
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy_Aje0hnac record scratch
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjAQOjv3eg0 matrix neo swallow
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlZ5vkPS34M tron club fight
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-i48Ab0rg2U cheap tricks (flying)
• http://vimeo.com/48955170 haha guys vs girls

27. Foley
• Foley is trick used to create naturalistic sound effects.
• It is to use different objects to imitate the sound of other objects
(and then add them in post-production (editing) to emphasize the
sounds for an audience
• It is used because often sounds get compromised in filming process
(production process)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Jznye0iqYE types of foley
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHa98mDfOR4
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OONaPcZ4EAs 70’s
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nu2Va2CIxfE clothes ripping

28. Synchronous sound
• Where the sound is synchronized with the object
giving off the sound
• Ex. You can see an alarm clock and you can hear it
going off
• Ex. Radio playing silent night in love actually
scene
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar0xLps7WSY which are the synchronous sounds?
• .

29. Asynchronous sound
• Where the sound is deliberately out of sync (out of time) with what
we see.
• You can hear but not see.
• Sound that comes from an action but not precisely synchronized
with the action
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T77JVoRYlM
– Example: character has died on scene, shot remains on them but you
can hear phone ring and hear answering machine (but you cant see
answering machine)
– Example: an advert for drunk driving where the advert visuals are of a
girl on stretcher bleeding while the voiceover is her voice with her
friends telling her to have another drink and deciding to drink

30. Asynchronous sound examples
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j0avp3PVVE which is synchronous? Which is
asynchronous?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcjY-VN8_l4 taken abduction scene
Why is the asynchronous sound asynchronous? and vice verse?

31. Incidental music/sound motif
• Non-diegetic music that accompanies events or changes of the scenes
• Incidental music is often "background" music, and adds atmosphere to the action.
It may take the form of something as simple as a low, ominous tone suggesting an
impending startling event or to enhance the depiction of a story-advancing
sequence.
• It could be a type of music that plays when things go wrong (example simpsons)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vK8NO-p1AA
• Example: Most films have 4 related motifs in theme tune: each indicating a
narrative turning point: eg. Start or resolution of a chase sequence for example
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiRPWfz3HZw what does this music indicate?
• THIS IS LINKED TO PARALLEL SOUND
• Music/sound that matches images on screen
• Fast paced rock music to car chase
• Soft piano to romance scene

32. Sound motifs
• Sound associated with a character or place.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyBlKqktP_E (what is this sound usually used for?)
• Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzZAnq3kZQg
What would you expect to hear in a scene in a:
School?
Arcade?

33. Contrapuntal sound/music
• Music/sound that doesn’t match or parallel
images
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9rIBE0K
M-w

35. Homework
• GREEN = revise once
• AMBER = revise twice
• RED = revise three times