A very basic introduction to how sound is used in film

1. SOUND IN FILM

2. • Intro video (quantum of solace)
• Sound types
• Sound effects (how are they made? Realism, not authenticity)
• Music (how does it create pace & atmosphere?)
• Dialogue (information,
• Sound purposes
• Engage viewer, pull them into the movies world and the characters shoes
• Help set the pace of a scene (its tempo)
• Set the atmosphere & mood

3. TODAY
You are going to learn about the importance of
sound in film.
Next year
• You will study an entire unit on how sound is used in film. You’ll learn
about this important subject matter in great depth.
• Today we will cover the basics of sound in film; its importance, the
different types, how we use it, how it’s recorded.

4. HOW IMPORTANT IS SOUND TO FILM?
Watch & listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nG4PzeehspA

5. HOW DID JAMES BOYLE USE SOUND IN THE
OPENING OF QUANTUM OF SOLACE?
• How did they use sound effects?
• Did they create a sense of realism?
• What pace did it create?
• How did they use music? How could we describe the
tempo of the music?

6. HOW IMPORTANT IS GOOD SOUND-DESIGN
TO A FILM?
• Sound is the missing link for film-makers.
• Overlooked, underloved, it is the difference between
a good video and true cinema.

7. GREAT AUDIO TELLS THE STORY.
• Listen to this without watching the visuals. What is
the setting? What world is it set in. What is
happening in the scene? Do we even need the
visuals?
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFJF2CRASRM

8. HOW DO FILM-MAKERS USE SOUND?
SOUND HELPS US CREATE:
• Tension & suspense
• Pace
• Mood & atmosphere

9. WHAT DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOUND DO WE
USE IN FILM-MAKING?
• Music (score & soundtrack)
• Sound effects
• Dialogue
• Ambient / atmosphere (background noise of the
movie world)

10. CREATING REALISM
How does Spielberg use sound to create a sense of
realism in this scene? What effects has he used to
draw the viewer into the movies world?
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSKerypwUDM

11. SETTING THE ATMOSPHERE
• Think about how Ridley Scott uses different types of
sound effects, ambient noise and musical stings.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRXyWtv-huc

12. CREATING PACE
How does Paul Greengrass use different sound to
create pace in this scene? What different types of
sound has he used? What is the tempo of the music?
• https://youtu.be/nUtINRG3pxk

13. WHAT EFFECT DOES MUSIC HAVE ON THE
LISTENER?
Music elicits an emotional response from the listener.
How does this music make you feel?
Bright wish – Cheerful energetic
Dreamy Flashback – mysterious, thoughtful
She died up there – creepy, ominous
Nimbus – Happy, hopeful, optimistic

14. MUSIC IN FILM HAS EXACTLY THE SAME
EFFECT ON THE VIEWER.
Music helps the film-maker to set the scenes
atmosphere (and the viewers emotional response).

15. LET’S WATCH NERDWRITERS ESSAY ABOUT
SPIELBERGS USE OF SOUND…
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kavxsXhzD48 Nerdwriter 1 – YouTube.

16. TODAY
You will be analysing 3 scenes from movies, thinking about how the sound designers
have used different types of sound to create:
• Mood/Atmosphere
• Pace
• Realism

17. TASK 1
Log onto Moodle and go to the short film lesson ‘Sound – an introduction’
Analyse the 3 videos, making notes on how the film-makers have used sound.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZL9fnVtz_lc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmbvdeG49MI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lj2ISTrfnE