In film, sound is the hearing components that accompany visual elements. Sound enhances a movie by adding depth, emotion, and atmosphere to complement visuals, conveying mood, and the emphasis on actions. In a film, you would hear the music, dialogue, sound effects, ambient noise, and/or background noise and soundtracks. Sound supports the genre, setting, and characters in the storytelling of film by enhancing the audience's engagement and emotional response, reinforcing the intended feeling of a scene. Sound supports the atmosphere of a film by setting the right tone and theme for each scene. Audience engagement is created with sound by using sounds that appeal to their sense of hearing, like surrounding the audience with sound to make them feel submerged in the production.
Word | Meaning and example |
Sound in film | Sound in film is where you combine every audio element in one scene. Things like dialogue, and music. For example, the sound of a door creaking. |
Sound engineer | A sound engineer produces the audio for the film. They produce sound effects, for the background songs. One example of a sound engineer is Randy Thom, he worked on films like The Incredibles and Ratatouille. |
Soundtrack | Recorded music that accompanies the scene. An example of a soundtrack is the Black Panther soundtrack. |
Score | A score is music originally made for a specific film. For example, the Frozen score. |
Incidental music | Classified as background music. It adds a sense of atmosphere to the scene. An example is when a dramatic scene uses strings to emphasize the dramatic feeling of the scene. |
Theme music | Theme music is when music is created specifically for a piece of media (film, show, video games). For example, the theme song for Wanda Vision. |
Sound effects | An artificial or enhanced sound is used to emphasize action in a film. For example, a car’s horn honking at another driver. |
Dialogue | A conversation between two or more people. For example, “Did you do the homework?” the teacher asked. “Yes, I did,” said Sarah. |
Ambient Sound | The background noise that is present in a particular scene or location. For example, ocean waves crash on the shore. |
Voiceover | The addition of a narrator speaking on top of the visuals on screen. For example, Tom Kenny is the voiceover for SpongeBob |
A Cabin/The Woods (Horror) | |
Music | · Eerie · Howling · Forest sounds · Slow, off-key flute music · Slow-Tempo · Choir or enchanting synthetic keyboard noises
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Sound Effects | · Crows making noise · Owl hooting · Wind shaking trees · Floorboard creaking · Breathing · Screaming · A flame of fire sparking · Doors or windows opening/closing · Leaves blowing · Tree branches cracking |
Dialogue | · “Did you guys see that?” · “Ghost!” · “Run for your life” · “We got to get out of here” |
Basketball Game (Teen Drama) | |
Music | · Fast Paced · Hype · Remixes · Rhythmic beats · Loud · Bass-boosted |
Sound Effects | · Crowd screaming and cheering · Basketball bouncing · Buzzer of scoreboard · Whistle of referee · Coaches yelling plays · Sneakers Screeching on the floor · Crowd stomping on the bleachers · Basketball announcer · Cheerleaders cheering · Girls arguing over boys in stands |
Dialogue | · Free-throw · Three · Rebound · “Pass, Pass, Pass” · “Right here right here right here” |
Urban City Scene (Thriller) | |
Music | · Popular Hits · Bass-boosted · Radio station mixes · Latin Pop music · Quiet Storm · Rhythmic Beats |
Sound Effects | · Engines revving · Lawn Mowing · Barking · Popular hits playing nearby in a vehicle/house · Honking Horns · Birds chirping · Elevator door · Shoes on the sidewalk · Police sirens · Construction |
Dialogue | · “Watch where you’re going, buddy” · “I’m going to be late for work” · “Move out the way” · “Be home by sundown” |
Car Chase (Action) | |
Music | · Fast pace · Intense · Electronic music · Dramatic · Fragmented; a music piece divided into smaller segments of various musical ideas · Adrenaline boosting |
Sound Effects | · Car engine · Wheels screeching · Police sirens · Radio · Honking horns · Car crash · A person in a car yelling · A person on the other side of the phone · The passenger talking · The stuff in the car moving around |
Dialogue | · “Hold on tight” · “They’re getting away” · “Floor it” · “We got to get them off our tail” |
Alien invasion (Sci-fi) | |
Music | · Synthesizers · Classical sounds · Choir of Sopranos singing · Suspenseful · Fuzzy white noises (static, for instance) · Range of contrasting frequencies |
Sound Effects | · Farm animals · Spaceship engine · Ray guns blasting · Ray beam taking up things · Spaceship door opening · Spaceship equipment beeping · Crash landing · Electricity buzzes · Foreign Alien languages · Steam or smoke blowing from the spaceship |
Dialogue | · “Look out!” · “Stay quiet” · “Don’t let it see you” · “Aim for the head” |
Reflection
In this exercise, I learned the deeper reasoning behind the usage of sounds in films. Each team member did research on the influence of sound in different types of genres of movies. One person researched the different sounds in the film while the other took down notes. I and the other teammate researched the different types of sounds that are used in different films to get a better understanding of how sound influences a film. With this understanding of sound and how it is used in different films, we were able to apply what we learned to this activity. My team did great on this exercise, but there can always be room for improvement.
Work Cited
Sound effect | Foley, Ambience, SFX. (1998, July 20). Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/sound-effect
W., & W. (2023, February 20). Film Sounds The Noise of Video Production. WhisperRoom, Inc.TM. https://whisperroom.com/tips/film-sounds-the-noise-of-video-production/#:~:text=The%20three%20essential%20categories%20of,are%20crucial%20to%20the%20viewer
