What is sound?

1. A sound is a vibration that propagates through a medium in the form of a mechanical

wave.
2. A sound is a form of energy made by vibrations, just like electricity, heat or light.
3. Sound is one of the important senses of the human body.

What is Sound?
A sound is a vibration that propagates through a medium in the form of a mechanical
wave. The medium in which it propagates can either be a solid, a liquid or a gas.
Sound travels fastest in solids, relatively slower in liquids and slowest in gases.

In physics, the sound is defined as

A vibration that propagates as an audible wave of pressure, through a medium such as a gas,
liquid or solid.

In psychology, the sound is defined as

The reception of sound pressure waves and their perception by the brain.

What is a Soundwave?
A sound wave is the pattern of disturbance caused by the energy travelling away from the
source of the sound. Sound waves are longitudinal waves. This means that the propagation of
vibration of particles is parallel to the energy wave propagation direction.

Nature Of Sound
The sound produced by a guitar is different from the sound produced by a drum. This is
because the sound produced by different sources have different characteristics. Sound can be
characterized by its frequency, wavelength, and amplitude.

Frequency of sound
The number of rarefactions and compressions that occur per unit time is known as the
frequency of a sound wave.

Wavelength of sound
The distance between the successive compression and rarefaction is known as the wavelength
of a sound wave.

Amplitude of sound
The amplitude of the sound is the magnitude of the maximum disturbance in a sound wave.
The amplitude is also a measure of energy. Higher the amplitude higher the energy in a sound
wave. Humans can hear a limited range of frequencies of sound. Physicists have identified
the audio frequency spectrum of the human ear to be between 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz. Under
ideal laboratory conditions, the human ear can detect frequencies that are as low as 12 Hz and
as high as 20,000 Hz.
What Kind of Sound is in a Film?
There are three types of sound in the making of a film: human voices, music and sound
effects. Sounds can be recorded and edited or synthesized artificially. If you have ever
watched a silent movie, then you know the benefits of having sound. Even back when movie
theaters played silent movies, some theaters would have a theater organ to provide sound
effects.
HUMAN VOICES
Human voices include actor dialogue. This dialogue must be synced with the action in the
film and the voices should be accurate without delay. The voices should also sound like the
actors in the film. Sometimes dialogue is recorded later and synced with the film. Whether
the boom operator records the dialogue, or the sound designer adds it in later, it is important
to fully understand what actors are saying during a film.
MUSIC IN FILM
The music in the film helps drive the story forward, allowing the audience to anticipate what
is going to happen, evoke an emotional response or simply help the audience transition
between scenes. The soundtrack has become mainstream for most blockbuster films, but the
film also has a score. Sometimes performed by a large orchestra, the soundtrack can
supplement the film score.
SOUND EFFECTS
Sound effects are crucial to the film as they add realism to the characters and scenes within
the film. Whether it is a Foley sound of a horse trotting or two people whizzing by one
another, sound effects give the movie realism that visuals can’t do alone.
DIEGETIC VS NON-DIEGETIC SOUND IN FILM
Sound can be categorized as diegetic and non-diegetic. Diegetic sound occurs within the
story’s world. Whether it is dialogue from actors, the sound of glass breaking or taxis
honking, diegetic sound can match the exact action seen on screen or someone that is outside
the scene but still acting within the story’s world. For example, someone on the outside of the
door knocking is still diegetic but also asynchronous. Non-diegetic sound is not part of the
story’s world. This can include the soundtrack, a narrator or accent sounds used for effect
within the film. Both diegetic and non-diegetic sounds are important to add context to any
film.
Why is Sound So Important in Film?
Sound is the perfect complement to the visuals in a film. Much of the sound on set would be
muffled if only person responsible for dialogue was the boom operator. In addition to the
boom operator, the sound designer can add music, dialogue and sound effects layered on the
audio track to create an immersive experience, help tell the film’s story, and evoke an
emotional response. Without sound in a film, the audience would be left with just the visuals
and no context for what they are seeing.
AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE
The best films create an immersive experience, where the audience forgets they are still
sitting in a movie theater. The audience gets lost in the sounds and visuals of the film and is
transported to another world. Part of this immersive experience can include sounds that tell
the audience what is happening off-screen, adding a fullness to each scene. Immersion can
also be created with ambient sound. The ambient sounds create a foundation for all other
sounds like dialogue and sound effects.
STORYTELLING
Sound is a good tool for storytelling and allowing the audience to feel the full impact of the
film. Sound can move the story along or stop it in its tracks. One trick to move the audience
from scene to scene is the sound bridge.
Using a sound bridge is a technique to keep the story moving forward between scenes. This
way the audience can hear the next scene before they see it. This can be used instead of the
traditional fade in and out, a traditional way to stop and start a scene.
Sound can also enhance where the film is set or its location. The use of thematic music and
sound can set the scene for the audience, allowing them to get a feel for the location. Whether
the actors are on a busy street, secluded island or in front of a waterfall, the soundscape of the
film can advance the narrative of the story.
EVOKES AN EMOTIONAL RESPONSE
The film’s music is useful to create emotion and allow the film to set a tone. Whether it is a
romantic interlude or action sequence, the soundtrack can help the audience feel what is
happening on screen and build the appropriate tension for upcoming action.
Final Thoughts
Sound can be a powerful element in film. It can immerse an audience in a unique world, help
tell the story and move the storyline along. Sound can also help create emotion and set the
tone of the film. A film’s sound is just as important as the visuals on screen. If you are
looking for a creative outlet, enjoy films and want to learn more about sound, then it may be
time to learn about the film and sound design program at IPR. We will help you start your
journey in sound design and you can enjoy the creative freedom that film and sound design
offers.

What is sound design?

Sound design is how filmmakers flesh out the aural world of a film to enhance the mood,
atmosphere, and/or tone. Sound design components include sound effects or SFX sound
design, mixing, Foley sound design, dialogue, and music. Sound design is the final and most
important element needed to create an immersive experience for the audience.

It's important to note that the sound designer does NOT record audio on set. On-set audio is
the responsibility of the Production Mixer.
Real’ sounds
Your film can include sounds that seem like a natural part of the scene: waves breaking on a
beach, wind blowing, and dialogue (people on screen talking). These are sometimes
called diegetic sounds. Though they seem real, they don’t have to be recorded live: sound
effects are often better than the real thing.
Imagine you’re filming a scene in the woods with a girl walking. Your on-camera
microphone will probably just pick up a confusing mush of sound. You may not be able to
hear the footsteps. Ditch the soundtrack, and use separate sound effects for birdsong, wind
and the footsteps, and your scene will be much more convincing. By doing this, you’re using
the sounds as if they were closeups, to focus attention on important things.

If you don’t want to use artificial sound effects, get in close so you can pick up individual
sounds. In your editing program you can detach the audio from the video and move the
sounds to where you want them. Or, even better, you can record the sounds using a separate
audio recorder.

You can use diegetic sound that matches things you see on screen, like the footsteps with the
walking feet. This is called synchronous sound. Now imagine that the camera stays on the
girl, but we hear a branch snapping. Suddenly there is tension and mystery. This kind of
sound, which comes from something that’s not on the screen, is called asynchronous sound.

Soundtracks

A soundtrack is an audio recording created or used in film production or post-production.

Initially, the dialogue, sound effects, and music in a film have their own separate tracks
(dialogue track, sound effects track, and music track), and these are mixed together to make
what is called the composite track, which is heard in the film.

Late in the 1940s “sound track” became one word, “soundtrack. A soundtrack or an original
soundtrack from a movie became a way of advertising the movie.

Ambient Noises (Background Noise)

Ambient noises are background noises that are in a room, a house, outside, or any given
location. Every location has distinct and subtle sounds created by its environment. Ambient
noises are types of sound effects.

As an example to experience what ambient noises are, stand in a room alone and make
absolutely no noise at all. The room noises that you hear are ambient noises. A room in an
older house would have more ambient noises than a newer home. Also, depending on the
neighborhood, you would have outside ambient noises depending on a location. The
following are examples of ambient noises: wildlife, wind, rain, running water, thunder,
rustling leaves, distant traffic, aircraft engines, machines operating, muffled talking, floors
creaking, and air conditioning.
Background noise gives the movie more realism. A movie character is running through a
wooded area at night. This scene would lack any suspense if there were no ambient noises.

The sound of the coins in the pouch at the beginning of Cyrano de Bergerac is a very
important sound because it makes a sound as though there are a lot of coins in the pouch. For
this effect, the ambient noise would have to be added in post-production, because that sound
would not be able to be heard when filming the scene.

Differences between VFX & SFX

VFX (visual effects) and SFX (special effects); to an amateur, they might appear to be one and
the same thing. In spite of everything, special effects are visual and visual effects are special. But
even though what people think about these two terms, they are far from interchangeable. No
doubt, both of them speak to a diverse aspect of contemporary filmmaking and television
production.
VFX
Visual Effects (often abbreviated to VFX) made the way for filmmakers to achieve the same
effects as on-set SFX during post-production. They could incorporate elements, like explosions
into their scenes.
Visual Effects, which refer to the digital enhancement of shots, are ever-present in the movies of
today. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to find a Hollywood movie that did not use them in the
past two decades. Movie buffs think that VFX has its fair share of drawbacks. A film, which is
overloaded with computer-generated action, will not feel superficial but disconnected as well.
Authentic SFX, on the other hand, when done well will shine through the big screen.
VFX can be categorized into Visual Special Effects and Digital Effects.
Some Examples: 3D renderings, matte paintings, computer-generated images, animations,
matching moving, etc.
SFX
Ever wondered the crazy life of a stuntman? If so, it’s SFX (Special Effects) you are thinking of.
This is exactly where all those effects that you see in movies are produced in real life and
captured on camera. Before the introduction to film editing software, special effects like these
were primarily used for producing the outcome on cinema and TV screens.
SFX seem to be very different, which can be pretty surprising. They are clever uses of props as
well as materials in films and other types of video content. Special effects are on-set visual effect
techniques. Also, SFX comprise of skills like animatronics.
Some Examples: Prosthetic makeup effects, dolly zoom, miniature effects, and practical effects
(to name a few) are examples of special effects (SFX).