Sound

    In my assigned learning of sound, I learned a variety of different techniques that are used with sound in order to expand a plot and its elements. For example, I learned how diegetic sound could be used to develop realism in a scene and also how non-diegetic sound to help develop a purpose for that shot.

    In my class' 1st sound project, we were in groups of 2 and had to create a 1 to 2 minute scene that was school appropriate in a detailed outline and then produce it with sound databases found online and the usage of at least 4 foley sounds created by us. Then, in my class' 2nd sound project, we had to add sound to our OWF film projects by creating and finding diegetic sound, music, and other effects to bring more emphasis to the story we were creating. 

    The approach we used for creating the 1st sound project focused on adding as much realistic detail to our project as possible. During brainstorming, we decided to present a scene of firefighters alerted during an emergency service call. This would allow a transition from a normal and calm work environment to a chaotic sequence that would allow us the opportunity to incorporate a wide range of sounds. Our sounds were organized in our outline by dividing the scene into 3 sequences, which would be the call center, the equipment gathering, and the driving out of the fire station. This helped us to properly understand the simple chain of events that would allow our story to make sense. Furthermore, this chronological sequence of events provided us with the capability to illustrate the sound of firefighters sliding down the fire pole, moving heavy equipment, and then leaving the fire station on their truck. We had various ideas on how to replicate varying sounds, but we eventually decided to use chains to achieve the sound of heavy equipment and wet hands sliding on a towel rack to duplicate the sounds of firefighters sliding down the pole. Additionally, we used Clip Champ on Microsoft 365 to edit our project. This made collaborating and fixing issues easier and more efficient. Overall, I believe that our sound project had a strong sequence of events that gave us opportunities to use foley sounds that we created in addition to ones found online. However, I think it would have been fun to include some other sounds that are often associated with fire stations such as the sound of a Dalmatian barking or the firefighters eating a large meal together before the alarm goes off. This would have been a fun addition to round out the realistic setting of the scene.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UjCEIkaVUc0whGuLprLiFelH0qZ30YST/view?usp=sharing

   The approach I used for creating the 2nd sound project aimed at using a combination of realistic and storytelling sounds that would tell the viewer the tone of the scene. I executed this by using background sounds heard during our filming and strategic sound effects and music that evoked emotion. During brainstorming, I wrote down sound ideas I could experiment with to achieve realistic noises that would develop the story. For example, during the character's failure to shoot a basketball into the hoop, I needed a sound to convey the sense of disappointment. I tested out both a sad trumpet noise and dramatic sound cuts to see which would be more effective. My outline helped me to strategize the chain of events that would occur during the scene. This allowed me to create the sounds I knew were vital for the scene first and then support it with experimental sounds to round out the film. For instance, I needed necessary sounds such as ball dribbling, the basketball hitting off the rim and net, and background sounds of people on the court. All of these foley sounds were created while filming on the basketball court, allowing us to easily place our main and diegetic sounds into the video timeline. Other sounds that allowed for more creativity such as adding music overtop the background sounds at the end of the project. I used the ending music from the movie "The Breakfast Club," which added to the feeling of awe and triumph for when the character finally made the basketball shot. I used Clip Champ in Office 365 to edit the project because it is a quick and efficient software that is easy to use. I believe that I executed my goal of creating a scene that used both realistic and emotional storytelling sounds. I emphasized the frustration and sadness the character was experiencing when trying to make the shot and the climax of awe when he accidentally made the basketball shot. Also, I spent a lot of time and effort timing the sounds to be exactly on point with what was occurring on screen, which was challenging but necessary. However, I wish that I filmed more scenes showing the character annoyed and frustrated. This would have allowed me to create more variety of sounds adding to his increasing frustration. For example, the character could have slammed the ball off of the basketball court or thrown the basketball off of a fence or even fallen down to his knees crying out in frustration. These more extreme instances would have been really fun to create sounds for.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/17aAdLMskU_IJ15NG7huLeJJL6_suxH9L/view?usp=sharing