Chapter 6: Principles of Sound Design

ADR

Automated dialogue replacement (ADR) is a postproduction practice in which actors re-record lines of dialogue or add new ones nor present at the point of filming. Computer software enables proper synching of these lines with the performer's lip movements as recorded on film.

Foley technique

The creation of sound effects by live performance in a sound recording studio. Foley artists perform sound effects in sync with a scene's action.

temp track

a temporary musical track usually derived from an existing film that a director uses early in production to show the composer the type of musical composition he or she wants.

room tone

a type of ambient sound characterizing the acoustical properties of a room. Even an empty room will emit room tone.

off-screen sound

a type of sound in which the sound producing source remains off-screen. Off-screen sound extends the viewer's perception of a represented screen location into an indefinite area of off-screen direction.

synthetic sound

artificially designed sound that does not match any existing source. The sounds of the light sabers in the Star Wars films are examples of synthetic sound.

voice-over narration

dialogue spoken by an off-screen narrator. This narrator may be a character reflecting in voice-over on story events from some later point in the narrative or, as sometimes occurs in documentary films, the narrator may exist independently of characters in the story.

speech

dialogue spoken by performers playing characters in a narrative.

dialogue

one of the three basic types of film sound, it includes speech delivered by characters in a scene and voice-over narration accompanying a scene or film.

effects

one of the three basic types of film sound. Effects are all of the nonspoken, nonmusical sounds in a film (eg., footsteps, breaking glass, etc.)

music

one of three basic types of film sound. Film music may include the score than accompanies the dramatic action of scenes as well as music originating on screen from within a scene.

diegetic sound

sound that can be heard by characters in a scene and by film viewer. See also nondiegetic sound.

non-diegetic sound

sound that cannot be heard by characters in a film but can be heard by the film's viewer. See also diegetic sound.

realistic sound

sound that seems to fit the properties of a real source. In practice this is an elastic concept because many sounds that seem to be realistic are, in fact, artificial and derive from sources other than the one that is designated on screen.

sound bridge

sound used to connect, or bridge, two or more shots. Sound bridges establish continuity of place, action, or time.

sound field

the acoustical space created by all the speakers in a multichannel, surround-sound system.

soundstage

the acoustical space created by the front speakers in a multichannel, surround-sound system.

ambient sound

the background sound characteristic of an environment or location. For a film such as The Last of he Mohicans, set in a forest, ambient sounds include the rustle of branches and the cries of distant birds.

sound design (designer)

the expressive use of sound throughout a film in relation to its images and the contents of its narrative. Working in conjunction with the director, the sound designer supervises the work of other sound personnel.

postdub

the practice of recording sound effects and dialogue after principal filming has been completed. ADR is the contemporary term for postdubbing. In the case of postdubbing dialogue, the technical challenge is close to closely match the rerecorded dialogue with the performer's lip movements in the shot.

production track

the soundtrack as recorded at the point of filming. The final soundtrack mix included on release prints to theaters includes portions of the production track alone with a great deal of sound created in postproduction.

sound perspective

the use of sound to augment visual perspective. Sound perspective often correlates with camera position. In a long shot reflected sound may prevail, whereas in a closeup direct sound may prevail.

spotting

a collaborative process between the director and the composer during which they spot or identify passages in the film that require musical scoring.

leitmotif

a recurring musical passage used to characterize a scene, character, or situation in a film narrative.

cue sheet

a breakdown of a scene's action, listening and timing all sections requiring musical cues.