This is in response to an article from The New York Times entitled, 'The Sound and Feel of Oscar-Worthiness' by Melena Ryzik.
As a layperson or a simple admirer of film, it can be easy to overlook the scope of technicality that goes into costume design, makeup, visual effects, sound effects, visual and sound editing, or even cinematography. In some movies the accomplishments in these fields are more easily seen: the costumes in a period drama such as Memoirs of a Geisha (2005), or visual effects in a grand scale action piece like Transformers (2007), or the iconic make up from Frankenstein (1931).But in straight ahead, non-genre pieces that take place in present day, the effects and editing may go overlooked simply because it looks right. But it takes as much work, if not more, to truly capture a character in the present. And so through the perfection of their craft, these artists make themselves invisible and underappreciated to the general viewing public and even to the Academy members who know little to nothing of these crafts.
Sound design and sound editing are probably the most overlooked of these crafts. (I should say now that I have no technical knowledgeof sound editing or sound design. I only have what I like and believe to be important, which I suppose doesn't amount to much in this crazy world.) The cadence of footsteps matching a character's gait as they walk, the slamming of a car door, the sound that enters before the cut and thus leads us to it, these are all common effects in movies ones that we expect to be right on, because when they're not we know instinctively. Sound cues are a part of life that we don't think about much. They are a rule, like gravity, that just is and never will be any other way. The recreating of these audible cues that form the backdrop of living can be is of paramount importance to the filmmaker. Gareth Edwards, the director of the film Monsters (2010), said in an interview, (and I'm paraphrasing here) that a convincing sound and a poor image is a more convincing combination than a poor sound and even the best image. Sounds have the ability to impart information just as effectively as images. An so, in movies, sounds can tell us what's happening as opposed to showing us. Michael Haneke, director of the Palme D'or winner, The White Ribbon (2009) and Funny Games (1997) tends to have violence in his movies be obscured, as with Benny's Video (1992), or have it occur offscreen, as is Funny Games. He allows the sound impart to the viewer, or listener in this case, what's happening. And much like with reading, enables the viewer to create the image in their mind's eye: a much more effective messenger. This use of sound as a primary messenger forces the viewer to be an active participant in the story, as opposed just a consumer of it.
Sound can be used to fill narrative gaps, but it can also be used to enhance mood or setting. In the aforementioned New York Times article, the sound designer for Inception (2010), Richard King, says in regards to the multiple dream levels that dirctor Christopher Nolan "wanted there to be some kind of connection, and sound seemed to be the way to do it." The song, "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" that is used to signal the 'kick' for the dreamers is slowed down as we delve into deeper levels of dreaming, into a siren-like bellowing of horns, altering the mood of the scenes and creating distinctions between the various dream levels. These are more overt uses for sound design but are interwoven with the content of the story and thereby make them organic to the context of the story, which is the same as clicking footsteps and slamming doors.
I can't say much more as I am not even a novice on the logistics of sound design. I just want to point out the importance of it and encourage everyone to keep these integral but overlooked aspects of filmmaking in mind.
Well I tried to add this video to the blog but either I'm too stupid or just am not able to. Regardless, check out this video for good examples of sound editing.
Sound Design for 3 Movies
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