Audio Codes

L.O: To familiarise with audio codes

Sound Terminology

DIEGETIC

A sound that is part of the film world and usually heard by those is it

NON-DIEGETIC

A sound which is added later during editing for effect and therefore cannot be heard by those in the film world

MUSIC

A soundtrack added during editing and the sound and tone can affect the meaning of the scene

ASYNCHRONOUS SOUND

Sound which does not appear to arise directly from the scene, such as soundtrack music or voiceover

SYNCHRONOUS SOUND

Sound which is directly matched to a moving image. The term is used in two ways in different sources:

-  Sound recorded at the same time as the images – for example, dialogue spoken by the actors on set. This does not include any sound added in post production

-  Sound which appears to the audience to come from the scene, whether or not it was actually recorded with the images. Thus includes post-synched dialogue, sound effects and foley. Also known as parallel sound

SOUND EFFECTS

Usually added to film in post-production, they may be used to build up ambience or reinforce action.

SOUND BRIDGE

Film and TV editing technique in which visual cuts are deliberately not matched with audio cuts. For example, the editor may cut to a completely new scene, but allow sound from the preceding scene to run on for a short time. Alternatively, we may hear the sound of the next scene before we see it.

VOICE OVER

A type of non-diegetic, asynchronous sound in which the audience hear a voice that does not have a source either within the frame or within hearing distance, and which is not heard by the people on screen. Voice overs allow us to see things from a particular character’s point of view

CONTRAPUNTAL SOUND

Sounds that do not easily match the images they are accompanying, or even go against them. This can have a disorientating effect upon the audience and make them question what they are seeing.

TASK 1:

Watch the clip from the film 'The Strangers' and using the time code as a reference, note down the different types of sound you can hear.