Production Log Week 6

 

Task Allocation Week 6

 

Unit 16 LO2-P2 Task 4 - Sound Elements Production Report on Experimenting and Producing sound

Audio considerations report

With recording audio there are a lot of things you need to make sure are correct and if they aren't then some things can go wrong. Some of the important things are, sound format type, storage/file size, compressions and size versus quality.

Sound Formatting

 

WMA: WMA is Microsoft's is its own file type/sound format. It is also quite similar to MP3 and AAC, but it doesn't really have any advantages over any of the other sounds formats and the support of the file type is not very good, and people would very rarely compress something to this format/ file type.

MP3: This is the most common lossy format. Many people put their music into the MP3 format on their phones because it takes up less space than a lossless file and MP3 is supported by a ton of websites, apps and devices. MP3 is one of the most commonly used file types especially for music because it is very easy to download or convert a file type into this format.

AAC: AAC is a lossy format which is considered to be very similar to the MP3 style sound format. Apple iTunes have specifically made this sound format very popular as it has all the same components and capabilities and compatibility with devices as MP3. AAC is mainly only used through iTunes though because mostly people will just use MP3 for things such as downloading music to then put it on a usb then into the car. A downside of AAC is that only iTunes use it so compatibility wise it wouldn't work that well.

Storage/File size

USB: A usb is a portable storage stick which can hold very large amounts of data depending on its storage size. This device allows for extremely easy access to files on the stick. So, it is a very easy transfer from one computer to another. The main use of it is for complete access to your work and it is almost compatible with all operating systems. USBs are also small in size and can be easily lost which is a big downside to them.

SSD: An SSD is a Solid-State hard drive. In this day and age, it is the most used hard drive. It used to just be a normal HDD Hard drive, but they have become so slow, computers have become a lot quicker, which then means the computers storage needs to improve and that's where the SSD comes into hand. It is now recommended to everyone that they get an SSD because it is 100 times quicker than a normal hard drive. On the other hand, these SSDs are very expensive and even the smallest storage size which is about 120GB and even that costs about £90.

Cloud: Cloud has only been introduced recently in the last two decades and it still quite a new way of storing data. In some ways cloud is one of the best places to store data because of how inexpensive it is and how you could have as much data stored on there with a limit but then you could pay for more storage all the time, so it is very efficient. But on the other hand, cloud storage could also be a very bad option for storage because, in some instances you could forget to save something, and it could all be gone. The servers could crash, and all your data could disappear. Those are just some negatives.

Compression

DRC: DRC is an electronic effect that lowers the volume of loud sounds or increases the volume of quiet sounds by narrowing or compressing the audio signal of that audio. Downward compression is when the louder sounds are made quieter. If the audio is too loud and above a particular decibel or above a specific level, then downward compression will be needed but it is below that decibel or below the level then that audio will be left alone. On the other hand, there is something called upward compression where it has the same concept but the opposite way. If the sound is too quiet and below the specific decibel or below the level, then the volume of the sound will be increased.

Size Versus Quality

For example, if i decided to download a song I personally would rather have a song with good quality rather than bad but the downside to the good quality of the song is that the file size of the song would be larger than the song with a worse quality. In all situations I would take the quality of the song 100%. But if for instance there was a situation where all I needed were just a massive number of songs and the quality did not matter then I would take a smaller file size for all of them so i could fit more songs in the storage for example the USB, or for example the SSD.

Unit 16-LO2-P2-Task 2/3 - Sound Elements Production Report on Experimenting and Producing sound

 

In this video that I have created are different sounds that I have made. I was asked to create sounds of different things and then record them with different conditions to see what equipment is the best.

The first recording device I used was the in-built mic in the camera. This mic was actually still pretty good even though the microphone isn't meant to be good on photography cameras. The positives of this audio recording device is that it is very versatile as it can coord sound and audio all at once with no complications. Another plus is that you could attach a external microphone as well which makes the camera a very versatile device and can even make the audio sound 100 times better. But on the other hand a negative about this device is that for example when we were filming the fire crackling foley sound you can here the sound is very distinct, but it also catches background noise which meant that we had to redo the fire crackling audio a couple times because a lot of background noise could be heard. This microphone recorded the best crowded street sound as it catches background noise very well.

The second audio recording device that I used was an audio recorder. This little device was able to record all of our sounds. The positives of this device is that it is small and very portable, you could even keep it in your pocket. It was also easy to place somewhere to then press record and then make the sound next to it. On the other hand the quality of the recording wasn't as great as it was a really old device and a lot of the audio was a bit muffled compared to the in-built camera mic because it is much newer and hasn't been used as much compared to the audio recorder that has probably had its life taken out of it.

The last audio recording device we used was a phone. Now this phone wasn't the newest or the oldest it has just been a bit beat down. Now some of the positives of this recording device is that its not just a recording device it's also a phone. This device is also small and is very portable just life the audio recorder. But a negative from this is that because that phone has been through a lot the microphone is very muffled and the sounds don't sound as good as they would on the in-built camera mic or the attachable mic for the camera.

Production Log Week 5

 

Task Allocation Week 5

 

Unit 16 LO2 (P2) Task One - Sound Elements Production Report on Experimenting and Producing sound

 

Unit 16: LO2 (P2)

Sound Elements Production Report on Experimenting and Producing sound.

What are Foley effects and Wild tracks.

Foley is a unique sound effect technique that involves creating and “performing” everyday sounds for movies and television shows. Foley artists create these sounds in a recording studio during post-production, in synchronisation with the video, to enhance the quality of the audio. Foley sound got its name from Jack Foley, the sound effects artists who developed and shaped the technique. Foley effects work both with and to replace the film sound recorded on set, which is known as the field recording. Most scenes use a combination of field recordings and foley effects. An example of Foley effects is in this clip of the ‘Ratatouille’. In this clip it shows Foley effects really well as it shows the video clip and how the effects are made, for example with a water bottle, something that taps on the table. These things can for some people be daily use, so things that are used daily for some people can create sound effects for different film like Ratatouille. On the other hand Wild tracks is something different to Foley effects but is still quite similar. Wild tracks are when something is recorded on set but without a camera, which is still recorded during the shooting period of time. But Foley effects are different because it is recorded separately and then added into the film during postproduction.

Theme music for title sequences

Theme music is used at the start of a film during the title sequence as something that could be memorable to the audience. Or in a series, it is always at the start of every episode, which like sets the audience in a good mood to enjoy the episode. One great example of Theme music for a title sequence is ‘Star Wars’, it has one of the most memorable music themes of all time, and anyone in the world could recognise it. This theme is literally the definition of how theme music is meant to be used; it hits all the right criteria.

Film Score

A film score is music that accompanies a film throughout the entirety of it. This music is played throughout the film during different times, in different situations in the film. One example of a film score is in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. In this clip from the start to 0:43, this in the music that is played throughout the film when the force is used by new and old characters to remember the force. This music is a combination of a smooth and a calm melody, for the regular audience of Star Wars if they were to hear this music going on, they would instantly feel intrigued and very into the story of the film as when this music plays that’s when something good happens, for example the protagonist has an outbreak and has new powers.

 

 

Character’s Signature tune

A character’s signature tune is a reoccurring musical phrase that is associated with a character to either bring out more of the character. One example of character signature tune is the “Imperial March, Darth Vader’s tune”. This music helps create Darth Vader as a more villainous character, as the music is quite violent with the drops it has in the music. One other thing that the imperial march does is, it also brings suspense to the character because in one of the films the imperial march plays every time Darth Vader walks off a ship and has his storm troopers around him. This is where the suspense comes from the music.

Incidental music

Incidental music is emotional music that helps that audience feel whatever emotions the film is giving or showing. One example of incidental music is in “The Titanic”, the I’m Flying scene. This scene makes the audience feel so romanticised. The audience feels very lonely if they don’t have a partner because the romance in the scene how the boy holds the girl there so she feels safe with his arms around her holding her so she thinks she’s flying. The Incidental music is done really well in this film, because the emotion that is shown throughout this scene is done really well and shown through the music and how soothing the melody is, it’s calm and slow, like a slow dance, which then shows the emotion of romance.

Voice-overs/scripted speech

A voice-over is most often used in a animation film, it is a piece of narration that is only audio recorder to then lay it over a video or film. And also a scripted speech could also be added into this to be put into with the voice-overs because there are quite a few combinations. One example of both is, the Zootopia film with Hopps last speech. This is an example of a scripted speech and a voice over. At 1:08-1:56 the voice actor of Judy Hopps is shown. She is shown to be reading off a script with her fellow voice actors next to her also looking at the script, so in all of this, this is a voice-over with a scripted speech.

Production Log Week 4

 

Task Allocation Week 4

 

Unit 16 LO1 (P1)- sound across media industries - explain how different sound elements are used

 

Unit 16: How is sound used across media industries?

 

Educate

Sound can be used in many ways in different media texts, one of them being to educate. Narration is an example of education as a sound. A documentary is a good media text to put narration into. A great example of narration as a media text of education is the BBC TV Documentary by David Attenborough called “Planet Earth”. Each 50-minute episode features a global overview of a different side of the earth, or a different habitat on earth. The purpose of this documentary is to educate the audience about the earth, the narration is what engages the audience because the educate part of the documentary is the main part of it. One quote from David that is a really good quote of education is "It's surely our responsibility to do everything within our power to create a planet that provides a home not just for us, but for all life on Earth."

 

Entertain

Sound can also be used to entertain an audience, even if it is through sound effects. One example of how sound entertains across media is through film sound effects. In Star Wars there are lightsaber duels, and every time the lightsabers collide there are sound effects that come from it. Now these sounds have a very large impact on the audience because of how iconic these sounds are. The entertainment of these sound effects the tension that it gives to the audience whenever they hear these sounds, the chills that the audience get. Its all from how iconic these sounds are and how much they entertain the audience. Because if these sound effects for these lightsaber duels didn’t exist then the duels would not be entertaining and the sound would not be entertaining.

 

Inform

 

Sound can be to inform an audience as well. This can be done through reports of news broadcasters. For example, “Sky News”. Sky News use reports to inform the audience about different things happening around the world, in their reports, they may have people in the area who do the reports, to help the audience understand maybe the circumstances of the situation if the report is done from the place where the circumstance or situation is happening. So, with sound, reports are a great way to inform the audience about something, a bad or good situation, it is worth informing through sound.

 

Sell Products

 

Sell products is a sound or a phrase that will persuade people to buy something or go to a shop. My example for this would be Tesco’s Slogan, “Every Little Helps”. This type of sound would be mostly used in adverts at the end like Tesco did with their slogan. Slogans like this one, catchy upbeat slogans can increase sales quite a bit. With this Tesco slogan, they use it at the end of every advert just to remind the people watching that there is help at Tesco’s and that Tesco’s can help people, because they have all the products ever needed for someone’s household.

 

 

Wild Tracks

 

Wild Tracks are audio recordings that are then synchronised with the film or video but recorded separately. An example of how wild tracks work is through the video game “Formula One 23”. In this video game, the noise from the car comes from the real-life Formula One cars, where they recorded the sound and synchronise it with the gameplay of the video game, for when the car is meant to make that noise the car makes the noise. The use of the sound, it really helps the audience be immersed into the experience of driving the car and being able to feel like they are in the race with the sound of the cars.

 

Atmospheric Sounds

 

This sound is created to create certain moods in a film. One example could be with in the Star Wars film “A New Hope”. In this film when the scene is just in Cantina Band. In the scene they are just chilling, and the band is playing in the background. This just sets the mood of a chill atmosphere. The chill atmosphere of the cantina sets a good atmosphere for the film and this sound creates a chill vibe for the audience to enjoy the film. The atmosphere in the scene even with the cups clattering and chattering in the background like a pub, sets the scene of an atmosphere.

 

Sound Effects

 

Sound effects can both be diegetic and non-diegetic and are artificially created or enhanced sounds that are used to emphasise action in films, tv-shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, and other media. As an example of how sound effects are used to give an effect on the audience is the ‘blaster fire’ sound effects in the Star Wars films. This sound effect was created through a wrench being hit onto a large metal wire to create the ‘pew’ sound which is the sound of blaster fire in the Star Wars film. This blaster fire is very iconic throughout the world and many people know it from Star Wars and they always wonder how it was made and here it is.

 

Dialogue

 

Dialogue is used in creative ways by media producers to help anchor the time and place. Accent, tone and dialect also add characterisation. This type of sound is usually a conversation between two characters. As an example of dialogue in a film is the talk between “Luke and Darth Vader in return of the jedi” from 1:04 there is a dialogue between the two characters. This dialogue helped explain the plot of the story more and helped build the characters more, and also help the characters know more about themselves with this dialogue as here Luke accepts that Vader is his father in front of him.

 

 

 

 

Music (incidental/theme)

 

This is vocal or instrumental sounds combined in a way to make a form of beauty in music, for example a harmony, or somewhat of an expression of emotion. Music can do a lot of things in a film, from engage the audience and build tension to soothing the audience with a beautiful melody. As an example of music in sound is, “The Star Wars Force Theme”, this theme pops up whenever something with the force happens or someone new is able to perform the arts of the jedi, for example in the new Ahsoka series, when Sabine was able to use the force this theme played, when Rey was able to use the force in the force awakens last fight scene against Kylo Ren this music played. This music is known all around the world with Star Wars fans. This music engages the audience as it tells them that something interesting is about to happen and that they need to concentrate on the film or series, otherwise they will miss out on something big.

 

Use of silence

 

The use of silence in a film is mainly used to build tension and make the audience think during the time of silence as it lets the audience’s thoughts start to run around their mind. For example, of how silence is used in films is through the vault scene in the 1996 “Mission Impossible”. This film is incredible on how silence was used to create and build tension. While Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise’s character) is being so quite so no one can hear him in the vault. This created so much tension for the audience, that is scared them when that guy entered the vault and Ethan had to be completely silent while hanging from the ceiling being held by his friend by a rope.

Production Log Week 3

 

Task Allocation Week 3