This week we'll...
- Look at the SQA document on Sound Design (this is the governments guidlines as to how these classes should be run)
- Consider what you have to produce during these classes as well as when and how you will be assessed.
- Begin exploring what sound design means and what the task entails
What you will do
These classes have two outcomes which you have to pass:
In Outcome 1 (OC1 for short) you will write two reports. Each report will describe how music and sound are used to support of piece of either film, television, radio, computer games, theatre or animation media. For example you might write one report on the sound design of a james bond film and another report on the sound design used in the Call of Duty computer games.
In Outcome 2 you will put this knowledge to use by creating soundtracks to support different types of media. Before doing this you will create a plan in the form of a sound design map.
Hand-in dates are not finalized at this point but they will roughly be around week 9 for OC1 and week 16 for OC2. I'll up date you on these dates soon.
The Shining
Watch these two versions of the Shining (a 1980’s psychological horror film - possibly one of the scariest films of all time!).
Here is the original http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Cb3ik6zP2I - listen to how the music is used to build tension. Classic horrow sound design!
Here is an alternative cut: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Os6raCCmAFk - think carefully about how the sound and music has been used to alter the mood.
You should realize just how important the sound design is to the viewers understanding and feelings when they watch a film.
Task: Look on youtube for some alternate versions of films. Good examples include some of the Ferest Gump altered versions (gangster, horror).
The Shawshank Redemption
To get an idea of the complexity of Sound Design watch the first 7 minutes of the Shawshank Redemption. Tasks:
- Write down all the music and sound you encounter in the film, and note the time it comes in.
- Note down how it makes you feel or what it makes you think.
- Consider why the Sound Designer chose these bits of music and sound.
- Write down if each piece of music and sound is “in the scene” or “outside the scene”.
Next week we'll begin investigating some of the terminology used in sound design.
...and finally consider the t-rex's roar in Jurassic park (example here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwlDW8qFGFA). Has anyone ever heard the sound a t-rex would make? Then a sound designer must have invented it!
