Sound (September 13) – DTC 208 Introduction to Digital Cinema

To Do This Week

DUE: Continuity Assignment
Shoot and edit a short video (no more than 60 seconds ) that follows the principles of continuity to create the illusion of continuous space and time. You can even use principles of continuity to create an imaginary space. Try to vary the angles and distances of your shots: establishing shot, medium-shot, close-up, extreme-close-up. Sound may be an element here, but please do not include talking, music or verbal explanations. We are working on visual explanations, depicting continuity of action. Below are some ideas.

Making or Doing Something:
Document someone making something or doing some focused activity. The process may take 3-30 minutes, but the final video should be no more than 60 seconds. Document a single continuous action (making art, playing sports, cooking a meal, walking a dog) and edit it into a sequence that is between 30-60 seconds.
Spatial Story
Narrate a fictional event using rules of spatial/temporal continuity: a chase, a search through a house, a commute, going for a walk

Post your Continuity Assignment with a Vimeo/Youtube embed (place the url on its own line).

Blog: Discuss the framing and editing in the clip below (it’s an opening from an episode of the show Shameless). What is the scene communicating? What is happening visually? How does continuity editing help narrate the family dynamics? What are the visual anchors within the chaos of movements? How can a family gather at the table, discuss plans and eat breakfast in under 2 minutes!? No need to answer all these questions, just address what you see.

In Class

view continuity videos…
sound recording
sound effects
sound montage
time manipulation with editing image and sound

Notes

View Continuity Projects

Sound

Synchronous/Asynchronous
Diegetic (in story world) / Non-diegetic (outside story world)
Sound Bridge (sound carried over to next scene)

Sound Recording/ Sound Design > storytelling

Recording Sound

keep silent! (important for interviews)
mic within 3 feet of subject (boom, directional, lav, hidden, phone)
record “room” tone or ambient noise (30-60 seconds) to cover edits
keep the mic away from bumpy surfaces and direct wind (wind cover)
if necessary, redo shots just for the sound with the mic close to subject
add sounds in post-production (foley)
mix sound, voice and music to emphasize story, subjectivity, mood, etc

Sound Effects

Foley Artists

Sound Design

“Munich” – Steven Spielberg and Ben Burtt (Sound Design)

Asynchronous sound:

Window by Ryszard Waśko, 1971

Premiere Sound Editing Tricks

Synchronize external audio with camera audio in Premiere

Get rid of noise, like fans and hums.

Building blocks of cinematic storytelling:

Framing: distance from subject, angle, diagonal lines, foreground, middle-ground, background, depth, light/shadow, focus/unfocus, focal length, depth of field, rule of thirds, moving frame, duration

Continuity Editing: extended cinematic space – screen movement + narrative momentum + viewer imagination – the motivated shot, screen direction, 180 degree rule, 30 degree rule, match on action, graphic match, eyeline match, POV

Montage: juxtaposition of discontinuous shots: rapid cuts, rhythm, emotional sequences, thoughts, ideas, summary of events, passage of time, voice-over sequence, associational thinking, commentary, evidence, split screen

Mise-en-scène: all that that is captured by the camera: set design, costume design, make-up, actor movements, gestures and expressions

Sound/Music: sound and music complement continuity editing by creating a continuous acoustic space with narrative potential. think of how sound and image work in a scene with a car chase through a city. sound helps the illusion of 3D space, provides rhythm, highlights narrative and emotional elements. sound and music also can also provide contrast by being asynchronous or counter to expected image/sound relationship

Sound recording and editing

Shot-to-shot relations: