Making Better Movies with Moviestorm Vol 3: Sound and Light

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REALISTIC AMBIENCE Go to a busy location, close your eyes, and make note of all the sounds you hear. Ideally, get a good recording device and record the sounds. An urban street, crowded shopping mall, or busy office are all good examples. Film the scene without ambient noise, and just focus on the dialog. Now add in as much ambient noise as necessary to make it realistic – you can simply add the recording you made earlier. Add in dialog for the extras if appropriate. You may need to adjust your camerawork. Review Can you make out what the characters are saying? What does the background sound add to the mood or style? Does your “real” sound actually sound realistic when it’s in the film? What did you have to adjust between the two versions? Followup exercises Try it with different scenes and genres to see where this technique works well and where it doesn’t. Build up an ambient sound completely from scratch, and compare it to the sound you recorded on location. Experiment with adjusting the ambient volume between shots but without making it feel artificial. 14
EMPHATIC SOUND Technique Over-emphasize one single sound for dramatic purposes. You can create a very effective and atmospheric sequence by using a sound design artificially focused on just one object or activity. For example, at a busy checkpoint full of people, you might mute all the sounds except the repetitive noise of a guard stamping papers, getting gradually louder as the hero gets to the front of the line. In a hospital scene, you might focus on just the beeping of a single machine. Ticking clocks emphasize the passage of time. Your shots need to be designed with that sound in mind. In order for this to work, you need to show the audience the source of the sound, either before or after the sound, so that they can understand what they are seeing. Include the footsteps sound in the opening shot, even though we cannot see who is making them. This adds tension to the scene already. Cutting to a shot of feet walking cues the viewer to recognize that the footsteps are significant. We cut back to the initial subject, and continue the footsteps; by showing the door, we suggest that the walker is about to enter. Conventionally, we could then cut to a shot of someone entering. Alternatively, we could continue the scene as the man works in silence, listening to the sounds of pacing from outside. This suggests that he is imprisoned or guarded, and adds an extra layer of meaning to the story. Use a scene in a single location – either interior or exterior. 30 seconds is plenty, and you don’t need dialog. The scene should include some activity that makes a distinctive sound, even if that is not in the script. 15
Page 2 and 3: CONTENTS FOREWORD .................
Page 4 and 5: This excellent series of books will
Page 6 and 7: EXERCISES How to use this book The
Page 8 and 9: Once you start thinking about the s
Page 10 and 11: FOLEY OR NOT? Film the scene, and r
Page 12 and 13: AMBIENT NOISE Film and edit the sce
Page 16 and 17: EMPHATIC SOUND Shoot the scene base
Page 18 and 19: USING MUSIC AS LEITMOTIF Shoot the
Page 20 and 21: USING SOUND TO BRIDGE A SCENE Shoot
Page 22 and 23: CUTTING & DIRECTING TO MUSIC Film a
Page 24 and 25: MUSIC VIDEO Film the piece in five
Page 26 and 27: Lighting a virtual movie scene is a
Page 28 and 29: REALISTIC VS UNREALISTIC LIGHTING F
Page 30 and 31: FAKING LIGHTING CONTINUITY Shoot th
Page 32 and 33: MOSTLY DARK SHOTS Shoot the scene a
Page 34 and 35: DAY VS NIGHT Film the scene in dayt
Page 36 and 37: MOVING LIGHTS Shoot the scene with
Page 38 and 39: HANDHELD LIGHTS Start in a dark set
Page 40 and 41: SILHOUETTES Shoot the scene convent
Page 42 and 43: FILMING SHADOWS Shoot the scene con
Page 44: Matt Kelland is one of the founders

Making Better Movies with Moviestorm Vol 3: Sound and Light

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