MTA 254 Sound

Theo Lipfert theo.lipfert@gmail.com

Office Hours: Tues 1-2, Fri 10-12

TA: Mike Suarez

 Goals
• To learn to record, edit, and create broadcast quality sound for
narrative and documentary films and videos.

• To critically examine how each of the elements of a film’s

soundtrack function in the mix, and to consider alternative
approaches to designing, creating, and manipulating these sound
elements.

• To develop a basic yet scalable post-production workflow for

film and video using Final Cut Pro and Pro Tools.
 Lynda.com

• Rather than use two textbooks ($90) we

will be using online training from
www.lynda.com ($35).
• You will receive an email this week. Please
make sure you get emails from your school
account!
 Introduction:
Three relationships to film sound

• The “Sound Guy/Gal”

• The D.I.Y. Indie Filmmaker
• “Here, you do it.”
 Sound Jobs
Fiction / Features
• Location/Field Mixer (cart based)

• Boom Op

• Cable wrangler
Documentary
• Sound recordist (over the shoulder)

• Boom Op
 Sound Jobs cont.
Post-Production
• Supervising Sound Editor (Sound Designer)

• Dialogue, Foley, FX, ADR, Music recorders and editors

Games
• Music creation and editing

• Sound effects, dialog, etc.

• Programming
 Sound: The Bastard Child of Film...

• Changed production (“Quiet on the set!”)

• Changed lighting

• Killed acting careers

 Why Sound Matters

• Half of “picture” is sound.

• Grungy image = style
• Grungy sound = mistake
• Audiences expect perfect sound
 Sound technology

• Moved to digital faster than picture

• Moved to tapeless faster than picture
• Death of Nagra & DAT
• No loss of quality like film to video
 Why ProTools?
• Industry standard
• Affordable (kind of)
• Easily transfer to high-end, 5.1, 7.1 etc.
• ProTools training & certification
• For Free audio editing software: Audacity
http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
 Parts of a Soundtrack
• Wrong idea: Sound is constructed mainly from
audio recorded on set.
 Parts of a Soundtrack

• Dialogue
• Effects (Including ambience, foley, hard effects)
• Music
What not to do...
See you in lab!