Sound Elements Report

FOLEY EFFECTS: Foley effects are the reproduction of certain sound effects added to films. It is a technique of recording yourself using everyday objects to create certain sounds like rain, wind, thuds, etc. Here is an example of the production of foley sound:

In this video we can see the recording of foley taking place, with plungers used on sand to recreate the galloping sound of horses.

WILD TRACKS: Wild tracks are audio recordings that are intended to be synchronised into a film but recorded separately. Wild tracks are used on the set of the production, recording the audio of certain actions or movements as they can get an authentic, accurate sound. Here is an example:

In this video there are various sounds of weapons being heard. With one of the sounds being a bow and arrow, we can see that a separate audio recording of an arrow being shot to a target would've taken place and synchronised to the scene.

THEME MUSIC: Theme music is a soundtrack used to recognise a specific character entering a scene. It can also be used as a trigger for a specific type of scene shown. Here is an example:

In this video you will be able to recognise the iconic music for the character Captain Jack Sparrow. This music is used to elevate the scenes that are focused on the character's actions.

VOICE-OVERS: Voice overs is an audio recording of a character or narrator narrating over a scene in a film. They can be used for a character to break the fourth wall and speak directly to the audience, or as a narrator to story-tell. Here is an example:

In this example, the character Maleficent has a voice-over to introduce the storyline of the film to the audience. This helps give an idea to the viewers as to what might happen later.

SCRIPTED SPEECH: Scripted speech is the scripted dialogue that the characters of a film perform for a scene. However the script instructs them to say the line, they will project the emotions as so. Here is an example:

This particular scene in the Hereditary showcases the emotions, loss of control, as the mother projects all of her grief to her son. This clearly shows scripted speech as the characters are illustrating specific emotions and lines to capture the audience's attention.

Sound Elements Definition

Sound Format

Sound format is a file format which stores audio that is digital. It can be stored in computer systems, phones, anything thats is a digital device. There are various different file formats each made for different kinds of use, like for online distribution or for music/sound production. 

STORAGE

When storing audio files, you can save them on either one of hard drives, or digital drives. When producing sound, it is vital that you back the file up so you have another copy, incase of any damage or loss of the original file.

COMPRESSION

Compression is quite renowned in sound production/engineering. It is a dynamic process that reduces the dynamic range in an audio. 

SIZE VS QUALITY

LOSSY = Lossy is used to describe a file that is compressed. This means the sound quality i not up to high standard.

LOSSLESS = Lossless is used to describe a compressed file with the data still present instead of taken away, so there is no reduced sound quality but there is more space leftover in your device.

BIT RATES = Bit rates are the number of bits per second that can be transmitted from one digital network to another.

FILE SIZE = File size shows how big or small the file is on a device. This helps you keep track on how much storage has been taken from that file.

Production Journey

When I first began the production for my radio show I wanted to find out different ways to capture my recordings. This was by practicing creating different sounds such as walking through the park and triggering different noises to capture the shifting on the gravel to the brushing of leaves. As I had my phone on me at all times, I considered using the voice memo app and the phone's microphone to capture everything due to the convenience, and managed to create good, clear quality of sound.

When recording the various sounds, from dialogue to ambience, I wanted to make sure those were of my originality as I didn't want to get copyrighted. However for the rest of the sound effects I used non-copyrighted sound, imported from youtube to fill in the details of the radio show that bring in the atmosphere and settings more. I would've recorded the sounds myself however I could not find an available time, to which I resorted to the solution of YouTube, and when editing the radio show, it still felt realistic, so there were no problems.

When editing for my radio show on Final Cut Pro I wanted to edit the recordings to make sure the dialogue fit the different settings, like in the beginning of the show, since the characters were enclosed in a room there would be little to no reverb. Whereas, in the park I added slight reverb to make their voices have more of a bigger space and overall make the audience feel like they are there walking and listening with the characters' conversation.

When editing the sound effects for my radio I had to adjust the volume so it was a bit more lower than the dialogue. This is because the default volume was played too loudly over the dialogue, so by lowering it, I was able to make the effects suit the setting and faded them out to have a smooth transition to the next sounds.

After finishing editing the radio, I was able to export the video as an MP4, with the audio format as AAC. This audio file is of better quality to MP3, which creates better listening for the audience. 

Radio Final Edit

 

Audio Assets

 

Sound Formats

Sound Format

Sound format is a file format which stores audio that is digital. It can be stored in computer systems, phones, anything thats is a digital device. There are various different file formats each made for different kinds of use, like for online distribution or for music/sound production. 

The file formats are: MP3, WAV, AAC, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, WMA

MP3: A popular file format, except it is quite a small, compressed file and not very good quality. However, it is the most used and this file is convenient for storing music on smartphones and other cellular devices. 

WAV: The standard format in which all CDs are encoded. The format has great sound quality but it isn't a compressed file, meaning huge file sizes. Additionally, the support for the artist information is quite bad. 

AAC: This is Apples alternative to MP3 files. It stands for `Advanced Audio Coding’ and is used for Apple streaming. It is compressed but sounds better than usual files. 

FLAC: The compressed format supports hi-res sample rates and takes up half the space of WAV. It is royalty-free and is used for downloading hi-res albums and storing them. However, it is not supported by Apple.

OGG: The full name for this file is `Ogg Vorbis‘. It is an open source alternative to MP3 and AAC. This file would be used on streaming platforms like Spotify. 

WMA: WMA is a file used for Windows Media Player. It has great compatibility will most Windows multimedia players and editing software. However, it is only limited to Windows devices and software, so it is not compatible with cross-platforming.

STORAGE

When storing audio files, you can save them on either one of hard drives, or digital drives. When producing sound, it is vital that you back the file up so you have another copy, incase of any damage or loss of the original file.

USB/Flash drive: USB is a pice of hardware that can attach to various digital devices. It is commonly used for storage and data backup, or simply transferring files from one device to another. An advantage for this is that since it is a hardware, it is easily portable. However you can run a risk of losing it physically, or you may need to purchase a new one since they hold a limited amount of memory/storage.

Hard Drive: A hard drive is a hardware component that is shaped as a disk. It holds up storage digitally, like documents, music, images, etc. An advantage of a hard drive is that they can hold tremendous amount of storage, however there is a risk of the hard drive failing, if damaged.

Cloud Backup: Cloud backup is an online, digital backup service which performs the process of backing up data to servers. When you back up your data to a cloud you are essentially storing a copy of that data. An advantage of cloud backup is that you don't need to invest in hardware-based storage devices, however since  they are utilised by third-parties, there can be a risk of data theft.

COMPRESSION

Compression is quite renowned in sound production/engineering. It is a dynamic process that reduces the dynamic range in an audio. 

Dynamic range compression is compression which levels out the volume in an audio. If there are loud parts and soft parts, by enabling the compression you are amplifying the soft parts and reducing the loud ones so they are on the same level.

Upwards Compression: Focuses on amplifying the softer, quieter sounds that fall below a certain threshold.

Downwards Compression: Focuses on reducing the volume of loud sounds that surpass above a certain threshold. This helps with certain loud sounds peaking, preventing distortion.

SIZE VS QUALITY

LOSSY = Lossy is used to describe a file that is compressed. This means the sound quality i not up to high standard.

LOSSLESS = Lossless is used to describe a compressed file with the data still present instead of taken away, so there is no reduced sound quality but there is more space leftover in your device.

BIT RATES = Bit rates are the number of bits per second that can be transmitted from one digital network to another.

FILE SIZE = File size shows how big or small the file is on a device. This helps you keep track on how much storage has been taken from that file.

Considerations

 When putting all the files together at school to edit them, I will be using the iMacs provided by the media department. This means when exporting the radio programme I will need to use the MP3 file format. This is because MP3 is a versatile file format and is easy to carry and transfer to any device. 

When looking at where I will store the files, I will be saving everything to my cloud backup service on the mac. This is so whenever I login from any other mac, the files will be there incase my original mac is not available at the time of use. Since I organised everything into assigned folders, this will make it easier for me to find everything as it will all be in the same place.

With the use of compression, I will be lightly using it as al the sounds shouldn't be on the same level due to foley sounds being used and such. Therefore the type of compression I will be using is downwards compression. This is so any loud sound going beyond the threshold will be brought back down, reducing the dynamic range.

Funding

 Concerning the concept of funding, there are a variety of ways this can be achieved due to many different sources via the liberties social media and meta communication brings. Here are a few sources of funding:

Crowdfunding:

This type of funding is when a person or organisation (group) shares an idea with the public which then grants the potential for such investors to raise money for this person/organisation's pitch. Due to this acting as a donation, crowdfunding is typically not paid back such as a loan, however there's a risk of not enough money being raised. 

Grant:

A grant is typically when a hierarchical body such as a local council receives and discusses a persons/organisations pitch idea and as such decides on if it’s worth funding it. This is a popular way of funding due to it not having to be paid back as it isn't a requested loan, and also is done by a body with an amount of money able to be granted. This therefore is useful as the person/organisation does not have to worry about pay back.

Loans:

Loans are most typically requested by a person/organisation from their bank. This method is still highly popular due to the ability to take out a large secured amount of money rather than hoping for a sizeable amount provided by such as crowdfunding. However the downside of this method of funding is it does need to be paid back which runs the risk of if the person/organisation can replicate the initial loan amount. Another con is to be able to take out a loan. A bank typically checks if such person(s) are trusted, which can be a long process which can affect credit score. Furthermore, interest on a loan also affects the post-loan amount needed to pay back, however low interest traits can be found depending on credit score which is a risk.

SWOT Analysis for First Edit

 

First Edit

 

 

Offline Edit

 

 

Rushes Log

 

Rushes Video

 

 

Cast Release Forms

 

 

Script

 

 

Storyboard

 

 

Treatment

Name: Fajar Nehmat

Date: 07/05/2024

Contact Details: 07724786854

SCRIPT TITLE: Life Behind Screens

LOGLINE: My radio show is about two influencers diving into the advantages and disadvantages of social media, while talking about combatting hate and how it can affect young people's mental wellbeing.

KEY CHARACTERS: The main characters in my storyline are the two influencers, Fajar and Layla. They will be acting as popular beauty influencers who've just released a collaboration product for their fans and others to enjoy. The indirect antagonists in my radio show will be online trolls. There is also a side character who is Harleen, acting as Layla's manager.

PLOT SUMMARY: Life Behind Screens is about two influencers who had just released their newest collaborative product and catch up with each other. As they catch up with each other, the topic of hate on social media comes up, and they begin to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of social media.

ACT ONE: The story begins with Fajar and Layla ending off the recording of a podcast episode by promoting their new product. Once the girls finish off, Fajar asks how Layla's been as the two have been busy with their growing career. The two begin to have a chat and go out on a walk while Fajar drops Layla halfway to where she needs to go.

ACT TWO: The show continues with the two girls going into detail and discussing their lives on social media, mainly focusing hate that they receive from the odd few accounts, in which they go into the topic of young teenagers and adults experiencing hate and how it can negatively impact their well-being.

ACT THREE: The programme ends with Fajar and Layla saying goodbye to each other and the show fading out to Layla voicing as a narrator, referring to a website where parents or kids can go to receive advice and bring awareness of cyber-bullying and mental health.

Rationale

 I have decided to go with initial idea 2. This is because the other two initial ideas are quite gruesome and may be too hard to carry out and be flawless as a programme. I also need to fit the narratives into 5 minutes and they may run a risk of being too long of a storyline for that time constraint. 

With initial idea 2, it is educational yet still fictional, with relatable topics such as mental health and influencers. As influencers are very popular nowadays, the target audience of teenagers to young adults, especially teenage girls, will be interested in listening to the programme to gain advice. Additionally, as there are only three characters, there will be fast recordings that will still be the best quality.

Initial Ideas

 

 

Initial Ideas Mindmap

 

 

Launch Date

 The launch date for the programme will be suitable to be scheduled for summer as the target audience are teenagers to young adults, they will be more free and be online on social media around this time. With the narrative being about social media coming from influencers, this correlates with the young audience exploring on social media and becoming interested with the programme. 

In consideration of the adults, they will be listening to podcasts and radio shows while doing their own tasks. They will also be having breaks off from work so launching the show round the time off summer will be bound for listens to grow easily and peak. Especially when the adults are parents, they will be informed on what to do in situations like in the radio show, and allow them to teach the kids about safety.

Scheduling and Alignment to programme genre

 

When considering the scheduling of my radio programme, I will have to think of the appropriate time where online activities between the target audience will peak. As I mentioned in my launch date where I will be releasing the programme in the summer, I will hold the radio programmes around the afternoon as that is the most suitable timing when the young audience may be active.

As the contents of the programme contain characters who are influencers, the audience will be intrigued by the programme as influencers have grown everywhere on social media throughout these recent years. This will effectively lead to a growth in audiences who listen to the programme.

Legal and Ethical Grid

 

  

Constraint	Details of the Constraint	How the constraint will directly link to my work
PPL	PPL stands for “Phonographic Performance Limited”. It is a right licensing sound recordings - essentially copyright but for sound, representing those who made actual recordings.	This will directly link to my work as my work is based off of sound. So I will have to make sure I use non-copyrighted music.
PRS	PRS stands for “Performing right Society”. They pay royalties to members when their work gets published on broadcast on TV or radio.	This links to my work as I am independent, I will not rely on PRS for my show.
Voice, Release forms	Release forms are legal documentations sharing the actors’ permission of featuring in the radio programme. This prevents the case of any legal action against the programme for not having the actors’ consent.	This links directly to my work as in my radio show I will be casting voice actors. This means to  make sure nothing happens legally, I will be making sure the actors are content and consent.
Royalties	Royalties is a certain amount of fee paid to a patentee for the use of their product in order to obtain a copy of that product.	This directly links to my work as I may need to pay for a sound product to feature in my radio show.
Copyright	Copyright is an exclusive legal right. Making sure the original creators of a product has given the right for anyone to use/reproduce their work.	This links to my work as I will need to make sure the sounds I use for my radio show has copyright issues in there.
Slander	The crime of making false statements with the intent of damaging a person's’ reputation.	This is linked to  my work as I need to make sure that contents said in my show are not malicious to specific people.
Offensive content	Offensive content is content that causes the viewer to experience extreme anger, insult, or disrespect.	This directly links to my work as I need to make sure the content fractured in my show is not offensive to the viewer, especially when I am catering to teenagers to young adults.
Defamation	Defamation is the action of damaging someone’s reputation, similar to slander.	This links to my work as I am not featuring any kind of defamation within the show.
Representation	Representation is the portrayal of someone/something in a particular way.	This links to my work as I will be including representation of mental health awareness. WIth this particular subject I will need to discuss with BBC Radio 4 to make sure it is approved.

Running Order

 

 

Budget

 

 

Production Schedule

 

 

Risk Assessment

 

 

Key Personnel

 

 

Location Recce

 When looking at where I shall be recording parts of my radio show, I have decided to use these specific locations:

CHADWELL HEATH ACADEMY

To be able to record dialogue for my radio show, I have chosen Chadwell Heath Academy as I will be able to borrow microphones and other equipment and be able to go into a quiet room and record. If there is any need for help I can also go to my technician easily. This choice of location can save me a lot fo time, especially because there is no watching, only listening, so the audience won't be able to tell that we are in a school setting. From this, I can also collect the audio recordings right after we've finished recording.

CRUCIBLE PARK

I was thinking of recording in this location in order to bring in some background sounds of people chattering, nature sounds, and walking, etc. This is also quite a good location as it is right next to the school, so if I am in need of recording those specific sounds I can quickly borrow recording equipment during lesson or lunch time and record the different sounds. The only important thing to focus on is getting the timing right for when people will be in the park, and when people won't be so I an easily record isolated sound effects then wide atmospheric sounds.

MY HOUSE

For specifically recording sounds like doors creaking, sitting down on chairs, walking up/down stairs and more, I can use my house to record as it incudes all the details. Before recording in this location I must make sure that my family members (if present in the house) remain silent for the duration of me recording the different sounds. This can also lead the audience to relate with the surrounding sounds of the comfort of their own homes.

Techniques and Processes used to create sound elements

In these three videos I recorded different foley sounds using different recording equipment.

The equipment used was a Rhode microphone, iPhone voice recorder, SONY digital voice recorder.

Here is evidence to show I recorded:

After testing out the equipment, I listed down the pros and cons:

 

Recording Equipment	Pros	Cons
SONY Voice recorder	The audio quality was very clear and understandable.	It is a bit tricky to navigate the device.
Rhode microphone	The audio wasn’t as clear but picked up long range of sound.	You can easily pick up fiddling from the camera when holding it which ruins the sound.
iPhone voice recorder	The sound was crisp and clear.	Cannot pick up from long range.

The Creation and Use of Sound in Media

Theme music

Theme music is an important element of film. It is created and utilised to situate an understanding for viewers of a specific character's entrance, and can distinguish a type pair/group of characters known to viewers that enter a scene. An example of this is shown in the movie La La Land when the two characters Mia and Sebastian are together:

This theme enforces a correlation for viewers to the characters and the theme, therefore allowing viewers of the film to connect the two together which, in this example, enhances the awareness of the presence of the two characters when together and create a change in atmosphere within a scene, as theme music tends to act as a hook and create deeper levels of emotion for viewers to feel. 

Sound effects

Sound effects within media are both recorded within production and post production, adding dynamics and detail, and overall more understanding of what’s happening within a scene. Sound effects allow a viewer to gain a sense of direction. For example if a specific character is running, walking, out of breath, throwing or sitting. Furthermore, sound effects set an environment and its atmosphere, such as if the environment is a forest, there will be leaves, gravel, animals, falling branches etc. When recorded post production, this may be due to time constraints, limiting how to create suitable sound effects within production, and further, post production sound effects are typically done within gameplay to suit the created scenes. Sound effects can be heard within the game Little Nightmares. 

Sound effects hereby set, in this example, an eerie atmosphere for the players as the character is silent, crouching and when needed running. The silence enhances the sound effects of chairs creaking, the teacher writing with chalk, the teacher slow walking, and the teachers neck enlarging, adding to the creepy ambience of the game. This example can then be applied to varying media such as film, games and shows as sound effects add ambience within scenes and details viewers may have missed without, being an important aspect of any media production. 

Atmospheric sounds

Atmospheric sounds are utilised within scenes to emphasise a specific mood and tone for a scene. Media productions typically incorporate atmospheric sounds to enhance an environment and make consumers feel more immersed within a scene and additionally add depth to a scene. Atmospheric sounds can be seen within The Haunting of Hill House. 

Atmospheric sounds such as rain and thunder add an additional ambience to the scene as it allows for viewers to understand the setting further beyond what the camera/image may be capturing. This can be applied to media products as being able to capture an environment sets the scene and sets a basis of tone and mood. Furthermore, sounds such as the house creaking adds an element of eeriness, which can be applied greater to media products as an element of emotion for a consumer is implemented which adds to the depth of media productions, which is most important to any media product. 

Dialogue

Dialogue is an important component to a lot of media productions whether that be within film, show or game. It allows for an emotional delivery to be manipulated depending on the directors creative choice, further being impactful as it showcases a productions detail and acuity to the tone of a scene dependent on a conversation and its delivery. An example of this can be seen within The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. 

Within this scene viewers can witness the comedic undertones laced within their conversation while also understanding there’s a level of solemness from Daisy, the women, and mixed emotions of anxiety and joy via Benjamin, the man, that coincides the topics of conversation of age and pregnancy. This can be applied to varying elements of film and overall media products as dialogue and its delivery can greatly affect the mood of a scene and an overall setting of a scene and/or movie as a whole. 

Incidental music

Incidental music is when there’s typically background music within a scene which can reflect the setting and its mood/tone or the emotions a character is feeling. It’s noticeably different to film music such as a theme song as it's not necessarily musical, rather typically used to create depth within a scene or even mare ambience. Within film for example, the director can creatively dictate whether they would want incidental music to be noticeable or not via viewers, both adding different elements to scenes. An example of this can be heard within interstellar. 

The use of subtle strings within this scene allows for the dialogue and its emotional integrity to be valued and felt by viewers while also adding subtle depth and feeling to the scene that viewers may not be focused upon but rather unconsciously registering and feeding into this emotional value to the scene. Incidental music therefore can be understood to be vastly influential within scenes whether that be film or game as it can be artistically used to create tension and/or build up, or on the contrary elevate silence and/or create a calming atmosphere.