Lesson #1 | The Sound of a Story

1. How was sound used to manipulate the audience?

The absence of visual images allows the audience to visualise scenarios that match with the sound of the clip, manipulating our imagination. For example, in the film clip shown in class, the sound of chickens squawking immediately gives audience the idea that the film is set in a farm. Other than that, I think that sound can also manipulate our emotions and produce physical responses in us - they can heighten the panic and terror in the film and give us palpitations; they can induce sorrow and give us tears.

2. What does sound bring to the film story? What elements were in the film clip shown today?

Sound can help create an atmosphere / mood for the film story as it can convey emotions and can effectively capture the audience’s attention. As an example, in Ms. Zhang’s documentary of the Irish couple, most of the time the audio is filled by concrete sounds, dialogue or simply silence, creating a melancholy and gloomy atmosphere. Sound can also make a film more realistic and interesting. Dialogue and different sound effects / concrete sounds were applied to the film clips shown today and provided information about the scenario - a door slam delivers the image of someone entering a place, clock ticks suggests that time is passing by, while words like “detergent” instantly provides us with a clear idea of the film being set in the laundry room. Without sound, film clips would appear to be dull, confusing, and unrealistic.