LO2: Know the techniques and processes used to create sound elements
The work of a foley artist is to create the sound effects for a production which are going to immerse the audience in the world which the creator is realising. Foley, are the sound effects which are recorded following the filming or development of a given scene or action. The term 'foley' originates to Jack Donovan Foley who developed sound effects for silent film between the late 1920's-early 1930's, first adding sound to film. However, foley's indoctrination to media began with radio broadcasts in the 1920's within radio dramas which would later create iconic broadcasts like Orson Welles rendition of The War of The Worlds. In its primacy, these effects simply ranged from footsteps on various surfaces to create some kind of immersion for the audience.
Equipment used by foley artists typically differ between traditional microphones, headphones and stereo or synthesizer equipment with common objects like Monty Python and the Holy Grail's use of coconuts to imitate a horse's gallop. Foley artists also use a mixing board to edit the pitch or length of a noise, the frequency its played to alter the sound and a playback system to synchronise the effects with the film. Other objects include sizzling bacon for rain, staple guns for a gunshot or slamming a hefty book for a range of punch sound effects.
Foley Artists
Ben Burtt, foley artist for Star Wars, is a prime example of how experimentation can lead to iconic and iconic sounds. When producing the foley for Star Wars, he experimented with noises which had stood out to him in some way even before production. This is exemplified in the aggressive hum of the lightsabre. When working as a projectionist, the machine which Ben used to lock film reels in with, made a 'melodic hum' which Ben described as having a 'musical quality to it'. After instruction that the sound which a lightsabre produced should be violent and dangerous, volatile, he experimented with a broken mic which was picking up static from its connecting cable. Noting this to be a conventionally 'bad sound' Ben realised that this volatile hum could be blended with the audio from the film reels to create the iconic sound of the lightsabre. To then mimic the sound of swaying and swinging during combat, he would play this audio through a stereo and move his microphone closer and further from it in a swinging motion to mimic an actual swing. He also took advantage of a synthesizer and voice modulation for the sound of R2-D2, playing different pitches of noise on a piano which were synthesized to sound robotic; creating emotion through the different pitches (e.g. angry would be indicated by a low, droning pitch).
John Roesch is another iconic foley artist for his work on films like The Dark Knight and Back to the Future. He takes advantage of his position at Skywalker Sounds through owning a large warehouse specifically designed for foley; being built down into the Earth to create hollow footsteps and a splash pool filled with gallons of water for aquatic sound effects. This also doubled as a storehouse for various props which were used for foley such as a feather duster for a bird flapping its wings or a flat metallic pole for robot feet. The scene of Marty McFly using a skateboard was also produced through the foley of a small slab of wood with dated hinges and wheels to create a visceral skating sound which emphasised the character of the scene.
When creating dialogue within a scene, the effects of which dialogue can have are not limited to specific linguistic or thematic significance. Examples of iconic character dialogue moments such as the exchange between Clifford and Coccotti in True Romance's 'Sicilian' scene: the challenging of roles within a traditional narrative, the hostage/victim insulting and humiliating the antagonist to characterize the understanding of Clifford's unavoidable death in such circumstances; going out on his own terms. A scene like this in culmination with the growing volume and climaxing musical crescendo are emblematic of the use of sound with expertly crafted dialogue which achieves narratively significant and iconic characterization.
Soundtrack Composers
Gwyn Lord of Cinder - Dark Souls (https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=3bqLGebDRIY&si=Owaa7WlrGXqYf47u)
Soul of Cinder - Dark Souls III (https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=x0euNw-4YOo&si=8KhatQftZ9BpK49H&t=117) - time code linked to when leitmotif appears (may have to copy+paste link)
Motoi Sakuraba and Yui Kitimura are both composers for the video game franchise, Dark Souls; Sakuraba composing Dark Souls 1 and 2 whilst Kitimura composed Dark Souls 3. These composers are highly regarded for how they challenge the conventions of traditional orchestral music indicative of the (dark/high) fantasy genre and their impeccable use of leitmotifs to create real-emotion from an audience.
This is best exemplified in the transition between Dark Souls one to three which is personified by the climaxing fight to each game. Sakuraba stated in producing the game's soundtrack 'We recorded strings, brass, harp, percussion, choir, and solo vocals for the project. From contemporary classical pieces through medieval pieces'. When recording the soundtrack for Gwyn Lord of Cinder, the final fight of Dark Souls one, Sakuraba challenged the typical, epic connotations of a final fantastic bout with something significantly more sombre and tragic. He recorded the song using only the white keys on a piano with no other instrument, to symbolize the purity of the first flame, what Gwyn protects, and his martyrdom to endlessly kindle it. This creating an iconic leitmotif which Kitimura would go onto replicate in Dark Souls 3 and its final fight.
To climax Dark Souls 3, the player challenges the Soul of Cinder. The culmination of every player who has ever linked the flame (in Dark Souls 1) and the orchestra which surrounds this signifies an epic, conclusive finale. However, when defeated, the Soul of Cinder returns, now with the piano of Gwyn, the first Lord of Cinder, mixed into the theme; suddenly becoming the leitmotif which characterizes the emotional journey of everyone who's played the series. This assists the visuals of the game as the Soul of Cinder takes on Gwyn's move-set from Dark Souls 1, symbolizing the themes of the series of a continuous cycle where one must either link the flame to try and keep the world alive, or finally let the fire fade and be plunged into a world of unknown darkness.
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