Cinematic Elements: Sound
Cinematic Elements: Sound
Many people often think that movies are a visual medium. We say we are going to watch the movies and we ask each other what movies we’ve seen recently. Equally important to our movie-going experience is the sound in the movies we see. Coming from human voices, music, and sound effects, movie sound–especially when done well–can:
- create and enforce mood and tone
- emphasize meaning and themes
- enhance the world of the story
- develop characters and move the story forward
- shape a viewer’s understanding, analysis, and interpretation
In order to be most effective, film makers rely on two types of sound: DIEGETIC and NON-DIEGETIC.
Diegetic Sound
Taken directly from nofilmschool.com’s webpage, “Diegetic Versus Non-Diegetic Sound in Movies.”
Diegetic sound is sound that occurs within the world of the story. That means the characters on screen can hear these sounds, as well as the audience. Examples include dialogue, footsteps, a car honking, gunshots, music playing from a radio inside the scene. Some examples of diegetic sound are:
- The Lord of the Rings: The characters can hear the sounds of swords clashing and orcs growling, and arrows flying.
- The Godfather: In the cafe, when Michael is about to execute Salazzo, we can hear a subway train roaring, increasing the tension.
- Jurassic Park: We can hear the velociraptor’s nails clicking around the kitchen as they stalk their prey.
Non-Diegetic Sound
Taken directly from nofilmschool.com’s webpage, “Diegetic Versus Non-Diegetic Sound in Movies.”
Non-diegetic sound is sound that only the audience can hear and not the characters in the story. Some examples would be the musical score, voiceover, and possibly a sound effect used for comedic or dramatic effect. Examples of Non-Diegetic Sounds in Movies:
- Jaws: The iconic “dun-dun” music is non-diegetic, telling us the shark is coming even when we don’t see it.
- Psycho: The screeching violins during the shower scene scare us even if Marion Crane cannot hear them.
- Shawshank Redemption: Red’s voiceover carries the movie but only the audience can hear it.
Take 3 minutes and look over Josh Hanson’s discussion of sound, complete with a couple of classic examples: