In games we have a chance to bring characters to life unlike film and television. They can occupy their own space and exist within a more fleshed out and breathing world. Sound enhances that experience both providing key game play information and enriching the overall experience. Here I'll go into how to begin the process of creating unique character sounds that … [Read more...]
Designing Silence
"Ideally, for me, the perfect sound film has zero tracks. You try to get the audience to a point, somehow, where they can imagine the sound. They hear the sound in their minds, and it really isn't on the track at all. That's the ideal sound, the one that exists totally in the mind, because it's the most intimate. It deals with each person's experience, and it's obviously of … [Read more...]
Glitchmachines release Quadrant
Quadrant is a new modular sound generator and effects processing plugin geared towards experimental sound design. It features a broad selection of modules, connectable through a graphical patching system, allowing for a very wide and customizable range of sounds and effects. The plugin can be used to generate textures, or as an effects processor, providing a number of different … [Read more...]
The Hybrid Animal Sound Design Competition
No matter how deep your interest in animal husbandry may be, you're probably never going to figure out what the spawn of a camel and a mollusk might sound like. Or will you? Interested sound designers still have a little more than a week left to enter the Hybrid Animal Sound Design Competition, where the creation from scratch of a brand new animal call could net a share of … [Read more...]
A Modular Creature Design System
I’ve been working on a game project on and off over the past year and a part of the design is of relevance to this month’s theme — animals. The gameplay revolves around creatures of various kinds — some good, some evil, some tiny, some large. I had to conjure a vocalisation system that achieved the following technical and design criteria: Actions by the user would directly … [Read more...]
Journalism Beyond Words: Dirty Wars
As the documentary format moves further into the 21st century, audio is playing an ever increasing role in helping directors communicate their thoughts and ideas to the viewer. In a recent article posted to doxmagazine.com, Peter Albrechtsen goes in depth with Christopher Barnett, the sound designer for this year's MPSE documentary sound design award winning film, Dirty Wars. … [Read more...]
“What Is Sound Design…?” Symposium
Designing Sound readers in the vicinity of Edinburgh, Scotland should take note of the University of Edinburgh's first symposium on sound, coming up on November 27th, 28th, and 29th. The event, titled "What is sound design...?," aims to ask more questions than it answers, bringing together speakers from the domains of film sound, games, performance, forensics, social … [Read more...]