The folks over at Pro Sound Effects have put together a video interview with Ryan Billia of Rumble Audio. This is the first in what will be a series of "Sound Design Spotlight" videos on the Pro Sound Effects blog. Keep an eye on their feed for future videos. … [Read more...]
Documentary Sound – A Discussion with James LeBrecht
Designing Sound: Would you mind giving our readers a little bit about your background and how long you’ve been working in audio post? James LeBrecht: I’m the owner of Berkeley Sound Artists, and we’re located in the Saul Zaentz Media Center in Berkeley. We’re kind of a small company. I think the term “boutique shop” would sound little bit pretentious, but we’re kind of the … [Read more...]
Constructing Reality for Nonfiction Film
Guest Contribution by Lawrence Everson The relationship that documentary cinema has with truth, realism and subjectivity has long been a lively debate. Likely since its origins as a medium (do a quick Google search about Nanook of the North's impact and also its staged shots, for example). Documentary sound design is an often overlooked aspect of the craft that inhabits a … [Read more...]
Invasive Insects and Immersive Sonics – Ren Klyce on the Sound of Gone Girl
Director David Fincher and sound designer Ren Klyce has worked together for more than 20 years, and their ongoing partnership is one of most acclaimed collaborations in the modern film sound community. Klyce has been nominated for five Oscars – one for Fight Club, one for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, one for The Social Network and two for The Girl with the Dragon … [Read more...]
What’s The Deal With Procedural Game Audio?
Guest contribution by Martin Roth We've all heard of the promises of procedural game audio. A veritable Valhalla where sounds are created out of thin air, driven by the game engine, eliminating the need for huge sample libraries and tedious recording. Sounds great! So why aren't we hearing more of it in games today? We've all experienced Rockstar's work in GTA 5; those … [Read more...]
Synthesis Tips for the Non-Synthesist
Guest Contribution from Steven Smith Introduction In some ways it seems quite strange to find myself authoring a post on synthesis that has as its main topic: “Not everyone needs to be a synthesist”. But from another angle of practicality, it makes a great deal of sense. Many of us already have found ourselves naturally diving into certain areas of synthesis from within the … [Read more...]
Sonic Architecture
"Sound is a spatial event, a material phenomenon and an auditive experience rolled into one. It can be described using the vectors of distance, direction and location. Within architecture, every built space can modify, position, reflect or reverberate the sounds that occur there. Sound embraces and transcends the spaces in which it occurs, opening up a consummate context for … [Read more...]