WHAT I LEARNED
During the sound lesson I realized how much sound actually controls how we feel when we watch something. Like it’s not just background noise, it’s what builds the whole atmosphere. We learned about soundscapes and how layering different sounds can create a full setting, and about diegetic and non diegetic sounds - basically what the characters can hear vs what only the audience hears. We also learned about synchronous and asynchronous sound, sound bridges, motifs, and perspective (which is how close or far the sound feels).
There was also voiceover, epistolary voice (like someone reading a letter), and stings, which are those short dramatic sounds that make moments hit harder. I never realized how much tiny details like that matter until we listened to examples. Sound can seriously tell the story even if you can’t see anything.
sound project 1: fire drill soundscape
For this project, our goal was to tell a story using only sound. Me and my partner made a fire drill soundscape that was about 1 minute and 45 seconds long.
brainstorming: We started by thinking of quick school scenes that could be done with sound alone. we picked a fire drill because it had a lot of energy and different layers - alarms, footsteps, chatter, doors, outside noise, all that.
how the outline helped: Writing out every second helped keep us organized. We planned which sounds went where and when to bring them in or fade them out. It also made recording faster since we already knew exactly what to capture.
editing: we used Clipchamp and Free Sounds to create and mix everything. We made our own foley sounds like footsteps, papers, and the fire extinguisher hiss. Layering was a little tricky at first, but once we balanced the volumes and adjusted how each sound faded in and out, it started sounding real.
what went well: I think the beginning turned out the best because you can truly hear everything come together - the footsteps, the dialogue, and the background ambience sounds all line up really well. It feels the most natural and balanced there compared to the rest of the audio.
what i’d fix next time: We made a few of our own sounds, like the wind blowing and the fire extinguisher using our mouths, but I didn’t realize at first that we were actually allowed to do that. If I knew earlier, I would’ve made more of the foley sounds ourselves instead of depending on the ones we found online.
sound project 2: “hateful” one-word film
For our one-word film, our word was hateful, and our story was about a girlfriend finding out her boyfriend’s cheating. We wanted the sound to show how the mood changes - like it starts calm and normal, then turns tense and uncomfortable.
brainstorming: We planned shot by shot, thinking about how sound could show what the characters were feeling. Like the school hallway noises, phone taps, the music cutting off when the girlfriend walks in, and the intensity when she finds the messages.
how the outline helped: Our outline made it easy to figure out what we needed to record vs what we could find online. It also helped us decide when to use ambient noise and when to use silence for dramatic parts.
editing: We edited in Clipchamp again. We layered ambient sounds under emotional stings, adjusted perspective for certain shots, and played with timing to make it feel more real.
what went well: I feel like the beginning went really well because I layered all the sounds evenly and it truly came together the way I pictured it. I also liked the part when the music cut out right as I walked in and saw the boyfriend texting - it made that moment stand out more, especially when he hit his phone after.
what i’d fix next time: I'd clean up background noise and maybe add more subtle sounds to make it even more immersive.
FINAL THOUGHTS
these projects made me realize how much sound shapes emotion. even without visuals, you can tell exactly what’s happening just from how it sounds. i used to think editing audio was boring, but now i actually get how creative it is. next time i just want to get even smoother with transitions and layering so it feels more like a real movie scene.
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