Sound for Film

What you'll learn

• Explain how sound shapes story, space, time and emotion in film, describe the roles and workflow of production and post-production sound teams, and turn a director's intentions into written spotting notes.
• Apply the physics of sound, including wavelength, the inverse square law, decibel addition, reverberation time, room modes, masking and comb filtering, to recording and mixing decisions.
• Choose and use microphones, wireless systems and recorders by reading specifications and polar patterns, and set gain using sample rate, bit depth, dBu and dBFS reference levels.
• Plan and run production sound on set, including location scouting, booming, lavalier fitting, noise control, room tone, wild lines, wireless frequency coordination under Canadian or US rules, storage and sound reports.
• Manage timecode, frame rates, drop-frame, slates, metadata, dailies, turnover and conforms so that double-system sound stays in sync from set to post-production.
• Edit production dialogue into a seamless track by choosing microphones and alternative takes, checkerboarding, smoothing backgrounds with fills, removing noises, using noise reduction carefully and preserving meaning in documentary work.
• Plan, record and match ADR and loop group, including cue sheets, studio sessions, remote recording, performer agreements, authenticity of background voices and placement in the production space.
• Cut hard effects and backgrounds, build layered designed sounds, and use pitch shifting, the Doppler effect and other processes while tracking sound licenses.
• Spot, perform, record and edit Foley in feet, cloth and props passes, matching character, surface and perspective, and ensure complete coverage for the music and effects version.
• Work with temp music, composers and music editors, calculate click tempos for hit points, identify the synchronization and master use licenses required, and prepare accurate music cue sheets for performing rights organizations.
• Calibrate a mix room, premix and balance dialogue, music and effects, place sound in stereo, surround and immersive formats, measure loudness against broadcast and streaming specifications, and create stems, versions and quality control reports.
• Plan, build, mix and document the complete sound track for a short scene, from script breakdown to stems and a music and effects version, and reflect on the creative and technical decisions made.