Components in a Multimedia Project

First of all and what I think is the most important component is the film score. The film score is the soundtrack and theme music which is non diagectic (the character cannot here it, but the audience can), these are important so the film can be recognised instantly and also that the music reflects of how the character is feeling or thinking or the music can help you think what is going to happen e.g. minor key for something jumping out suddenly. The film score can also indicate where the character is i.e. if the character is in India then Indian music will be played to help you acknowledge where they are as in Black Hawk Down. If the film score was not used in this film, then the audience will take longer to know where the character is, but this is effective in this film because you feel as if you are there and know where you are straight away as it jumps straight to the dialogue.

Foley sounds are also used to give the film more dynamics and to represent actual happenings like a visual door closing but not the sound being recorded, which would sound too odd. Foley sounds are made by recording any sound (e.g. a broken bone by recording someone breaking a thin stick) you want and adding it to the hitpoint where the sound should be. Like in Men in Black II when the alien gets kicked in the face. A Foley sound is very appropriate for this action because no-one would want to get kicked in the face, so a recorded slap has been placed over the top. This works very well in this film because an exaggerated slap has been used to create humour, where as if this sound had been real then there wouldn’t be as much humour but too realistic.

Acousmatic sounds are sounds happening that are off screen before you can see it, these can be used to create suspense or to get the audience wondering what is going on e.g. a car crashing outside then the character rushing out to see what has happened, while you the audience, is wondering what has happened before you can see. For example in Men in Black II spaceships are heard before they appear. This can be very effective because if the sounds come in as soon as the object is seen then this can seem a lot less realistic, so acousmatic sounds are used because you don’t always see things as they happen but you hear then see.

Diagetic sounds is like a radio is playing, when the character does hear it as well as the audience, this will make the film seem more to life as there isn’t just talking but background music as well, for example in Black Hawk Down where the Elvis Presley song is played via radio. If this song hadn’t have been playing then there wouldn’t be an atmosphere so this works very well in this part of the film when every one is together having a good time. Whereas non-Diagetic sounds are like a sound track when the character can’t actually here the music but the audience can to give it more dynamics as in Black Hawk Down when the sergeant is talking to the soldiers, this gives it more dynamics and can represent how how the character is feeling. Diagetic sounds could also have panning like a car skid from left to right, could be used to make it sound more realistic as if you were there.

Hitpoints can also be used to emphasise the visuals e.g. an explosion or title can be made more pronounced with a loud sound, like in Men In Black 2, at the beginning of the film where titles come in (MIB II) there are hitpoints to emphasise the title and to get he audiences attention, but if the hitpoints weren’t there then the title wouldn’t stand out as much.

Buzz tracks are also used in films to give the dialogue more texture, and to make the scene sound more realistic with background music because we also hear background sounds like computers buzzing, leaves, and the wind. Although not having a buzz track can create an eery atmosphere.

Tempo and the style/genre of music can affect the audience and to help them by changing the tempo according to where the actor is e.g. London – fast music will be played to represent the rushing town life with fast English music, and in Black Hawk Down, a song by Elvis was played to represent the American soldiers in a happy mood. At the begging of Edward Scissor Hands, there were orchestral instruments playing to help the fairy tale story come to life.

Anthropomorphism is where animals are humanized to create humour like in MIB II the dog talks to Jay. This is done by some one recording an actor/actress speaking the dialogue and being put together by a sound engineer to the hitpoints of every word the dog is imitating or vice versa. This can be very effective because if the dog hadn’t talked then there wouldn’t be any humour, and would be less boring throughout the film.