Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Frantzolas | TEDxAthens
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0:12 - 0:14I want to skip the introduction.
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0:16 - 0:18I want to start by doing an experiment.
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0:20 - 0:23I'm going to play three videos
of a rainy day. -
0:24 - 0:28But I've replaced the audio
of one of the videos, -
0:28 - 0:30and instead of the sound of rain,
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0:30 - 0:33I've added the sound of bacon frying.
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0:34 - 0:38So I want you think carefully
which one the clip with the bacon is. -
0:38 - 0:40(Rain falls)
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0:42 - 0:44(Rain falls)
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0:46 - 0:48(Rain falls)
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0:52 - 0:53All right.
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0:54 - 0:57Actually, I lied.
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0:57 - 0:58They're all bacon.
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0:58 - 1:00(Bacon sizzles)
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1:03 - 1:07(Applause)
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1:08 - 1:11My point here isn't really
to make you hungry -
1:11 - 1:13every time you see a rainy scene,
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1:13 - 1:19but it's to show that our brains
are conditioned to embrace the lies. -
1:19 - 1:22We're not looking for accuracy.
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1:23 - 1:25So on the subject of deception,
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1:25 - 1:29I wanted to quote one
of my favorite authors. -
1:29 - 1:36In "The Decay of Lying,"
Oscar Wilde establishes the idea -
1:36 - 1:41that all bad art comes from copying
nature and being realistic; -
1:42 - 1:47and all great art comes
from lying and deceiving, -
1:48 - 1:51and telling beautiful, untrue things.
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1:51 - 1:54So, I want to make this clear -
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1:54 - 1:56when you're watching a movie
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1:57 - 1:59and a phone rings,
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1:59 - 2:01it's not actually ringing.
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2:01 - 2:05It's been added later
in postproduction in a studio. -
2:05 - 2:08All of the sounds you hear are fake.
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2:08 - 2:10Everything, apart from the dialogue,
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2:10 - 2:11is fake.
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2:11 - 2:15Not the only thing that's fake
in Hollywood, by the way. -
2:15 - 2:17Laughter)
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2:17 - 2:20When you watch a movie and you see
a bird flapping its wings -- -
2:20 - 2:22(Wings flap)
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2:24 - 2:26They haven't really recorded the bird.
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2:26 - 2:31It sounds a lot more realistic
if you record a sheet -
2:31 - 2:32or shaking kitchen gloves.
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2:33 - 2:35(Flaps)
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2:37 - 2:39The burning of a cigarette up close --
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2:40 - 2:42(Cigarette burns)
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2:43 - 2:46It actually sounds a lot more authentic
-
2:46 - 2:48if you take a small Saran Wrap ball
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2:48 - 2:50and release it.
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2:50 - 2:53(A Saran Warp ball being released)
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2:54 - 2:55Punches?
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2:55 - 2:57(Punch)
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2:57 - 2:58Let me play that again.
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2:58 - 2:59(Punch)
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2:59 - 3:03That's often done by sticking
a knife in vegetables, -
3:03 - 3:04usually cabbage.
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3:04 - 3:06(Cabbage stabbed with a knife)
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3:07 - 3:10The next one -
I'm not going to play the video -
3:10 - 3:12but it's breaking bones.
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3:12 - 3:14(Bones break)
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3:15 - 3:17Well, no one was really harmed.
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3:17 - 3:18It's actually ...
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3:19 - 3:23breaking celery or frozen lettuce.
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3:23 - 3:25(Breaking frozen lettuce or celery)
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3:26 - 3:28(Laughter)
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3:30 - 3:33Yeah. Thanks to my three friends
who are laughing. -
3:34 - 3:39Making the right sounds
is not always as easy -
3:39 - 3:41as a trip to the supermarket
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3:41 - 3:44and going to the vegetable section.
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3:44 - 3:46But it's often a lot more
complicated than that. -
3:46 - 3:49So let's reverse-engineer together
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3:49 - 3:51the creation of a sound effect.
-
3:51 - 3:55One of my favorite stories
comes from Frank Serafine. -
3:55 - 3:57He's a contributor to our library,
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3:57 - 4:00and a great sound designer for "Tron"
and "Star Trek" and others. -
4:01 - 4:07He was part of the Paramount team
that won the Oscar for best sound -
4:07 - 4:09for "The Hunt for Red October."
-
4:09 - 4:12In this Cold War classic, in the '90s,
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4:12 - 4:17they were asked to produce the sound
of the propeller of the submarine. -
4:17 - 4:18So they had a small problem:
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4:18 - 4:22they couldn't really find
a submarine in West Hollywood. -
4:22 - 4:25So basically, what they did is,
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4:25 - 4:29they went to a friend's swimming pool,
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4:29 - 4:32and Frank performed a cannonball.
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4:32 - 4:35They placed an underwater mic
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4:35 - 4:37and an overhead mic
outside the swimming pool. -
4:38 - 4:40We recreated the sound.
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4:40 - 4:43So here's what the underwater
mic sounds like. -
4:43 - 4:45(Underwater plunge)
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4:45 - 4:47Adding the overhead mic,
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4:47 - 4:49it sounded a bit like this:
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4:49 - 4:51(Water splashes)
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4:51 - 4:56So now they took the sound
and pitched it one octave down, -
4:56 - 4:58sort of like slowing down a record.
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4:58 - 5:01(Water splashes at lower octave)
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5:02 - 5:04And then they removed
a lot of the high frequencies. -
5:04 - 5:07(Water splashes)
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5:07 - 5:09And pitched it down another octave.
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5:10 - 5:12(Water splashes at lower octave)
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5:12 - 5:15And then they added
a little bit of the splash -
5:15 - 5:17from the overhead microphone.
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5:17 - 5:20(Water splashes)
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5:20 - 5:23And by looping and repeating that sound,
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5:23 - 5:24they got this:
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5:24 - 5:27(Propeller churns)
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5:30 - 5:37So, creativity and technology put together
in order to create the illusion -
5:37 - 5:40that we're inside the submarine.
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5:40 - 5:43But once you've created your sounds
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5:43 - 5:46and you've synced them to the image,
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5:46 - 5:50you want those sounds to live
in the world of the story. -
5:50 - 5:54And one the best ways to do that
is to add reverb. -
5:55 - 5:58So this is the first audio tool
I want to talk about. -
5:58 - 6:03Reverberation, or reverb,
is the persistence of the sound -
6:03 - 6:05after the original sound has ended.
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6:05 - 6:08So it's sort of like the --
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6:08 - 6:11all the reflections from the materials,
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6:11 - 6:14the objects and the walls
around the sound. -
6:14 - 6:16Take, for example, the sound of a gunshot.
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6:16 - 6:19The original sound is less
than half a second long. -
6:20 - 6:21(Gunshot)
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6:23 - 6:24By adding reverb,
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6:24 - 6:28we can make it sound like
it was recorded inside a bathroom. -
6:28 - 6:30(Gunshot reverbs in bathroom)
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6:30 - 6:33Or like it was recorded
inside a chapel or a church. -
6:34 - 6:35(Gunshot reverbs church)
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6:36 - 6:38Or in a canyon.
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6:38 - 6:40(Gunshot reverbs in canyon)
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6:41 - 6:45So reverb gives us a lot of information
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6:45 - 6:50about the space between the listener
and the original sound source. -
6:50 - 6:52If the sound is the taste,
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6:52 - 6:56then reverb is sort of like
the smell of the sound. -
6:56 - 6:58But reverb can do a lot more.
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6:58 - 7:02Listening to a sound
with a lot less reverberation -
7:02 - 7:04than the on-screen action
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7:04 - 7:07is going to immediately signify to us
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7:07 - 7:10that we're listening to a commentator,
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7:10 - 7:15to an objective narrator that's not
participating in the on-screen action. -
7:16 - 7:20Also, emotionally intimate
moments in cinema -
7:20 - 7:22are often heard with zero reverb,
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7:22 - 7:26because that's how it would sound
if someone was speaking inside our ear. -
7:27 - 7:29On the completely other side,
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7:29 - 7:31adding a lot of reverb to a voice
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7:31 - 7:35is going to make us think
that we're listening to a flashback, -
7:35 - 7:38or perhaps that we're inside
the head of a character -
7:39 - 7:42or that we're listening
to the voice of God. -
7:42 - 7:44Or, even more powerful in film,
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7:44 - 7:46Morgan Freeman.
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7:46 - 7:47(Laughter)
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7:47 - 7:48So --
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7:48 - 7:50(Applause)
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7:51 - 7:55But what are some other tools or hacks
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7:55 - 7:57that sound designers use?
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7:58 - 8:00Well, here's a really big one.
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8:10 - 8:12I think some people guessed it.
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8:12 - 8:13It's silence.
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8:13 - 8:15I didn't really forget
this part of the talk -
8:15 - 8:17but I sort of wanted to show
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8:17 - 8:21that a few moments of silence
is going to make us pay attention. -
8:21 - 8:23And in the Western world,
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8:23 - 8:26we're not really used to verbal silences.
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8:26 - 8:29They're considered awkward or rude.
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8:30 - 8:33So silence preceding verbal communication
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8:34 - 8:36can create a lot of tension.
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8:36 - 8:40But imagine a really big Hollywood movie,
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8:40 - 8:44where it's full of explosions
and automatic guns. -
8:44 - 8:48Loud stops being loud
anymore, after a while. -
8:48 - 8:50So in a yin-yang way,
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8:50 - 8:53silence needs loudness
and loudness needs silence -
8:53 - 8:55for either of them to have any effect.
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8:55 - 8:57But what does silence mean?
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8:57 - 9:00Well, it depends how
it's used in each film. -
9:00 - 9:03Silence can place us inside
the head of a character -
9:03 - 9:05or provoke thought.
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9:05 - 9:08We often relate silences with ...
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9:08 - 9:09contemplation,
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9:10 - 9:11meditation,
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9:12 - 9:14being deep in thought.
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9:14 - 9:17But apart from having one meaning,
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9:17 - 9:19silence becomes a blank canvas
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9:19 - 9:24upon which the viewer is invited
to the paint their own thoughts. -
9:24 - 9:28But I want to make it clear:
there is no such thing as silence. -
9:29 - 9:33And I know this sounds like the most
pretentious TED Talk statement ever. -
9:33 - 9:35(Laughter)
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9:35 - 9:40But even if you were to enter
a room with zero reverberation -
9:40 - 9:42and zero external sounds,
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9:42 - 9:45you would still be able to hear
the pumping of your own blood. -
9:45 - 9:50And in cinema, traditionally,
there was never a silent moment -
9:50 - 9:52because of the sound of the projector.
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9:52 - 9:55And even in today's Dolby world,
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9:55 - 9:59there's not really any moment of silence
if you listen around you. -
10:00 - 10:02There's always some sort of noise.
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10:02 - 10:05Now, since there's no such
thing as silence, -
10:05 - 10:09what do filmmakers
and sound designers use? -
10:09 - 10:13Well, as a synonym,
they often use ambiences. -
10:13 - 10:17Ambiences are the unique background sounds
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10:17 - 10:20that are specific to each location.
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10:20 - 10:22Each location has a unique sound,
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10:22 - 10:24and each room has a unique sound,
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10:24 - 10:26which is called room tone.
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10:26 - 10:28So here's a recording
of a market in Morocco. -
10:28 - 10:33(Voices, music)
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10:35 - 10:37And here's a recording
of Times Square in New York. -
10:38 - 10:42(Traffic sounds, car horns, voices)
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10:44 - 10:48Believe me, it's a lot better
to have to listen to Times Square -
10:48 - 10:50than to have to smell Times Square.
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10:50 - 10:53Room tone is the addition of all
the noises inside the room: -
10:53 - 10:56the ventilation, the heating, the fridge.
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10:56 - 11:00Here's a recording
of my apartment in Brooklyn. -
11:01 - 11:05[You can hear the ventilation, the boiler,
the fridge and street traffic] -
11:05 - 11:10[(is that an electric toothbrush or just
my neighbor having some fun?)] -
11:10 - 11:15Ambiences work in a most primal way.
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11:16 - 11:19They can speak directly
to our brain subconsciously. -
11:20 - 11:25So, birds chirping outside your window
may indicate normality, -
11:26 - 11:29perhaps because, as a species,
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11:29 - 11:33we've been used to that sound
every morning for millions of years. -
11:33 - 11:37(Birds chirp)
-
11:41 - 11:44On the other hand, industrial sounds
have been introduced to us -
11:45 - 11:46a little more recently.
-
11:47 - 11:49Even though I really like
them personally -- -
11:49 - 11:51they've been used by one
of my heroes, David Lynch, -
11:51 - 11:53and his sound designer, Alan Splet --
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11:53 - 11:56industrial sounds often carry
negative connotations. -
11:56 - 11:59(Machine noises)
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12:03 - 12:08Now, sound effects can tap
into our emotional memory. -
12:08 - 12:10Occasionally, they can be so significant
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12:10 - 12:13that they become a character in a movie.
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12:13 - 12:17They are a lot more low maintenance
than some actors, as well. -
12:18 - 12:20For example -
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12:21 - 12:25The sound of thunder may indicate
divine intervention or anger. -
12:26 - 12:29(Thunder)
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12:32 - 12:36Church bells can remind us
of the passing of time, -
12:36 - 12:38or perhaps our own mortality.
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12:38 - 12:44(Bells ring)
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12:46 - 12:51And breaking of glass can
indicate the end of a relationship -
12:51 - 12:52or a friendship.
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12:53 - 12:55(Glass breaks)
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12:55 - 12:59Scientists believe that dissonant sounds,
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12:59 - 13:04for example, brass or wind
instruments played very loud, -
13:05 - 13:09may remind us of animal howls in nature
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13:09 - 13:13and therefore create a sense
of irritation or fear. -
13:13 - 13:16(Brass and wind instruments play)
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13:19 - 13:22So now we've spoken
about on-screen sounds. -
13:23 - 13:27But occasionally, the source
of a sound cannot be seen. -
13:27 - 13:30That's what we call offscreen sounds,
-
13:30 - 13:31or "acousmatic."
-
13:32 - 13:37The term "acousmatic" comes
from Pythagoras in ancient Greece, -
13:37 - 13:40who used to teach behind
a veil or curtain for years, -
13:40 - 13:43not revealing himself to his disciples.
-
13:43 - 13:46I think the mathematician
and philosopher thought that, -
13:47 - 13:48in that way,
-
13:49 - 13:53his students might focus
more on the voice, -
13:53 - 13:55and his words and its meaning,
-
13:55 - 13:58rather than the visual of him speaking.
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13:58 - 14:01So sort of like the Wizard of Oz,
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14:01 - 14:03or "1984's" Big Brother,
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14:03 - 14:07separating the voice from its source,
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14:07 - 14:09separating cause and effect
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14:09 - 14:13sort of creates a sense
of ubiquity or panopticism, -
14:13 - 14:15and therefore, authority.
-
14:16 - 14:19There's a strong tradition
of acousmatic sound. -
14:20 - 14:26Nuns in monasteries in Rome and Venice
used to sing in rooms -
14:26 - 14:29up in galleries close to the ceiling,
-
14:29 - 14:33creating the illusion that we're listening
to angels up in the sky. -
14:34 - 14:38Richard Wagner famously
created the hidden orchestra -
14:38 - 14:42that was placed in a pit
between the stage and the audience. -
14:42 - 14:47And one of my heroes, Aphex Twin,
famously hid in dark corners of clubs. -
14:47 - 14:52I think what all these masters knew
is that by hiding the source, -
14:52 - 14:54you create a sense of mystery.
-
14:54 - 14:56This has been seen
in cinema over and over, -
14:56 - 14:58with Hitchcock,
and Ridley Scott in "Alien." -
14:58 - 15:01Hearing a sound without knowing its source
-
15:01 - 15:04is going to create some sort of tension.
-
15:06 - 15:11Also, it can minimize certain visual
restrictions that directors have -
15:11 - 15:15and can show something
that wasn't there during filming. -
15:15 - 15:17And if all this sounds
a little theoretical, -
15:17 - 15:19I wanted to play a little video.
-
15:19 - 15:22(Toy squeaks)
-
15:23 - 15:25(Typewriter)
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15:26 - 15:28(Drums)
-
15:29 - 15:32(Ping-pong)
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15:33 - 15:36(Knives being sharpened)
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15:36 - 15:39(Record scratches)
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15:40 - 15:41(Saw cuts)
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15:41 - 15:42(Woman screams)
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15:43 - 15:45(Laughter)
-
15:47 - 15:51What I'm sort of trying
to demonstrate with these tools -
15:52 - 15:55is that sound is a language.
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15:55 - 15:58It can trick us by transporting
us geographically; -
15:59 - 16:01it can change the mood;
-
16:01 - 16:02it can set the pace;
-
16:04 - 16:07it can make us laugh
or it can make us scared. -
16:09 - 16:12On a personal level, I fell
in love with that language -
16:12 - 16:14a few years ago,
-
16:14 - 16:18and somehow managed to make it
into some sort of profession. -
16:20 - 16:23And I think with our work
through the sound library, -
16:23 - 16:29we're trying to kind of expand
the vocabulary of that language. -
16:30 - 16:34And in that way, we want
to offer the right tools -
16:34 - 16:35to sound designers,
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16:35 - 16:37filmmakers,
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16:37 - 16:39and video game and app designers,
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16:39 - 16:42to keep telling even better stories
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16:43 - 16:46and creating even more beautiful lies.
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16:46 - 16:47So thanks for listening.
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16:47 - 16:50(Applause)
- Title:
- Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Frantzolas | TEDxAthens
- Description:
-
Is it bacon frying or is it just the rain? Tasos Fratzolas in his talk deconstructs all the sounds we think we know, explains how our brains are conditioned to embrace the lies and talks about the power of silence.
Tasos Frantzolas grew up in Athens and began producing music at the age of 13. After attending SAE London for Audio Engineering, he enjoyed a brief stint in the UK’s music and post-production industries. In 2006, he returned to Greece to found Soundsnap.com, a sound effects and loop library that has since grown to encompass over one million users and become the most popular sound effects destination worldwide.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDxTalks
- Duration:
- 17:02
Sebastian Betti edited English subtitles for Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Fratzolas | TEDxAthens | ||
TED Translators admin edited English subtitles for Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Fratzolas | TEDxAthens | ||
TED Translators admin edited English subtitles for Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Fratzolas | TEDxAthens | ||
Panagiota Prokopi edited English subtitles for Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Fratzolas | TEDxAthens | ||
Panagiota Prokopi edited English subtitles for Everything you hear on film is a lie | Tasos Fratzolas | TEDxAthens |