P1. Submarine Analysis and Lesson on Sound 25/02/14

Today we had a presentation from Dave about the use of sound in film. We learnt that sound had many purposes and covered some of them, which were:

- Sound can change the mood of a sequence

- Can be used to inform, for example you could have a helicopter sound off screen and you wouldn't need to see the helicopter itself to know its there

- Sound can change/add to the pace of a sequence (fast, energetic music would exaggerate the fast pace of a chase sequence)

- Sound can be used to trigger an emotional response from the audience

- Sound can be used to create suspence (an example is the theme tune in Psycho or Jaws)


We also learnt about different types of sound such as:

Contrapuntal sound:
Sound that is unexpected and doesn't match the picture.

Diegetic sound:
Sound that is within the narrative world (sound that the characters can hear) such as dialogue, doors slamming, music coming from a stereo.

Non-diegetic sound:
Sound that isn't within the narrative world which the characters can't hear, such as music or a narrators voice over.

Sound Bridge:
Connects two scenes or shots together (in friends when the scene changes there is a specific tune that plays)

Character Motif:
Music that is connected or represents a certain character (James bond theme tune)


We analysed film clips such as Submarine and discussed as a class how we thought the music chosen was effective, and discussed what we thought its meaning could be. We also looked at scenes from films such as Saturday night fever and Toy story, which had different music over the top. This showed that the music really did effect the mood of the film as each song gave off a different emotional response, although the picture stayed the same.

Submarine Analysis 

In this sequence, a young boy named Oliver has just shoved a girl into a pond and is now regretting it. To redeem himself from this mistake, he is writing a guide for the girl, on how to avoid getting bullied in the future. In the lesson, during watching this clip we were looking out for sound, and how it creates purpose, elements and meaning for the audience.

Purpose
The purpose of the music used in this clip is to enhance and portray Oliver's mood and emotions towards the situation, and create a sense of  regret for what he has done. The music is use to draw us into Oliver's mind set, and feel similar emotions to him (as if we were in his place). Then the diegetic sounds are use to make us more aware of (bring to our attention) objects or situations, such as the typewriter, the draw opening and the splash of the pond. The diegetic sound isn't just used just to enhance, but also to inform, for example, the cheering students in the college show us that the act the boy is doing in the playground is impressive.

Elements
Both non-diegetic and diegetic sound is used in this sequence. The non-diegetic is the music, which is used to set the mood and the diegetic sound informs and enhances situations. There is also an L cut used, where the type writer acts as non-diegetic sound and plays over a scene where it is not actually there. This is used to tell the audience the shots they are seeing are in the past and are parts of Oliver's memory's.

Meaning 
The music is emotional, as Oliver regrets what he has done to the girl. For the audience to feel his remorse, they need to be directed in the right direction (by the music choice). The soundtrack used is calm, relaxing, slow, and uses instruments such as a violin to create this mood.