Sound Design and Editing Fundamentals
This domain tests how a soundtrack is built and balanced after the shoot. Expect questions on diegetic versus non-diegetic sound, Foley, ambience, mixing, and edit points for audio.
The layers of a scene
- Dialogue: the primary story carrier; keep it intelligible.
- Ambience/atmos: continuous background that places the scene.
- Foley: performed everyday sounds (footsteps, cloth, handles).
- SFX: designed or library effects.
- Music: emotional and rhythmic guidance.
- Silence: a deliberate dramatic tool.
Diegetic sound exists in the story world (a radio in the scene); non-diegetic sound does not (score, narrator).
Mixing basics
Balance levels, pan for space, use EQ to remove rumble and masking, compress for consistency, and add reverb to place sound in a room. Watch loudness targets for the platform. Keep dialogue on top; duck music under speech. Save stems for future remixes.
Worked example
A kitchen argument. Start with production dialogue, add fridge hum and street bleed as ambience, Foley the kettle and footsteps, then place a low tension drone non-diegetically. Reduce music 6 dB under the loudest lines and check the mix on both headphones and a small speaker. Reasoning: layers create realism, while the mix hierarchy protects the story.
Traps that cost marks
- Music louder than dialogue.
- Calling all effects 'Foley'.
- Forgetting that silence can be a sound decision.
- Mixing only on one playback system.
- Confusing diegetic with non-diegetic.