The importance of sound in Action Films

Written by Jamie Stevens

When it comes to using sound in action films there are a lot of key things to consider but the
main quote that ties this all together is George Lucas “sound is half the image” which gives
you more of an idea of how important music and sound (foley as well) play a big part in
action films. Sound (mainly music) was introduced into film in the 1894s this was thanks to
Eadweard Muybridge who saw sound to emphasis things like horse riding and fencing. With
him experimenting with this for his zoopraxiscope which is what made Tom Edison try and
add both of them together with film to create sound within for a better experience. When
making sound Edison used something called the Kinetoscope which was a personal viewing
device which had pulleys and gears that would pull film with the music playing in the
background. When the early 1920s came along a lot of the techniques used by Edison were
put into the development of the Vitaphone. The Vitaphone was made by Warner bros and
its sister studio First National. This device was mainly for commercial use and feature films
back in the 1920. The production lasted from 1926 to 1931. At the time the sound was
recorded onto a shellac disk which could only hold five minutes of film at a time. After the
Vitaphone was made to more systems that incorporated Edison techniques emerged the
Movietone (1927) and the photophone (1927). After a few personal competitions both
companies agreed that these two systems were standard for all major American film studios.
Europe had their systems, Tobis Klangfilm and Tri Ergon systems, for there major film
companies. This then saw the leap for the synchronization of sound and film. By the late
1930s and early 1940s sound and projection technology had already existed and people who
went to the theatre who wanted to see films wanted to have the serial of being in a theatre
that when surround sound came it to give those audience members which would give them
more of an epic audio when they were watching the movie. When it came to the early 1950s
Dolby improved the system of how sound fills a room so that the experience is more serial,
when finished with the change in audio audiences were treated to the first Wizard of Oz and
then when Star wars was premiered in 1977, those who lived in small town could feel the
same amount of sound from the screen as those who lived in the big city with the big
screens. From 1894 to now sound (and foley) has changed very dramatically and with the
new sound of the future will change even more for different ways that haven’t yet been
explored and could change sound for what we know it today. This also goes back to George
Lucas’s quote “Sound is half the image” to show how sound can change just depending on
what is happening within the film and how the action can be portrayed with sound to make
it more of experience for watching because of the action on screen.

Sound has developed from each film that uses it from those from 1920 and the films that we
watch today. Many films like The Matrix and James Bond use sound and music to convey
both characters and the plot line of the story. This sound has changed from actually
happening in 1964 for Goldfinger to now being recorded away from where the action is
actually happening. This how changed how we view sound, both music and foley in films.
With films like James Bond the music has to tie in with the type of character that he is, this
makes the audience aware of that. Without the music James bond is just a man in a suit with
a nice car. Music and foley enhance that for a character. It’s the same for batman in the Dark
night, the music behind him and the sounds that are being made give the audience and
understanding into the character. Sound and foley help us as watchers understand the type
of person is being conveyed in front of us. Sound doesn’t necessarily have to be there to
outline a character, most of the time the foley, which is the sound in the background can
show us what type of situation they are in and what is usually go on in the background. A
prime example of this is Star Wars: The Force Awakens which uses sound to create both
effect on the viewer and the effect on the character within the film. The use of foley make it
more real to watch as the sound is echoing around the room giving us as the listener a better
experience. Going back to when developers of sound in film came up with the idea to have it
immersive in the experience, the same type of techniques are still being used today to
create that but in a different way as technology has advanced since the 1950s. More and
more of these foley sounds are being used, most actions films have a fight scene in them
which most of the time there is nothing actually happening, and you can only hear the foley
behind all this. The main reason for foley being used in scenes where characters are having a
big fight is so that no one can actually get hurt, this gives the audience more of a picture of
what is happening in front of them because without this no one would know what it is that
was happening in front of them, and it would be all a complete blur without that. Another
great action film that uses sound very effectively is Jurassic World. This is because in the film
they have dinosaurs, and they became extinct millions of years ago so it helps having the
technology that we have today to make it as though they exist in real time, so that us as an
audience watching it can feel the complexity of what it must be like if there wasn’t any
sound as we would struggle to understand the story. This is why we have to have foley in the
background of films, especially in action films because of the type of action going on screen
and what it is the director of the film wants the audience wants to see. The main thing to
think about when it comes to sound and foley is most of the time it is edited and remastered
before it is actually put it into the film. Going back to what directors want when it comes to
making a film the more important is how to take the sound that they want to use and make
it so it would fit in with what it is on screen. Sound in the future will be a lot different to
what it is today, it will be more developed and most of the time made by AI unlike it being
made by humans in today’s world. AI is becoming more and more accessible, and this will
have a lot of more effect on what sound today was like when humans had to use certain
things to make a certain sound versus what AI will do in the future. Everyday a new way of
making sound is invented/discovered and more and more of that will happen into the
future, so who know what 1oo years will be like

The thing with sound is it one of the most important things to consider when making any
type of film including action. This is because without sound we won’t be able to understand
what it is that is happening in front of our eyes wherever we are sitting, at home or in a
cinema with a big screen and different speakers. Sound (and foley) are very important with
many movies as it almost tells the story. This is because of the type of music being used as
there are many ways one song or one sound can be interpreted into one thing. Using music
in action films makes us feel like it’s real, like with all the James Bond films the music behind
that makes us realise the character he is and what he does. It’s the same for any other types
of films like Star Wars or Fast and Furious, the type of sound can depend on the type of
character and the type of situation. The use of sound in movies has changed along with the
type of technology, like I was saying before whenever something in the movie world changes
so does all the equipment that make sound and films scenes. This has given me more of an
understanding as to what sound is used for and how over time it has changed dramatically
that sometimes you don’t even know how it’s being made.