Recording Portfolio (Theory)

Recording Portfolio Theory

Audio Capture
Studio and outside broadcasts

Studio broadcasts use high quality condenser microphones. They use these because broadcasts have to be of very high quality, and condenser microphones deliver this. Condensers are delicate, but in a controlled environment like a studio they can be used. In studio broadcasts, hiding the microphone is a priority - unless you are broadcasting for radio, in which case the microphone doesn't need to be hidden. In a radio station, common microphones include:

• Neumann U87

Used in BBC's Radio 1/2 and the US' NPR, the U87 is an industry standard that has been used by lots of recording artists, like Justin Bieber and The Rolling Stones, but it is very expensive at around £1,800. The U87 is a condenser microphone.

It can switch between 3 polar patterns: Omnidirectional, Cardiod, and Figure 8 (good for interviews with people facing opposite each other.

The U87 can be above or below an audio source to record it, but one of the advantages of the U87 is that it can record audio sources from very close without sounding unnaturally harsh. This is why in studio's like BBC Radio 1's studio, people will sit directly in front of the microphone. It might be a little distracting, but it provides an unparalleled clean sound.

A pop cap is an optional extra for a Neumann U87, since when placed between the sound source and the microphone, it stops 'popping', which is when certain sounds creating during speech, such as 'S' or 'P' cause the sound to clip from being too harsh. A pop cap stops this from happening by using a semi transparent material to stop the sound from getting through to the microphone too fast. The cap also keeps saliva off of the microphone, which can extend its lifespan.

• Shure SM7B

This Shure microphone is great for local stations, as it costs just £300 for good quality. It is a dynamic microphone, and is a little lower quality than the other microphones because of this. However, because of this it can handle higher sound without breaking and is generally more durable. This means it can be used to record sound like instruments near the source, eliminating some background noise. It was used to record Michael Jacksons Thriller.

The SM7B is great because it has a built in pop filter, and it sounds warm and smooth, which is ideal for radio. It does however have a low output level, so the use of a pre-amp might be necessary. The microphone is cardiod, and has a selectable frequency response.

An external pop filter is usually required to stop the audio from capping.

Studio Broadcasts (TV)
Television studios have to capture audio - but not only that, they need to make it look like they aren't. With the use of boom microphones, audio can be captured by staff that aren't in frame. A boom microphone is a large microphone on the end of a pole. It's useful for recording people from above thanks to its shotgun polar pattern that draws sound mostly from the area around the character.
http://www.lennonbus.org/images/blog/post_images/600px-Polar_pattern_directional.png

Sometimes however hiding the microphone isn't as simple as keeping it out of frame. Boom microphones can end up in shot when you don't want them to. For this reason, many shows that are filmed live, such as the news, or shows filmed in front of a live audience, lavalier microphones are used. Lavalier microphones are used to capture audio discreetly, and can be hidden inside somebodies clothing or hair while still picking up sound. The sound is then sent via wire to a radio transmitter, which then sends the sound to an amp.

Often when using a lavalier microphone there is a loss of clarity of sound, since the sound has to travel through material to be picked up. To remedy this, a grille is often attached to the microphone to form a resonant cavity, which creates a high frequency boost, restoring some clarity in a way that electronic equalisation could not achieve. The polar pattern used most commonly for lavalier microphones is omnidirectional, but cardioid is used often too.

Interviews
Interviews are between two sources of sound - the interviewer and the person being interviewed. 2 Microphones may be used, for example if the interview is being video recorded as well as via audio. Lavalier microphones can be used in this case, as it hides the microphone from the viewer. Inside recordings can benefit from the use of a boom microphone - a large microphone on the end of a pole that can be operated by somebody out of shot and pointed at the sound source from above the shot.
Boom microphones operate using the shotgun polar pattern, which picks up sound from two opposing sides. Because of this the shotgun microphone can also be used to pick up sound by being placed in between 2 people.

Your typical radio interview however will use some of the configurations explained above, 2 high quality condenser microphones placed directly in front of each person being recorded, however the configuration is not exclusive to radio interviews, and can be used for interviews where video of the interview is not required.

Outside interviews often use boom microphones and lavaliere microphones, however particularly common for TV news interviews, is portable dynamic microphones that reporters can carry around. These microphones send audio to a receiver, and require no phantom power.

Atmosphere 
The atmosphere can be recorded in different ways. It can be recorded using an omnidirectional microphone placed in the middle of the atmosphere, like in wildlife for example, or for a live performance the atmosphere can be recorded using a standard cardioid microphone as it means you can keep recording the live performance while still catching some of the atmosphere on one mic.

Live Performances and Conferences
Live performances and conferences can each be recorded with a cardioid microphone placed anywhere between the audience and performance. This means you can record a little of the atmosphere at the same time as the performance with just one mic.

For a higher quality approach however, using multiple microphones is necessary. By using a microphone per performer, each instrument or performer can be singled out to one track each in a DAW software allowing you to manage levels and adjust the sound after the event.

A good setup would be to mic every instrument individually with a focus on not capturing sound from the audience, using the output of any singers microphones for example where possible.

Another option is to use the output from a front of house desk, which is where the audio engineer will balance each track on the night.

The audience then has to be captured. You could use an omnidirectional stereo microphone and stand in the middle of an audience, or you could use a directional microphone to record the audience, and face it at the audience from near the stage.

Monologue
A monologue would be a one way conversation, where only one person talks, usually to a crowd in a live scenario, or to themselves in radio/ TV. One way of recording this would be a lavalier microphone hidden in someones hair/ clothing. The lavaliere microphone would then connect to a signal transmitter via a wire, which would then wirelessly transmit to a receiver, which in turn would connect to an amplifier or mixing desk.

Dialogue
Dialogue is recorded often using boom microphones in the shotgun polar pattern when the microphone must be hidden during filming for example. Lavalier microphones can also be used, by hiding them on people using clothing and hair.

For recording two people that aren't moving, a condenser microphone like the U87, often used by radio stations works great because it can capture people talking very well.

For people talking and moving around, a dynamic microphone can be used. Dynamic microphones work great because they don't need phantom power - making them portable when connected to a wireless transmitter and receiver. The best polar pattern for this would be omni directional as the microphone will be on the move.

Group Debate
A group debate would have multiple people talking around an area. Because of this, people could be microphones individually, but for example if people were sitting in a circle, an omnidirectional microphone might make more sense as only one microphone would be needed for good quality sound.

Audience Interaction
The audience should be recorded separately to the act that is happening in front of them. Groups of audiences can be recorded via two microphones either side of the stage facing them. Cardioid polar patterns work well for this.

Participation
Audience participation requires individual recording of people, often with very little time to sort people out, so a TV show host walking around with a wireless dynamic microphone connected to an amp or mixing desk would be ideal for quick recording. If an audience member were to be brought up on stage however, the stage could be mic'd up or the person could have a lavalier microphone quickly placed on their clothes.

Microphone types and characteristics

Dynamic
Dynamic microphones are more sturdy than condenser/ capacitors. This is because of the way they capture sound. They suspend a coil of thin copper wire in a magnetic field that moves up and down and creates a small electric current. The current is much weaker than a condenser microphone, so the output is much smaller. Dynamic microphones also don't need any phantom power.

Capacitor
Capacitors, unlike dynamic microphones break easily. They require phantom power, though some don't require to be plugged in constantly, some can use batteries for example. A capacitor is made with two plates, each with voltage between them. One plate is much thinner than the other and moves up and down when struck by sound waves. By shortening and lengthening the distances between the two plates, the capacitance is changing.

Electric Condenser
Electric condensers are capacitors/ condensers that don't need unlimited phantom power as they use a permanant material to power them, like a battery for example.

Ribbon
A ribbon microphone is a type of microphone that is built closer to the way that the ear works, and therefore sounds more like the way you hear a sound. They create very low levels of voltage that usually must be amplified before reaching a speaker.

A ribbon microphone is more similar to a dynamic than a condenser microphone. The ribbon mic creates a magnetic field similarly, but instead of using a copper coil, a thin strip of corrugated aluminium is used. This allows it to move around more freely.

Carbon
Carbon microphones rely on carbon particles placed behind a diaphragm. It is no longer used but it was the microphone first used when telephones were invented.

Crystal Hand-held
Crystal microphones use a piezoelectric crystal to produce voltage. The crystal bends, stretches, and twists to create voltage. The frequency response of these kind of microphones are not great however.

Stand
Microphone stands hold microphones. Their job is to keep the microphone still to keep the sound consistent, if the microphone moves it will change the recording noticeably.

Tie-Clip
Tie-Clip microphones are the same as lavalier microphones. They are hidden in the clothing or hair of someone in order to record them while still looking professional, for TV talk shows or monologues for example. They are connected to a wireless transmitter, which then sends data to a wireless receiver, which then may go into a mixing desk.

Often a mesh grille is added to the microphone. This creates a resonant cavity, gently boosting high frequency sound, which adds some clarity that would have been lost otherwise.

The polar pattern used in this is omnidirectional.

Rifle
The rifle microphone is also referred to as the shotgun microphone, as it uses the shotgun microphone. It gets its name from its similarity in appearance to a gun barrel. The shotgun microphone records from either end, and as the microphone gets longer, the polar pattern becomes more directional. Long microphones can capture sound from quite far away as it can cancel out sound waves that hit the middle of the microphone.

The rifle microphone's quality is inferior to the dynamic microphone however.

Boom
Boom microphone are in many ways the same as rifle microphones. They use the shotgun polar pattern, but are used on a boom pole. The boom pole is used to capture sound from out of camera shot, above the sound source for example.

Associated Polar Diagrams
Polar pattern diagrams are important for recording situations. A group debate for example might use an omnidirectional polar pattern so that it can pick up sounds from every corner of the room. An interview could use a shotgun microphone placed centrally and slightly above the two people because it picks up sound from opposite ends of the microphone. A live recording however could use a cardioid microphone, which picks up sound from the stage while still taking in a small amount of the crowd.

Radio Microphones
Radio microphones can have many different qualities. A dynamic microphone would sound warm, and a condenser microphone would sound clear. A dynamic could be great for a radio station that's on a low budget, like a Shure SM7B. Condenser microphones are used generally for recording in radio stations, and effort is made to keep the sound from becoming too unnaturally quiet, and more "warm" like dynamic microphones. Reverb can be added, for example. The Neumann U87 is used at BBC's Radio 1. They use the U87 because it can receive sound from a  close sound source without sounding unnaturally harsh.


Pre-recorded Sources

DVD
Extracting audio from a DVD can be done using a computers built in DVD/ CD drive, VLC player, and the program HandBrake that allows you to import audio directly from a DVD.

CD
Sampling from a CD is easy as you can drag audio files from a computers CD drive directly into a DAW like Cubase.

Tape
To record a sample from a tape, you could use a converter connected via USB, or if your cassette player has a line level output, you can use a line level connecter and attach that to your computers sound card.

Hard Disc
Hard discs contain many different types of file format that vary based on compatibility, compression and file size. Any files that cannot be sampled may require the use of an external codec which can be found online.

MiniDisc sound file formats (e.g MP3)
MP3 files can be directly imported into most DAW's. Other sound files may need converting (below)

File Conversion
Most programs that can read audio can convert audio into other formats. iTunes can convert basic files, and VLC can convert most files, and the list can be expanded via plug ins.

As-Live Recordings
Another way to record multiple instruments is to mic them up as you would during a live show - separately mic'd, with them all playing at the same time - using isolation booths and isolating them afterwards in cubase.

This is handy when a band plays better together, but gives you more control over a single track recording.

The drummer would play in an isolation booth as it is would most likely be the loudest instrument.


Concerts
Concerts can be recording directly through the pa channel - or recorded from the feed of the pa channels stereo out, using a hard disc recorder.


Interview Material
Online interviews can be done via your laptops webcam/ microphone.

Commentary
like sporting event commentary live vs not live - feed going to a van
Sports commentary is often captured through a booth, and broadcasted to TV/ Radio, following a similar format to Radio/ TV as explained above.

More mobile setups are available however and are recorded similar to news - on location a van is used to broadcast to a studio or directly to TV/ Radio. Portable cameras and durable, dynamic microphones are used to capture media, which is then sent to the van wirelessly.

Library Material
Musicians and other artists make samples to be used on TV for extra revenue - By putting your work out there people can pay for the rights to use it publicly.

Recording Equipment

Interfaces
Interfaces are used to connect microphones and other inputs into an output, such as your computer. Interfaces allow you to mix and preamp your inputs as you hear them.

Cables and gain stages
A gain stage is the point during an audio signal flow where adjustments to the level of sound can be made. An example would be on a mixing console or a DAW.

Mixer Inputs and Outputs
In professional audio, the main inputs and outputs used for mixing are XLR. This is because professional microphone outputs generally require XLR.

Signal Flow and Levels
Signal flow is the path audio signals take to reach an output. Levels are the volume of sound.

Metering and Monitoring
A sound meter is used to determine the volume of noise. They commonly appear on mixing desks, and are used to monitor and control the level of sound output to an acceptable level.

The Integrity of the Sound Signal
The sound signal should be above a level of signal quality before it is professionally recorded. The more the signal flows, the more possibility there is for loss of integrity. Distortion can occur and noise can be added. A noisy guitar pedal might ruin your signal for example.

Direct Injection
Also known as direct input, direct injection is recording an instrument is plugging an instrument directly into a DI box which then goes into a computer, rather than recording the output from an amplifier using a microphone. This removes the possibility of any kind of distortion effect from the dynamics of the microphone and room surrounding it, plus any background noise.

This however will lead to an unnatural sounding recording, so using effects in moderation such as distortion and reverb is necessary. 

Multi Track
Multi track recording means recording several tracks at once. By doing this, you can capture extra quality from instruments like drum sets, by using a bass microphone to record the snare for example, which will give the lower end of the recording more quality. The rest of the drum kit can then be recorded normally, whether separately or with just one other microphone. By using a multi track recording, you can collect multiple samples and combine them without losing any of the control you would have had by using them individually, like mixing and mastering tools.

Stereo and Single Track Recording
Single track recording is used for bands that perform better when they can hear each other. Multi track provides more control over the final mix, so is generally more desirable, but when the added control is not worth sacrificing the bands synergy together, single track should be used. Single track recording also saves time. Single track recordings can later be singled out as much as possible later on so that you can have some control over the final mix.

Analogue/ Digital Recording
Analogue recording using tapes is an old way to record. Lots of people say today's music doesn't sound right because of the different way of recording then. Analogue recordings sound warmer, and more pleasant. Digital recordings however don't sound the same. There is a good reason for this. Digital recording is much more accurate, and with that gain in accuracy the warmth is lost. Digital recording also has a higher range of frequencies that can be picked up. 

Linear/ Non-Linear
Linear recording is when recording has to be in order. Recording to tapes for example and most stereo recorders have to be done in a chronological order. A non linear recording would be using a computer to record. Samples can be created and rearranged in any order using a DAW.

CD
CD's carry data. They come in a couple formats, CD-RW and CD-ROM. CD-ROM's are CD's that can only be written to once, as the data is burnt into the disc. They can, however, be read many times.

A CD-RW however is a rewriteable CD. It costs much more than a CD-ROM however, and in either case of CD's hard drives can carry much more data. CD's can also be scratched easier.

DVD
A DVD can carry more data than a CD, put per disc, CD's are much cheaper, which is why they're used most commonly for album releases. A CD player can only play CD's, whereas a DVD player can play both CD's and DVD's.

Hard Disc
Hard Discs are commonly used to store data in mass amounts on PC's. They can store terabytes of data, but before data can be read it must be loaded into the RAM.


Recordings

Voice-Over
For a TV ident, I needed to do a voice-over that announces the next program to be shown on a TV channel.

Track 1: Voice-over
The recording is of somebody announcing the next program. It was recorded with an AKG C1000S condenser microphone plugged into the mixing desk. After the initial recording, we found that we would need a pop filter as the audio would pop during certain parts of the voice-over.

Guitar Recording
The techniques used to record this instrument are the same techniques that would be used in a multi track recording - each part would be mic'd up separately and the mixing would be done separately.

Track 1: Acoustic guitar - a small NT55 pencil microphone was used to record the acoustic guitar about 4 inches from the sound hole, from the left and facing inward.

Track 2: An identical matching NT55 was used to record the acoustic guitar in a similar setup from the right. This was done for the track to have a left/ right channel and become a stereo recording. Both tracks were then mixed.

Foley / Sound Effects Bank
For my TV ident, I used a combination of tools to create the sound of a rubix cube spinning - metal, scraping across metal.

Track 1 (foley):
Track 1 is made using a staple - dropped onto a piece of metal, later reversed using Cubase. Other sound effects are a hard drive being scratched with a staple. Reverb has been added to the track to give the impression of empty space to the ident. All recordings were done using an AKG C1000S as it gave a high quality sound.

Track 2 (sound effects):
An AKG C1000S attached to a portable recorder was used to record each sound effect. We used a popcap as defence against unwanted noise and wind. All sounds were recorded close, particularly when reverb could be a factor in empty areas.

In Situ Recording

Recording Portfolio

Recording portfolio

Voiceover project

Summary
For an upcoming TV ident media project, I need to record a short voiceover lasting around 10 seconds. 

Microphone: SM58
I'll use the SM58 to record the voiceover because it's great for recording vocals.

ADR / Commentary

Summary
I'll recreate dialogue for a short TV episode, like a soap opera for example. I'll also need to create sound effects for the scene. I'll use a similar setup as my ident foley described below.

Music Recording
Fleetwood Mac's Landslide
Summary
I'll record a multitrack recording cover of Fleetwood Mac's Landslide.
Vocals -
I'll use an AKG 414 C to record the vocals, which is good for female vocals. I'll be adding some reverb later on in Cubase.

Acoustic guitar - I'll use two pencil microphones to record the acoustic guitar. I'll aim each microphone at the sound hole of the guitar from each side.


Foley
Summary
For my ident, as well as a voiceover I will need some sound effects, recreated using foley. While I could use a rubix cube to create sounds, since the cube I will be recreating will appear to be made from a mixture of glass and metal, I have chosen to recreate the sound of metal using foley. I'll probably scrape metal cutlery against each other to create this sound. I may also use some reverb to give the feel of an empty room to the sound effect.

Microphone: AKG 414 C
The AKG is great for recording high frequency sounds. It is for this reason I have picked the microphone. While a condenser microphone might be desired for higher quality sound, there is none available that picks up the sound as well as the AKG.

Due to problems with the recording studio I have chosen to use a Shure SM58 microphone. This will still pick up sound well however, and like the AKG, is a dynamic microphone. Therefore, the high sound pressure levels are less likely to damage the microphone.

I may use a pop cap. This will stop the audio from being picked up too loudly and clipping.

Track 1 summary: I used the sound of a paperclip dropping onto a table for a sound effect. I then reversed the recording, which i thought created an interesting sound.

Track 2 summary: I scraped a metal knife and fork against each other. This created the sound of metal grinding against itself which I thought would be a great way of making the sound of a rubix cube turning.

In Situ Recording

Research skills - People Just Do Nothing Project

Bibliography

http://overnights.tv/public/content/BARBReportedChannels

http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Inbetweeners-Movie-The#tab=summary

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_films_in_the_United_Kingdom

Research on “People Just Do Nothing”

A surprising amount of TV shows that were made into movies were actually for kids, according to this Wikipedia article:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_television_programs

Many TV shows that became movies are now hugely popular franchises as they have benefited from the wider audience that cinema brings

Take Batman for example. It was adapted from comics into a TV show, then into movies, then back into a kids TV show, then into a grittier movie with much more realism, and remains relevant even after all the years of its existence.

According to the list at

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_films_in_the_United_Kingdom

The Inbetweeners movie sold £45 million in the UK box office, making it the 22nd highest earning film in the UK since 1989. This is important because the two movies not only share a similar target audience, but they also were both adapted from a TV series into a movie.

The Inbetweeners Movie was very succesful, as could be People Just Do Nothing.


Research types

Research is important and comes in many forms. Some are easier to work with, some are easy to trust and some are just wrong.

The main types of data:

• Quantitative
• Qualitative
• Primary research
• Secondary research

Quantitative

What it means:

Quantitative means that the research is numerical. It could be a graph showing that person one has 3 t-shirts, and another has 4. It could be an averaging of several numbers, or it could be raw data in a table.

What it’s good for:

Quantitative results are great for comparing one quantity to another similar. One movie at the box office could have grossed 1 million. This might sound huge, but without comparison, we don’t really know. By comparison, one film could have made just £5,000, making the 1 million huge. Another film might have made 6 million, making the film sound relatively smaller. The average gross for a film at the box office made in the same month however could be £100,000, which would make the film very successful.

Qualitative

What it means:

Qualitative data is data that is not put into numbers, instead being in words. If somebody were to read this document to find out about the different types of data, the data would be quantitative, rather than qualitative. Somebody talking about research is quantitative. If this document were instead a graph, with numerical evidence on why quantitative data is much more useful and popular than qualitative data, then the information would be qualitative. If I talked about why the figures matter and explained why certain numbers correlate, the document would both be quantitative and qualitative. The biggest underlying difference between the two documents would be the lack of subjective and opinionated statements made in numerical, qualitative data.

 

What it’s good for:

Qualitative data is subject to opinion. While research could be objective and no longer subject to opinions, it wouldn’t tell you much. Qualitative data is good for sharing opinions with data. A graph about car sales makes a lot more sense when an engineer or a car salesman gives context to it. Qualitative data in the wrong hands can be harmful – data can be spun to show a completely different side of the story. The media can use this, for example. 10,000 kids could have been kidnapped in ten years. That might sound like a terrifying statistic, but the media could be hiding that only 6 of these kidnappings happened in the country. The reason statistics like these are hidden could be for multiple reasons, like intentionally covering it up to sensationalize and grab the attention of audiences, or statistics could have not been well researched enough.

 

Primary

What it means:

Primary research is research collected first hand. That means research you have collected from your own experimentation or observation. You might notice that 10 in 100 cars that cross a motorway in Birmingham and white, or you might discover that most cars CO2 emissions average way above what they should be for the environment.

What it’s good for:

Primary research is incredibly trustworthy as you can much more directly control and minimize the potential of human error.

 

Secondary

What it means:

Secondary research is research acquired from a third party – Apple sold 6 million iPhones for example.

What it’s good for:

Secondary research isn’t always trustworthy, but it is often data that cannot be easily obtained any other way. For example, Asda might have found out that 7 million plastic bags were used last year.


People Just Do Nothing Market Research





This graph shows the average viewing time for BBC3, the host of People Just Do Nothing, as well as E4, our comparison point for making a TV comedy for teens as they host The Inbetweeners.
Also shown is BBC2 and Sky1, both major competitors to each other.


The graph demonstrates some viability to the movie. Based on the viewing time alone, you could assume that BBC3's programs could not capture their target audience's attention for long enough - at 18 minutes on average - to make a movie viable. However, E4 hosts the Inbetweeners, and their average viewing time is only 4 minutes longer. Since E4 had incredible success with their comedy "The Inbetweeners", it's clear that making TV into a movie makes sense.


This research is secondary, but we have good reason to believe it is telling the truth as it comes from a company that collects research exclusively, and is the trusted figure of the industry.


When is the best time to release the movie?
In December of 2015, the viewers of BBC3 watched the channel for an average of 20 minutes when they tuned in. In June, viewers tuned in for an average of 19 minutes, showing little or no correlation between summer/ winter and viewing time. In fact, the average viewing time does not change much at all in the year of 2015.


The lowest the channel has dropped is to 17 minutes in September, dropping a whole 2 minutes from the month before. My theory on this is that since BBC 3 target a younger audience, many people are on holiday - The summer holidays end in September.


For this reason, I think the best time for the movie to be released is around August. The audience is clearly influenced by the summer holidays, and while the average viewing time may drop towards the end of the summer holidays, the viewers are still watching towards the start, and with so much free time, the movie will most likely get more viewers.

Sound and Picture

Film
Films are produced by a huge team when made well. While a book could be written by one person, films usually require many departments to produce high quality video.

Films start with a script. The writers will work on a script, and once that is done casting will start. Casting means finding actors to hire in a production. During this, a location scout may be finding locations to film at. Once filming starts, there will usually be a team for lighting, filming, sound recording, and various special effects crews. Special effects can be any effect produced for a film and is usually divided into 3 forms - Physical effects teams, teams that make effects produced during filming, such as a blood pack set to burst underneath an actors shirt must be on set at the time. Sound effects is much simpler, they will work on sound effects, sometimes using foley, and sometimes they will also create music. Visual effects crews will create artificial, computer generated imagery to add to a final edit of the film. Editors will then piece together each take to find the best one, build the final edit for the film, composite special effects onto the film, along with sound effects and music, then colour grade/ correct the film. Directors will also control the cast and teams to create their creative vision, and producers will work on distributing, financing, and marketing/ advertising the film.

Films usually last between an hour and thirty minutes to two hours, but can go on longer. High budget films usually go straight to cinemas, then to DVD, then to television.

The purpose of film is to entertain, tell a narrative, to make money, or a combination of all of these.

Television
Televisions view video, at it's most basic form. They can usually play DVD's or less recently VHS' but are typically best known for streaming video through satellite and box sets. A television production is usually less budgeted than a film because it has to be produced regularly. A soap for example could be on more than once a week, and is therefore on a tight deadline. Programs can have very different structures on how often they are made and how each episode follows the last. A sitcom like Friends or The Big Bang Theory have story driven episodes that are self contained per episode, so you wouldn't need to watch the last ten episodes to understand the story, although it may follow a long story over, time when a major event like a main character gets married for example.

The reason TV has so many programs with self contained narratives is because there is a wider audience that way. More people can tune in to a program if they know what's happening.

The alternative to this is a story that follows on from each episode like The Walking Dead or Game of Thrones, both of which have been extremely successful regardless of their narrower audience. These shows are called serials.

Recently television has made its way online, through companies such as Netflix, Now TV and Sky.

Web
The web is the most recent major development in film history. The web is full of user made videos through YouTube, the biggest video hosting platform on the internet. Many people have made a living through ad revenue on their videos, some amassing millions of viewers per day per video. The web has created other jobs too. The creation of the web has allowed for a new kind of series - a web series. A web series is similar to a TV series but usually more closely resembles a Serial. The web makes a great place to market to the newer generations that use it. The most successful web shows are aimed at younger people, like Video Game High School. Video Game High School or VGHS for short, is the most popular web show so far. Created by a team that regularly post to YouTube, the team called Rocket Jump have experimented with the many new methods of distribution that have appeared, they stream with ads online, they allow people to pay to access a downloadable ad free stream, and they stream their program through Netflix. So far their program has been viewed across many devices 100 million times.

Distributing their program online allows for the creators to stream at a resolution of 1080p, the equivalent of Full HD TV, 4k (Ultra HD, the equivalent of 4096 x 2160 pixels) and 60 frames per second, compared to the standard of TV, 24 frames per second.

The web has also had negative side effects on the film and TV industry. The UK box office is estimated to be losing £220m a year due to movie piracy, the act of illegally downloading movies.

The purpose of the web in film is the easy sharing of video through websites like YouTube, Vimeo and torrent platforms.

Hand-held devices
Phones, tablets and digital cameras can now capture in resolution that would have rivalled high quality cameras 10 years ago. This allows for people to post to social media like Twitter, Facebook and Instragram from their phones. Many people record YouTube videos on their devices and have made a career from them.

Handheld devices are important because by being user friendly and easily accessible, they introduce older generations of people to technology, and therefore the internet and its video content.

It also introduces lots of younger people to the internet. Kids who are not old enough to own a computer often now own smart phones using which they can watch videos on.

Handheld devices create new markets for filmmaking. A kids series can now be released every week and be very successful, whereas there would be no market 10 years ago. Similarly, handheld devices introduce older generations to some of the uses of the internet. For example, lots of older people watch Coronation Street. Looking online, they will find that they can watch episodes on demand. Now they can catch up on their watching for free.

Video (VHS)
VHS stands for Video Home System. Up until a few years ago, it was the most popular storage and distribution of movies and TV shows. Video was printed onto a magnetic tape, and placed into a "cassette", a plastic box to hold the tape.

VHS served as the primary form of sharing video. The BBC even used to use them. Eventually the DVD took over, as they were much more reliable and had much less data restrictions.



Studio and location
Studios are created to make high quality sound in a controlled environment free from wind and other unwanted noise. Creating a studio is first about keeping noise out, so patching any cracks in a building will help stop sound from escaping and unwanted sound from coming inside. Because of this sound studios have to be well ventilated, as there should be no other cracks where oxygen can enter, as this would mean sound could escape. Elevated floors also help, as it will decrease vibrations.

Sound studios also need to have some diffusion. If sound hits a solid wall, it will bounce off the wall creating an echo. By having furniture or carpeted flooring the sound will diffuse (spread widely) because it hits a surface that is not flat. Carpets however do not absorb low frequency sounds.

Studios also need the right equipment, like a computer, headphones, an audio interface, a Digital Audio Workstation like Cubase or Ableton, microphones, a pop filter to stop low frequency sounds from your mouth hitting the microphone, some bass traps to absorb low frequency sounds and finally a MIDI controller.
Interviews
Interviews can often take place outside, which is why using a shotgun microphone or microphone with a supercardioid pattern that records only directionally is necessary. The reason for this is because you want to capture as much of the interview audio as possible with the least amount of background noise possible. Pointing the microphone at the interviewee means that you are capturing audio from his/her direction without capturing audio from behind and some of the side. A shotgun microphone works much better than a super cardioid standard microphone, because while the shotgun microphone typically uses super cardioid pattern, a shotgun mic is much longer as it goes into a tube that prevents sound from the side entering the microphone. Foam windshields on the microphone will help stop wind, but not by much. To make the wind noise attenuation much better, a larger foam windshield made of fur, the Rycote windjammer for example is helpful.

If recording with one microphone between the interviewer and the interviewee, a figure of eight microphone is required. The figure of eight polar pattern records directionally at opposite ends, making it perfect for recording sounds from opposite sides.

Presentation
A presentation is an event in which a product or service is introduced to an audience. People use many tools to highlight the features of the product or service being sold. Presentations are used very often in businesses. Large scale presentations are often used to present ideas to the public. Apple hosts one of the most famous events. They use presentations to present their new product ranges to people.

Voiceover
Doing a voiceover means recording someones voice and applying it to a video. It can be used to narrate a documentary for example, or it could be used to salvage footage you can't use because of background noise.

Voiceovers should be great quality, as they can be created in studio conditions.

ADR is a technique called Automated Dialogue Replacement. It means recreating dialogue from a film in studio conditions in order to achieve a better quality recording. It isn't always necessary, and it isn't always for sound quality purposes. Sometimes the script can be changed slightly to adjust the tone of a scene, and when you have a large team it's not as simple as recording it again on location.

Drama dialogue
Drama dialogue is very similar to a voiceover in that it should be high quality.
In theatre the commonly used microphones are called half supercardioid. The difference between supercardioid and half supercardioid is that half supercardioid only picks up 180 degrees of supercardioid. This is great for placing on the floor at the edge of the stage as they are very sensitive to sound. They can be quite far away from the sound they need to pick up and still work well. Being supercardioid, they will pick up the sound in front of them (The stage/ actors) and very little of the audience behind them. This kind of microphone has an advantage over other microphones because it can lie on a surface without picking up sound from the vibrations coming from the surface.

Ambient sound
Ambient sound is usually used in filmmaking. It means taking a high quality recording of the sound coming from a scene. Often people go to great lengths to record people without background sound interference. Recording ambient sound separately is a great way to give life to a recording intended to be outside, and recording it separately under controlled circumstances allows for a higher quality recording overall.

Alternatively, ambient sound can be used to accompany a presentation for example.

Ambient sound is often stereo recorded to add life and depth to the recording. Stereo recording means recording separately for left and right tracks in order to combine them later. An example of a stereo recording microphone would be the Audio-Technica AT2022. You may need to use a wind screen depending on your location.
Sound Effects (SFX)
Sound effects are usually recorded in a studio, with exceptions. Sound effects are recorded with a technique called "foley". Foley means creating sound effects in various ways in a studio. If you used a salt shaker to make the sound of rain rather than rain because of budget, then you are using foley. Foley is important and if you've watched a movie, you have heard the use of foley once.
Stationary and moving sound sources


Task 3
Evidence research into how audio and visuals come together in a final production.

Diegetic
Diegetic sound means sound that exists within the frame of the film. A boat tipping over, a creaky door, or footsteps on dirt for example. The sound has to exist within the realm of the film, while being in frame. It could be dialogue for example, it could be footsteps moving across the floor, as long as it's in frame.
Non-diegetic
Non-diegetic means it does not exist within the realm of the film. If a song plays and you can't see a radio or hear any audio processes like reverb, it's most likely non diegetic. It's not always easy to be certain whether sound is diegetic or non-diegetic, as sometimes filmmakers might try to trick you.
External diegetic
External diegetic audio is any audio that can exist within the realm the film takes place in, but it does not have to be in frame. If a gunshot is heard but you don't see a gun, if a bird chirps but you can't see a bird, or if a character screams but you can't see the character, then that sound is external diegetic sound.
Mood
The mood, or tone, is the expression the film is trying to make. If you can hear gentle piano sounds, and rain, the mood being set could be melancholic, if a cop duo drive down a road at top speed, and you can hear shrill guitar solo, the mood being set is energetic. Mood usually relies on sound, but can rely on visual cues. One type of programme that relies heavily on mood is a reality TV show. A character can go from well liked by the cast to hated at the click of a few buttons. If a character makes a comment about an item of clothing, the cast could agree. If the sound is disabled on this video, and a clip of somebody rolling their eyes is shown, along with a clip of somebody staring at the character, which could be from half an hours worth of filming ago, then the mood has been manipulated to make the tv show more interesting.
Meaning
Meaning is about representation. In the movie The Truman Show, the character Truman is held captive in a world created around him, full of actors. He lives in a dystopian world where he is led to believe he is living normally when in reality, he is being filmed for an entertainment reality show broadcast across the world.

Truman eventually discovers that he lives in this world, after being given a few clues that have slipped by the production cast, like a light falling from the sky, a relative believed to be dead showing up on the street, a radio station that broadcasts his life and an inability to break out of the script of his life. When he tries to escape, he nears the edge of his world. He finds a door. The door is not glowing, it is not happy, it is dark and black. The door represents his feelings of the unknown. The door is a symbol of his soon to be freedom. It is not incredible, it is not gloomy, it is nothing, because Truman has no idea what's behind it, but it is his human nature to go and see what's behind it. Representation is used in the majority of the films you see, but unless you are looking for it, you won't see it.

Representation is about how an object can mean something you might not have originally thought.
Illusion
Many tools in film are used in creating illusion for the viewer. In horror films, one of the most used tools for illusion is lighting. Hard lighting can create intense shadows that cast across actors faces, revealing very little about the scene and actors. When movies do this, imagination runs wild. In many scenes of horror movies, harsh lighting is used to reduce the cost of films. In the famous film Alien, one very important scene (search "Alien cat scene") is used incredibly well. In the scene, it is made clear that the alien is nearby through illusion. Whereas the alien may not even be on set during most takes, you can sense the aliens presence through many tools used by illusion. You can hear the Alien, but you cannot see it. The actors suggest the presence of the alien with only their eyes pointing towards an area of the scene that is not visible. The scene lasts more than a couple minutes, but the alien only shows up for around 10 seconds. Instead of having to pay the 12 puppeteers required for the day, they may have only had to hire them for a few hours.

Acoustics

Indoor acoustics
Indoor acoustics is the acoustics properties of indoors. Indoors, as opposed to outdoor acoustics generally have a lot of reverberation. This is because walls and ceilings are flat, causing sound waves to bounce off of them. You may find that rooms with lots of furniture have much less reverberation. This is because sound is absorbed by furniture.

Sometimes certain objects vibrate, because their resonant frequency is reached. If a frequency is emit from a source that matches the resonant frequency of an object, the object will vibrate and produce sound at the same frequency, making certain frequencies louder.

Outdoor acoustics
Outdoor acoustics are slightly different. You may get a little reverberation from floor reflection, however in open areas, dealing with external factors of sound is usually not so much of an issue. The main factor is wind, and other ambient noise. In a soundproof room, this wouldn't be a problem, but outside you will need to deal with birds, people and wind. To record outside, use a pop shield in order to prevent the sound level from clipping, and a wind shield in order to pick up less wind.

Simulated acoustics
Acoustic properties can be applied via computers. Reverb can be applied to samples artificially, along with the effects of resonance.

Composition - Samples

https://soundcloud.com/user-822226810/composition-samples