Sound for Film and Video

With the completion or lock of your film, the task of adding sound design and music has officially arrived.
Most of the time we look at it like an empty glass that needs filling. This approach can lead to an audio heavy design ultimately confusing your audience.

Another way I like to approach or look at audio is more like a painting. When there is the proper balance of color you end up with a strong cohesive image.

An often overlooked type of audio is simply no audio!
Now when I say no audio, that doesn't mean exactly that. We still may have our room tone or ambience track. In fact the use of room tone is critical in creating a believable location and maintaining continuity during a scene. Yet often there are moments in a scene where it may be more effective to allow the moment to breath with say just the sound of the room's air conditioner or the ceiling fan whirring overhead.

Silence can be used in a number of ways. One use of silence is as a ponder. We as human beings usually need time to process. A slight pause can set up your viewer allowing them time to ponder as well. Silence is also very effective as a punch-line reaction.
Romantic comedies often use a bit of silence after a punch-line to allow us the viewer a moment to smile or even laugh! I could go on for another paragraph in describing the many uses of silence. I hope this article has you looking at silence as an effective tool in your audio toolbelt.