CAEL5029: Semester 1, 2021

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Units CAEL5029 Semester 1 2021 [Normal day]

Unit outline_

CAEL5029: Sound Design for Film and Digital Media

Semester 1, 2021 [Normal day] - Remote

Overview

This unit of study is intended to be a broad introduction to the theory and practice of audio production and sound design for moving pictures in both analogue and digital forms. Through viewing and discussing critical excerpts, the unit will offer a grounding in the history, theory and criticism of sound design and its applicability to current film and television production practice. The unit will look at the tools and techniques available to the sound designer, as well as examine the various underlying strategies, processes, and sound design philosophies. You will develop an understanding of critical film sound theory and an apprehension of key concepts including: synchronous and asynchronous sound, synchresis; on-screen, off-screen, and non-diegetic sound; the sound stage, point of view, causal semantic and reduced listening, internal and external logic, audiovisual rhythm and counterpoint. Applications of those principles will be explored in creative practice from sound capture and creation to construction using field/location and studio recording and post-production techniques. The sound designer's role in the process of creation of meaning will be examined in cultural as well as technical contexts of compositional practices. The unit will aim at developing a conceptual design language and individual aesthetic as well as encourage the invention of original sounds. At the completion of this unit you will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of the audiovisual language and demonstrate technical and conceptual skills by producing a short sound for a film project.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Sydney College of the Arts
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Robyn Backen, robyn.backen@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Diana Chester, diana.chester@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Final Project Each student will create a 3-minute Sound Design piece for film.	35%	Formal exam period Due date: 08 Jun 2021 at 12:00	3-minutes
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Project 1: Recorded Sound Project Record a 1-minute piece of audio using field recording equipment	20%	Week 03 Due date: 16 Mar 2021 at 17:00	1-minute
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Project 2: In class presentation Group presentation of Film Scene Sound Analysis	20%	Week 05 Due date: 30 Mar 2021 at 17:00	7-minutes
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Micro Assessments Each group will develop a 1-minute Foley Soundtrack	25%	Week 08 Due date: 27 Apr 2021 at 17:00	1-minute
Outcomes assessed:
= group assignment ?

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Assessment Grading in accordance withe the University of Sydney’s Guide to Grades found at https://sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.html

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Week 1 Lecture: An Introduction to Analog Audio Lab: Location Sound Recording Workshop: How to use the Zoom h4n, and analog signal flow.	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 02	Week 2 Lecture: Location and Field Recording & Microphones, Creating a Narrative with Sound + Screening Lab: Microphone Workshop: We will learn how to use and setup microphones for practice recordings	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 03	Week 3 Lecture: Digital Audio, In Class Critique for Project 1 Lab: Theory of Digital Audio and Intro to Pro Tools I — Interface, connections, plug- ins, basic editing	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 04	Week 4 Lecture: How Sound Shapes Film - Dialogue and Narrative & Sound and Listening Lab: Visiting the Sound Studio	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 05	Week 5 Presentations of Project 2 in Class Lab: Intro to Pro Tools II Atmospheres & Ambiences	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 06	Week 6 Lecture: Foley Design I Lab: Foley Design Workshop	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 07	Week 7 Lecture: Foley Design II Lab: Intro to Pro Tools II	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 08	Week 8 Lecture: Sound FX, Sound Libraries, and Audio Processing Lab: Sound FX, IZotope, and Sound Libraries	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 09	Week 9 Lecture: Soundtrack and Music Lab: MIDI and Music	Lecture and tutorial (4 hr)
Week 10	Week 10 Lecture: The Mix I Lab: Editing and Mixing	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 11	Week 11 Lecture: The Mix II: Bringing the pieces together Lab: Working Session, Students are to bring their projects to class for individual consultations with instructor.	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 12	Week 12 Lecture: Working Session Open Forum Lab: Working Session, Students are to bring their projects to class for individual consultations with instructor	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 13	Week 13 In Class Critique of Final Projects	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Selected chapters from the following books will be assigned throughout the semester. In most cases chapters will be provided for you.

Ament, V. T. (2014). The Foley Grail: The Art of Performing Sound for Film, Games, and Animation. CRC Press.

Chion, Michel (1994). Audio-vision: Sound on screen. (Ed. and Trans. Claudia Gorbman). New York: Columbia University Press

Kassabian, A. (2002). Hearing Film: Tracking Identifications in Contemporary Hollywood Film Music. Routledge.

Owsinski, Booby (2014). The recording engineer’s handbook (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning PTR.

Sonnenchein, David (2001). Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions

Viers, Rick (2008). The Sound Effects Bible: How to Create and Record Hollywood Style Sound Effects. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions

Viers, Rick (2012). The location sound bible: How to record professional dialog for film and TV. Studio City, CA: Michael Wiese Productions

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. The ability to conceive, plan and realize a 3min Sound Design piece that demonstrates conceptual sonic delivery and competency in the use of Pro Tools.
LO2. To be able to critically analyse and problem solve through the production process of a short Sound Design piece.
LO3. To become proficient in Audio Post Production and Pro Tools.
LO4. To communicate their sound design ideas creatively and effectively
LO5. Critically evaluate aesthetics, information & narratives in an ethical and culturally sensitive manner.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

No changes have been made since this unit was last offered

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

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