Foley Blog Post #42

Foley

Blog Post #42

A Foley artist at work

Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to a films, videos and other post production projects. The reproduced sounds come in different forms, for example they can vary from raindrops to footsteps, squeaky doors and even breaking glass. The best form of Foley art is integrated into a film which gets unnoticed by the audience, this appears that the sound was recorded during the shooting of the film when in fact it was recorded during post production.

Foley sounds are used to enhance the auditory experience of the movie, Foley can also be used to cover up unwanted sounds captured on the set of the film for example passing traffic or wind background noises. Foley is usually performed by Foley artists. Ideally they stand on a 'Foley' stage which consists of an area with a variety of possible surfaces and props and in a 'Foley' studio which is a specialized sound studio. The Foley artists can clearly see a screen which displays the footage that they are supposed to add the sound-fx to, this enables the Foley artists to get the time in synchronization and timing, the actions they are made to do can vary from running to breaking objects.

History of Foley:

Foley is named after Jack Donovan Foley (1891-1967) who began Foley art in 1927. He started working with Universal Studios in 1914 during the silent movie era. When Warner Brothers released their first film with sound (The Jazz Singer), Universal knew they had to create a film with sound so they called for any employees with any radio experiences. Jack Foley became part of the sound crew that turned universals upcoming 'silent' musical (Show Boat) into a musical. Back then microphones could not pick up any more than dialogue so other sounds how to be added after the shot. Foley and his crew projected the film onto a screen and captured the sound effects on a single audio recording, this meant that their timing had to be perfect so that the footsteps and closing doors were synchronized well. Jack Foley created sounds for films until his death in 1967. His basic methods are still used today. Modern Foley art progressed as recording technology progressed for example today sounds do not have to be recorded in one single track of audio. They can be recorded on separate individual tracks.

I hope to use the art of Foley in my final Opening Title Sequence, I believe this will help me produce a better quality of work.

Below is an in depth video of Foley in action where examples are given.
Credit to Earth Touch