This short documentary uses both diegetic and non diegetic sound to create a calming and peaceful atmosphere. The diegetic sound used includes dialogue and sound effects coming from within the scene.
The dialogue is being described by the old man in the interviews. These shots of the old man being interviewed have been arranged at a medium close up, and the lighting used is high key. The dialogue from these interviews is also non-diegetic as well as diegetic, in which it then becomes a voice over, in which the sound is then layered over the top of some clips and shots. The purpose of this is to set the scene whilst the old man is talking, which gives the audience a wider picture keeping them interested, rather than just having the same shot of the old man being interviewed.
Other diegetic sounds include the sound effects coming from within the scene;
In this clip, there is a long shot of a bird on a branch, in which the sound of birds can also be heard and so the sound within this shot matches with the bird on the branch and so it is diegetic.
In this clip, there is a medium long shot of a water fountain, in which you can hear the sound of water, and so the sound matches the fountain centered in the middle of the shot and therefore is diegetic sound.
However, these sound effects are not only diegetic, but also non diegetic. In other shots, these sounds can be heard even though we cannot physically see them. for example;
In this shot, we can see an establishing shot of woodland area and we can also hear birds in the background. Even though we can't actually see any birds within the shot, we know they are there because we can hear them and so therefore this sound is also non diegetic.
In this shot, there is a close up of the old man, in which we can hear the sound of water in the background. Again, we can't see the water fountain yet we are still aware its there because of the sound of water and so therefore this sound is also non-diegetic.
Other non-diegetic sound in this short documentary includes the incidental music. This is because it is music we can hear in which we can see is not being created by anything within the shots shown and has therefore been edited on top later and is non-diegetic. The incidental music in itself is relaxing and peaceful in which then creates a calming atmosphere. This atmosphere created is reflected on the topic of discussion in the dialogue, in which in the first 2 minutes the old man goes on to talk about gardens.
Beyond 2 minutes, the old man goes on to discuss the war and tells a story about being a pilot, in which is a heavier, more serious topic discussion than before. The incidental music then becomes more intense, and also becomes slightly louder and off key, particularly as the old man discusses his friends death. The dialogue and the incidental music work alongside to create this intense and serious atmosphere which reflects on the old mans emotions and his story.
4 minutes into the documentary, and the narrative changes again to something a little more light hearted and cheerful, in which the incidental music becomes less intense and off key and becomes a lot quieter and calmer again. This reflects again on the dialogue as the man goes back to talking about the plants and the garden, which is a more calming and peaceful topic of discussion than war and death. The incidental music then fades out a little in the last shot of the documentary, where the old man and his dog are walking away from the camera, in which the
incidental music is present during the credits and fades away at the end.
The non-diegetic incidental music also works along side the camera and editing. The editing is very slow paced and nearly all of the camera shots have used high key lighting, all in which reflect on his calming and peaceful nature. By using high key lighting it automatically creates a brighter, happier feel to the documentary.
As I have learned from analysing this short documentary, sound is important for creating the atmosphere of the documentary. The non-diegetic incidental music/soundtrack can be created depending on the topic discussed by the person being interviewed e.g. happy topic = uplifting, bright music; sad topic = serious/emotional music. This, a long with the camera shots and editing, can all work together to create the right atmosphere appropriate for the documentary.
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