Sound: adding emotions to artwork - CreativeMindClass Blog
Phil Brookes is a music composer and sound designer of Wales. He has worked with TedEd, Greenpeace, Tate, Medium, Passion, Strangebeast as well as other. His sound and music were also featured at major festivals such as Cannes, BFI London, GLAS and Giffoni and has won multiple awards for his films.
In the video below the interviewer will discuss how Phil came about becoming music and also some of the most useful tips to start in the world of sound. Additionally, you can read about the acoustic details of a fun Socks project that he co-created together with Eva Munnich.
Phil Brookes' background
I'm a composer of music and sound designer from Wales in the UK.
Since I remember, I have always been awed by music, sounds, as well as voices. Sleeping in front of the washer as a kid, hypnotized by its drones (appropriate given the topic I'll be discussing!) is the first time I've heard a sound.
I started mimicking funny accents and voices.
My father was an obsessive hi-fi enthusiast and would use recording equipment to make noises vocally, applying effects like delay and reverb on his voice to make it more enjoyable. I would mimic him and people like Jim Carrey and Robin Williams using a dictaphone to imitate all the hilarious accents and voices they would create.
Prince
My older brother played guitar, and it was his love for music and specifically the multi-instrumentalist Prince that really rubbed off on me. My brother was moving out and left his guitar in the car, and, as an adolescent, I used it to instruct myself to write as well as recording my music. I was attempting to make sounds I had seen on records or television and adding my own sounds to the existing material.
That passion for using whatever resources I had to make or create sound continues to inspire me to keep pushing myself. I love the challenge of learning while I write and my favorite way of writing is to write on the spot. Improvising, experimenting, jamming.
I learned to play piano as well as synth to make the music to 'But Milk is important'.
My obsession took my to The University of South Wales in Cardiff and I got to meet an amazing animator called Eirik Gronmo Bjornsen. He returned to Norway and created a short film featuring Anna Mantzaris called 'But Milk Is Important'.
I taught myself piano and synth to make the soundtrack, and since working on that film, I've been able to take on roles in sound design as well, and I continue to create.
The X-Files Project, aka the "Socks Project"
Recently, I was collaborating alongside the incredible visual artist Eva Munnich in the creation of the initial of three Lemonade Insurance projects I've created the music and sound tracks for.
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The Lemonade videos are hilarious 15-30 second animations which are designed to be looped. Eva's project had a strong sci-fi/extraterrestrial theme to it, and so she had some great ideas about music and sound.
9 times out 10 it is my intention to start by creating the sound, since the ambience I create can be a source of inspiration to create music.
We've also spoken to Eva about the process of making animations and visuals to be used in the X-Files project. Check out the full interview with Eva Munnich.
The voice, Eva liked the voices I'd performed in a prior TedEd animation I made along with Lisa Vertudaches.
In that video, I had pitched up my vocals drastically. The animator thought that this could work for the sock specifically and requested that I shout "yay" in this voice. When I recorded this "yay" I let it rolling and added the "seeya" just before the sock entered the UFO.
Eva liked it, so it stayed in. The other voice-overs were made up according to what I could see.
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If the washer were to speak the volume would be lower.
In order to contrast the loud sound of the sock I decreased my voice in the direction of the washing machine. Since it is a large object which is quite large, I thought if it were to have a voice, it would be able to convey some depth. I mixed these with the foley and mixed with the sound ready for music to be layered onto.
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I loved the X-Files music when I was a kid.
Musically, Eva thought it would be fun to make an idea that was inspired by the theme from The X-Files, which I enjoyed immensely as I loved that music as a kid!
Much like the vast majority of projects I've worked on I use an animatic (almost as a moving storyboard) which the animator provides me, so I can have a rough idea of timings, etc.
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I enjoy sci-fi films as well as game soundtracks.
I listen to a lot diverse styles of music and it includes sci-fi and soundtracks for games, so as well as referencing the X Files theme, I thought about what instruments might work well within this genre.
I used mostly synth-based instruments drones, basses, and drones for the base of the music. The drones were layered to capture the perfect atmosphere, and also representing the light beam from the ufo to abduct our little sock.
Then I created an incredibly powerful drum by using two kick drums along with delay and reverb. I then added a delaying synth that pans from left to right in order to make it seem more engaging. The final synth I played with was the pattern of six notes that is repeated through.
Whistling can be a wonderful human element to add to a piece of music.
The time was right to draw cues from the X-Files and add a delayed piano pattern as well as a whistle. I am a fan of whistling, and it to be a fantastic human element to add to the music. I originally recorded some part of the bass guitar However, I found that they was not the right sounds I wanted to create.
Piano pattern
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The whistle
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Creating an atmosphere in fifteen seconds isn't easy.
I truly enjoyed working with Eva, and this shorter-form style is extremely exciting and fun to create within. Even though it's short however, it's a lot of work and has its own challenges.
Making and creating an ambience within 15 seconds using the music can be a challenge, as well as composing an arrangement that isn't like it was recorded in a hurry is quite an accomplishment as well.
These are challenges I relish, though, and since Eva's animation, I have completed two other really fun Lemonade projects! You can find the process videos for them on my site as well as on on Instagram.
Tips on how to start adding sound to visuals
If you want to start putting sound to an image, there are today more inventive options to accomplish this than ever before, and there's no better time to do it now than today.
- If you've got a creative drive, go with it the point where it will lead to. The most effective way to get started making something is to create things you love and show the people what you have created.
- Message budding filmmakers who have the same interests as you,they are always looking for advice on sound. they might be able to establish a relationship.
- You need to start with a place. I was making ambient music long before I considered the possibility to pursue a career in film and thankfully there was an animation department at my university, but before this, I'd made and recorded enough music and sound that it was logical for me to follow the path that presented it.
- Get to know other creatives; that's what collaboration is about. If you are fortunate enough to live living in a place that is home to film nights, festivals, or other events, go to them and meet individuals.
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