In this clip there are 3 types of sound: music, stock effects, and sync sound. During the dramatisations music and sound effects make up the soundscape, where the sound effects match actions on screen.

The sound effects are generic ones that sound as if they were taken from a library of stock sounds – the same for the music – particularly the glittery sound effect. The music – with the lyrics in subtitles – is likewise generic romantic music. Both the music and sounds act to parody the actions on screen by accompanying them.

All of the dialogue in the clip is the sync sound recorded with the camera in the interviews and footage of the three subjects. Other footage is then layered on top of this. The audio here would have been recorded with a shotgun microphone as no microphones are visible.

The Leacock reading was really fun to read, simply because of it’s anecdotal style. Though a point that was really interesting for me was his recollection of working on Jazz Dance. I’ve always preferred real time filming, and to read about Leacock’s experience of that performance was exciting. With the prospect of making our own documentaries later this semester, filming like this in real time is something I’m considering using as part of filming.

The other point that connected with me was the paragraph on typical, contemporary documentary filming techniques where “four or five large men come busting into our tiny apartment with tripods, cameras, microphones, booms, and light-stands.” The idea of filming in such a static mode seems boring, if not distasteful; not lending itself to the potential for documentary to show an existing world rather than one constructed by a crew. That territory belongs to drama, and the risk of missing a moment or not capturing it quite right is part of the thrill of filming in real time.

It certainly gave off a strong atmosphere, one of sobriety (apart from the shot of the boys drinking). The woman in the armchair was a very interesting character in her opinion of her own mortality, and that she had chose to move to Broken Hill to knowingly die someday. It was a little shocking, yet refreshing to hear about someone talk about their life view so openly.

The woman and her dog, and the middle aged man both gave off similar vibes of contentedness that helped contribute to the film’s honest mood.  Though I’ve never been to Broken Hill myself, it’s depiction seemed genuine, even if tinged by a creative use of abstract music to amplify that feeling. The camerawork, while a little shaky, I feel worked well with this view of a town that is a little unnerving in it’s remoteness.

Though I’m struggling to recall much more about the piece, I do feel the inclusion of the young men drinking detracted from the strength of the film’s overall atmosphere. Bar this one choice, the film was enthralling to watch in it’s disconcertingly honest characters and barren landscape. The opening and ending shots were especially pleasant, and a nice clean way to open and close the film visually, and thematically.

Cars, Trams, Birds, Footsteps, Cash Registers. The sounds came out surprisingly clear, considering the noise levels in the CBD. I like the footsteps in particular, because they are sounds that are familiar, but never really foregrounded. It is quite a satisfying sound. The beeping Cash Registers was a good one too, Carl’s idea, because the beeping sound is synonymous with grocery stores and so suggests a vivid image of the queue at one.

Together these sounds might portray a crowded, busy city space, particularly because of the noise level present in each. They might be improved by simply a less sensitive gain setting though, to better isolate each sound. At the same time though, this could reduce the oppressive atmosphere of noise audible.

I was definitely confused right from the start. The dissonant voices caught me off guard, and at first I thought something was wrong with the recording, or I had broken my computer. After I’d realised this was part of the recording, I tried to listen to each voice alone, but this was made hard by the alternating levels of each voice. When Gould himself starts speaking it was a relief to hear a dominant voice. As a hook, the opening seemed confusing.

Listening to Gould’s voiceover was much more pleasant and his script proved to be a lot more engaging than the strange opening soundscape. The following narration by the other participants was just as interesting, like a well told story. In that way it seemed delightfully simple a piece, and thus easy to follow along.

Drinking For England excerpt was very interesting to watch. The use of music and scripted shots helped accentuate the drama of the man’s alcoholism in a poetic way, and it may have just been me, but the use of the pub as an interview and filming setting seemed to create a particularly british mood, perhaps pertaining to a broader alcoholism issue throughout Britain? The setting conveyed the sense of honesty too though, the pub having connotations of honesty and genuinity, which helped drive the responses of the main participant.

Much like my goals from Film-TV1, I’d like to learn practical and theoretical skills to apply to coursework, and my own work. However, with the stuff I learned last semester, there is more potential to experiment and delve deeper into those skills. I’d certainly like to take charge on a project, rather than simply contribute, and moreso guide a creative vision.

At the same time I’d love to get behind the camera for a documentary; the prospect of filming on the front lines, as it were, is a lot more exciting than drama where the filming is choreographed. Though saying that, by the sounds of it so far, documentary still requires plenty of knowledge and research beforehand, so rather than just filming everything, you film the most important things.

Overall I’d simply like to commit to the process of producing a documentary I can be happy with.