Book Review |
Motion Picture Sound |
| Publisher: Focal Press Website: Click Here Topic: Sound Design for Film Page Count: 680 pages MSRP: $49.95 Discount Link: Click Here Read Excerpt: Click Here Expected Release: Available Now Review Issue: Issue #72 (12/11) Reviewed By: Gabe Gibitz Final Score: 8.5 out of 10 |
Weaving anecdotal stories with practical knowledge and insights, David Lewis Yewdall offers the world of film a wonderful overview of the art of motion picture sound. According to Yewdall, there are few resources that discuss the art inherent in constructing the audio elements embedded within a film, and this book does a fine job at offering an alternative to the dryness of audio textbooks.
Yewdall walks his readers through every aspect of film audio. From pre-production and filming to editing and re-recording, this book covers it all. And this book is not just for Hollywood filmmakers. In fact, this book seems to be written with the microfilmmaker in mind. More than once, the author reminisces about the dozens of movies he has made on a shoestring budget. He pays special attention to those who do not have millions of dollars to spend producing a short film. Though he has worked on films with multi-million dollar budgets (Starship Troopers as one example), he seems to have a special love for films with low budgets because it forces everyone involved to be extremely creative.
What sets this book apart from the rest is that this is truly a book on the art of motion picture sound. To the author, film audio is not a science. Supervising the audio work of a film is a chance to creatively help the filmmaker tell a story. If you love the audio side of film, this is a wonderful book to read. If you are a filmmaker who has chosen to farm out your audio work to an audio engineer, this is even more important of a book to read so that you are able to best communicate your vision with your entire audio team.
Comprehension
Yewdall weaves story with instruction throughout his entire book. This makes this book tremendously comprehensible. It seems in Yewdall’s mind that the stories and instruction cannot be separated from one another. It is through his own experiences that Yewdall is able to fully explain the art of film audio.
At times, there is little distinction between the story and instruction, making parts of the book a bit confusing. More could definitely be done in future editions to separate key terms or concepts from the body of the book. However, once you begin to understand how Yewdall chooses to present his material, you start to understand his method of communication.
Depth of Information
This book is a wonderful resource for the amateur and novice alike. Yewdall has a way of both explaining concepts easily to those who are just entering film production as well as inviting experienced filmmakers to grow in their perspectives on the art of sound. There is definitely something in here for everyone!
Yewdall leaves no stone unturned. He does not just touch on one subject (such as music composition) but dives into each element of the broad soundscape of an entire motion picture. The section I most thoroughly enjoyed happened to be the section Yewdall invested the most time into—sound effects. We have come a long way from the early days of silent films, and the art of sound effects has played a key role in better communicating the film’s story. As an added bonus, the book even includes a DVD loaded with sound effect goodness!
Read the ‘Value vs. Cost’ section to learn more about this special treat.
Interest Level
This book definitely kept my attention. Yewdall seemed to always have a personal story to drive a point home, which speaks volumes to a world that always loves to hear another story. In fact, this is the strongest characteristic of his entire book. By keeping his readers engaged with stories (some of which are fairly recent), Yewdall invites his readers to learn through the lens of his life experience.
Yewdall did talk fairly extensively about analog gear throughout this book. This will inevitably peak the interest of some while boring others. As the film industry continues to become increasingly digital, Yewdall’s analog discussions have the potential to lose the attention of his audience. That said, regardless of what profession one is in, it is always good to know our roots, and Yewdall does a fine job taking us back to our roots throughout this entire book.
Reusability
Yewdall covers a lot of ground in this book, lending it to be used over and over again. Everything he discusses in this book will not be soaked up with one reading. You will definitely be coming back to this book to review basic concepts and reflect on his own life experiences.
He also doesn’t simply discuss broad, overarching concepts of film audio. Yewdall digs into specific, detailed instructions on how to record, say, a moving car, allowing you to place that specific sound effect into your film later in its production. Because stories are weaved so tightly with concepts, attempting to find a paragraph you had previously read could prove difficult, but included in the back of the book is a handy glossary and comprehensive index.
Value vs. Cost
This book is far more valuable than its price tag! The book alone is worth the investment. Yewdall serves as a mentor to those desiring to learn more about film audio. He tells countless stories that are priceless, and these stories are not just of his creativity and innovation. He also shares his failures and mishaps. These stories and insights have the potential to save countless hours of recording and re-recording.
What sets this book’s value even higher, however, is the DVD in the back of the book. You will need to buy this book new to assure that the DVD will be included, but on this DVD is several gigabytes of coveted sound effects from the libraries of two sound engineers in the film industry—Yewdall himself and one of his close friends in the industry.
The DVD is worth the cost of the book in and of itself!
Overall Comment
For both the amateur and the novice, Practical Art of Motion Picture Sound is a great resource to add to a film producer’s library. Weaving stories with practical insights, Yewdall gives both producers and sound engineers a glimpse into the world of motion picture sound. Yewdall also offers pages upon pages of insights for keeping a film audio budget low, making this book an especially important read for the micro-cinema filmmaker. As if that wasn’t enough, the DVD of sound effects included will save you hours of recording sound effects on your own time. If you want instruction, encouragement, and practical insights into motion picture sound, be sure to consider Practical Art of Motion Picture Sound.
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Breakdown
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Comprehension
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7.5 |
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Depth of Information
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8.0 |
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Interest Level
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8.0 |
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Reusability
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9.0 |
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Value vs. Cost
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10.0 |
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Overall Score |
8.5 |
Gabe Gibitz
Gabe Gibitz is a worship leader and home-recording guru in Lexington, KY. With no formal degree in music, he has learned most of what he knows about recording by reading lots articles, picking the brains of audio masterminds, and delving into the field himself. He plays a blue guitar and loves spending time with Abbie, his wife. You can download his latest e-book and 3 free songs at www.gabegibitz.com.