Africa

Africa - documentary

Each programme/film had its own audio effects, and I have detailed notes on them for periods of time in the programme/film that I watched. They are listed here below in this case for the documentary 'Africa'.

There is a soundtrack to open to make the programme recognisable. There is also use of drums to build tension, and create  a very dramatic scene. Near silence is then present to show that we are with nature and it is peaceful (serene). It also tells use we are not in a city because there are no car or pollution noises. We can then hear static, to show how quiet it really is. We then hear the squawking of birds, with a calm toned voice over. This all provokes a very happy emotion as the animals are at peace. A string instrument is then used with a continued voice over, that has an  emotionless tone. We are then aware of more animals through a monkey squeaking, this is accompanied by a choir singing, and quiet chomping on food; all to add to the peaceful atmosphere. A branch being broken is then heard followed by a sting, to grab the audience because something is about to happen, or there is relevance to that moment. We then hear more bird noises, flickering, and birds twittering, to get the scene back to a peaceful context. All of a sudden we have a heavy stream flowing, which has a constant backing track to go with the visual. Using a dramatic tone in the voiceover to make the point he is making clear, followed by a sudden sting for the title on screen. We then have near silence again for dramatic effect, then the voiceover comes back with a posh and clear tone. This is so he is easily understandable to the viewers. You can then hear the wind combined with the sonar waves, blowing across the Sahara. There is then a strong whooshing as the pebbles roll across the dry land. Again strong winds can be heard, then there is gravel crashing and crackling. This all adds to building up the setting for the viewers. All animal sounds attract viewers attentions to the screen and explain the action by keeping us with an understanding of what is happening in the scene. Also when there is near silence with just simple animal noises, you get coherence between shots as it changes to a voiceover. Showing that the scene is being explained and the situation made simple. The diegetic sound adds to the program as it is part of its natural habitat, if it was added in later as non-digetic it would not have the same effect.