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Stuff You Should Know

Tdhtdhtdhtdhtdh: Sound Effects!

Published September 23, 2025
View Show Notes

About This Episode

The hosts explore how sound effects are created for films and TV, focusing on the craft of Foley artists and the history of sound design from silent movies to modern blockbusters. They discuss Jack Foley's pioneering work, the tools and techniques used on Foley stages, iconic examples from films like Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Titanic, and Fight Club, and the heavy use of constructed audio in nature documentaries. The episode also touches on how sound departments are undervalued relative to their impact and ends with a correction about Teen Vogue's reputation for serious journalism.

Topics Covered

Filmmaking Film music and soundtracks Sound effects Foley art Nature documentaries Television history Broadcast history Comedy

Disclaimer: We provide independent summaries of podcasts and are not affiliated with or endorsed in any way by any podcast or creator. All podcast names and content are the property of their respective owners. The views and opinions expressed within the podcasts belong solely to the original hosts and guests and do not reflect the views or positions of Summapod.

Quick Takeaways

  • Most of the sounds you hear in movies and TV-aside from dialogue and score-are added later in post-production, often crafted by Foley artists acting the sounds in sync with the picture.
  • Foley work is highly detailed and character-specific, with custom footsteps, clothing rustle, and environmental sounds tailored to each actor and scene rather than relying on generic sound libraries.
  • The practice of creating sound effects began with vaudeville and early cinema 'traps' and evolved significantly with pioneers like Jack Foley, whose name now labels the entire craft.
  • Modern sound designers creatively repurpose everyday objects-like celery, melons, magnetic tape, and frozen lettuce-to produce convincing versions of otherwise inaudible or unpleasant real-world sounds.
  • Nature documentaries frequently construct or sweeten their audio, overlaying manufactured sound effects onto largely silent or distant footage to create a more engaging experience.
  • Despite being critical to immersion and storytelling, sound departments and Foley budgets are often small and sidelined compared to camera and lighting on film and TV productions.

Podcast Notes

Introduction and framing of sound effects topic

Opening banter and sound-effecty intro

Josh's non-intro as an accidental sound effect[1:29]
• Josh does a half-hearted intro and Chuck jokingly calls it a sound effect, likening it to Josh falling off a cliff or floating in space.
Versatility of sound effects[1:53]
• Chuck points out how the same ambiguous vocal noise could be interpreted as different scenarios (falling vs. being in space), illustrating how flexible sound effects can be in storytelling.

Excitement about the episode and Dave's research help

Hosts' interest and lack of prior detailed knowledge[2:12]
• Josh says he knew almost nothing about the behind-the-scenes details of sound effects beyond the term "Foley artist" and found the research super interesting.
• Chuck agrees and notes that Dave helped with the research on this episode.

Basic explanation of sound effects and on-set vs post-production sound

What sound effects are in film and TV

Most environmental and incidental sounds are created later[3:04]
• Chuck explains that when you see a car driving, a door shutting, or people chatting in a restaurant, most of the sounds you hear were created in post-production rather than captured live.
• He notes this applies across live-action, animation, video games, and more, though the focus of the conversation is mainly live-action.
Sources of post-production sounds[3:04]
• Sounds can be made by a Foley artist acting them out, pulled from sound catalogs (e.g., car doors shutting), or created with computer tools.
Computers vs. human craft in sound design[3:34]
• Josh says you'd think computers would have replaced much of this work already, but Foley artists still do intricate work that computers can't convincingly replicate.
• He gives the example that a stock car-door sound might work technically but lacks the specificity and feeling that a Foley performance can provide.
• Josh characterizes Foley artists as "sound actors" who perform in sync with on-screen actors to produce believable, nuanced sounds that audiences usually don't consciously notice.

Sound is half the experience but often undervalued

Sound department treated as secondary on sets[4:30]
• Chuck says sound is often overlooked by general audiences and even on professional sets, despite being half of the viewing experience (sound vs. image).
• He notes that camera and lighting get priority, while the boom operator and sound crew are literally and figuratively pushed aside, even though they contribute half of what the audience experiences.

Why location sound is minimized and replaced later

Environmental noise conflicts with clean dialogue[4:57]
• Chuck explains that real-world sounds like lawnmowers, planes, trains, leaf blowers, and birds are often unwanted on set because they interfere with clean dialogue recording.
• The crew frequently "holds for sound" to wait out intrusive noises, since they can add those environmental sounds later in a controlled way.
Silent background acting in restaurant scenes[5:36]
• Chuck notes that restaurant scenes are shot with background extras silently miming conversation, which looks very strange when viewed without added sound.
• He adds that acting in such scenes is also odd and difficult because you're performing while everyone around you is silently pretending to talk.

Diegetic vs. non-diegetic sound and basic sound concepts

Definition of diegetic sound

What counts as diegetic sound[6:24]
• Josh defines diegetic sound as the sounds inside the movie's world that the characters would hear, like a lawnmower, cars, or gunfire.
• Chuck adds that diegetic music includes songs played within the world, such as music coming from a car stereo.
Non-diegetic sound examples[6:24]
• Josh explains that the film score and narration that characters cannot hear are non-diegetic.
• Chuck notes that some comedies like "The Naked Gun" play with this convention by having characters react to non-diegetic music, treating it as if it were diegetic.

Statistic on how much sound is added in post

High percentage of post-produced sound[7:59]
• Josh says that about 90% (and in some sources even more) of the sound in a film that is not dialogue or music is added later in post-production.
• He emphasizes that this underlines both the importance and the invisibility of sound effects work.

Sound designers, field recording, and layering techniques

Sound designers going beyond libraries

Custom recording vs. universal catalogs[8:42]
• Chuck notes that while there are large universal sound catalogs, many sound designers go out into the field to record their own specific sounds, such as the exact model of car used in a film.
• He references the movie "Blow Out," where John Travolta plays a sound recordist who accidentally captures a car crash that turns out to be tied to a murder.
Layering and sweetening sounds[9:15]
• Josh explains that even library vehicle sounds are often layered with extra details in post, a process called "sweetening," to make them richer and more convincing.
• He says this applies both to field-recorded sounds and studio-created Foley, with multiple elements combined into a final composite effect.

Footsteps as a difficult Foley challenge

Why stock footsteps rarely work[9:53]
• Josh says stock sound-library footsteps are essentially unused because they rarely match the specific timing, weight, and gait of the on-screen character.
• He notes that Foley artists tailor footsteps to an actor's height, weight, gait, whether they are shuffling or high-stepping, and other nuances.
Budget constraints and corny footsteps[11:26]
• Chuck observes that low-budget films can't always afford Foley artists, so they lean on stock libraries, which can result in corny or unconvincing footstep sounds.

Early history: vaudeville, traps, and the move to film

From vaudeville stages to silent films

Live sound effects for stage performances[11:51]
• Josh explains that before movies, vaudeville acts used live sound effects performed on stage, making the transition to accompanying movies fairly easy.
• Initially, performers used basic tools like drums and clackers, but a cottage industry quickly developed to create specialized sound-effect props.

Traps and early sound-effect contraptions

Definition and makers of traps[12:26]
• Chuck says the term "traps" (short for contraptions) referred to these early sound-effect devices, often handled by percussionists who were adept at multitasking with hands and feet.
• Drum companies like Ludwig manufactured traps that mimicked sounds such as barking dogs, train whistles, snores, and cash registers.

Modern demonstrations of vintage sound work

Nick White's live silent-film accompaniment[13:19]
• Josh mentions a performer named Nick White who uses vintage traps to create live sound effects for silent films, often using his hands, feet, and even mouth simultaneously.
Josh Harmon and cartoon Foley recreations[14:05]
• Chuck praises Josh Harmon, who recreates sound effects for old cartoons on Instagram and includes guest participants, noting Harmon's delight at the end of each clip.
• Chuck says collaborating with Josh Harmon is a personal goal and describes messaging him on Instagram trying to set it up, with Stuff You Should Know listeners chiming in supportively.

Origin of the term slapstick

Slapstick as a physical sound-effect device[14:55]
• Josh explains that the word "slapstick" for physical comedy comes from a device also called a slapstick: two wooden pieces (like duck bills) that clap together to accent pratfalls.
• Performers used slapsticks when someone tumbled or fell, and the term eventually came to describe the broader style of physical comedy.

Transition from silent films to talkies and early sound systems

The Jazz Singer and the Vitaphone system

Vitaphone as synchronized sound-on-disc[15:55]
• Chuck describes Warner Bros.' Vitaphone system, which synchronized audio from shellac discs with the film projector, used on early talkies like "The Jazz Singer."
• The Jazz Singer's success effectively flipped the industry overnight from silent films to talkies.

Showboat/Steamboat conversion to a talkie

Universal's need to retrofit a silent film[16:17]
• Josh and Chuck say Universal already had the movie "Showboat" (later referred to as "Steamboat") shot as a silent film and wanted to convert it into a talkie after The Jazz Singer's success.
• This created an opportunity and a challenge for early sound-effects work, setting the stage for Jack Foley.

Jack Foley and the birth of modern Foley art

Jack Foley's varied roles at Universal

Columnist, illustrator, and insert director[22:18]
• Josh says Jack Foley wrote a monthly column for Universal's company magazine for decades, was a talented illustrator, and worked as an insert director, filming close-ups like hands picking up objects.
Becoming a sound-effects specialist[22:39]
• Chuck notes it's unclear exactly how Foley transitioned into sound, but he was hired as one of the people doing sound effects and became so influential that the job category was eventually named after him.

Showboat/Steamboat and live Foley performance

Stage 10 session with orchestra and Foley[23:33]
• Josh describes Foley going to Stage 10 at Universal with an orchestra to add sound to the movie, including audience reactions, water, and steamboat noises.
• Because the audio was recorded directly to a Vitaphone disc synced to the film, there were no retakes-the entire reel had to be done in one continuous performance.
Foley's speed and one-take skill[24:36]
• Josh says Foley became so proficient that he could perform the sound effects for a roughly 10-minute reel with multiple scenes in a single take.

The Foley room and legacy naming

From Foley's room to "the Foley stage" everywhere[24:41]
• After his initial success, Foley assembled props in a dedicated space that colleagues referred to as "Foley's room," which evolved into the generic industry term "Foley room" or "Foley stage."
• Josh notes that this naming and the concept of a Foley department emerged only after Foley's work, and he himself never received on-screen credit because no such credit existed yet.
Desilu's early adoption of the term[25:43]
• Josh mentions that Desilu (Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball's studio) was the first outside Universal to use the term "Foley room" in the early 1960s.

Foley's last film and Spartacus anecdote

Saving Spartacus from an expensive reshoot[26:19]
• Chuck relays that on "Spartacus," director Stanley Kubrick disliked the original recording of the Roman army marching and considered an expensive reshoot in Spain with thousands of extras.
• Jack Foley instead used car keys to mimic the clanking armor sounds to Kubrick's satisfaction, saving significant money and effort on what turned out to be Foley's final film.

Modern Foley artists: numbers, skills, and studio environment

Number of working Foley artists and sensitivity of hearing

Roughly 100 Foley artists in the U.S.[27:10]
• Chuck cites a figure that about 100 Foley artists are working in the U.S., which he found surprisingly high given digital encroachment on many film crafts.
Highly trained ears and ear protection[27:30]
• Chuck notes that some Foley artists' hearing is so tuned and sensitive that they wear earplugs in movies or concerts to protect their ears.

Foley jargon and sound-centered thinking

Describing sounds with invented vocabulary[27:57]
• Chuck says Foley artists use their own shorthand like "scritchy" or "poofy" to describe sounds, and colleagues immediately understand what is meant.
Seeing objects as sounds[27:41]
• Josh references a New Yorker profile where Foley artists can look at objects like chains or a block and tackle hanging in a junkyard and immediately imagine the exact sound they could produce, such as a "swaying chink" noise.

Foley workflow: teams and mixers

Working in pairs and role of the Foley mixer[29:48]
• Josh explains that Foley artists often work in pairs because a typical scene has more simultaneous actions than one person can perform alone.
• A Foley mixer sits in the control room, focusing on how the sounds match the on-screen action and making decisions about what to keep, tweak, or sweeten.

Spotting sessions and looping

Spotting sessions[30:41]
• Chuck says sound work starts with a spotting session where the director, sound department, and Foley team go through the film scene by scene and list every sound they need to create.
Looping for ADR and Foley[31:27]
• Both ADR (additional dialogue recording) and Foley use looping, repeatedly playing short clips so performers can sync their sounds or lines precisely with the picture.
• Josh notes that ADR is difficult, as actors must recreate emotional performances in a booth while matching lip movements and timing.

Inside a Foley studio: floors, props, and odd materials

Multi-surface floors and leaf sounds

Floor sections with different surfaces[32:03]
• Josh describes Foley stages with raised floors divided into squares containing concrete, pebbles, parquet, leaves, and other surfaces for specific footstep textures.
Magnetic tape instead of real leaves[32:24]
• He notes that instead of dry leaves, Foley artists often crinkle old magnetic reel-to-reel tape to simulate leaf sounds because actual leaves don't sound convincingly "leafy" on mic.

Using unexpected objects: celery and Tin Man mask

Celery as bone-breaking[32:51]
• Josh mentions that snapping celery is widely used to simulate the sound of bones breaking when someone falls or is injured.
Tin Man Halloween mask as unique sound source[33:05]
• Josh recounts a New Yorker story about a Foley artist who inherited a Tin Man Halloween mask that produced an irreplaceable "yawning shh" sound, used for specific effects.
• When the artist ordered a new copy of the same mask, it didn't sound right because it was made of different materials, illustrating how material changes affect sound.

Attention to micro-details (David Fincher example)

Naugahyde vs. leather couch sound[34:59]
• Josh cites director David Fincher, who wants Foley to distinguish whether a lawyer's office has fake leather (naugahyde) or real leather couches, based purely on the sound when someone sits.
• He says this level of nuance is what makes films feel immersive and realistic, even if viewers are not consciously aware of the details.

Overall look of a Foley stage

Cluttered, specialized workspaces[35:31]
• Chuck describes Foley rooms as cool, dark, air-conditioned spaces filled with odd props, a tub of water, a working toilet, and objects known by the sounds they make rather than their names.

Anecdotes: machine-gun mouth sounds and laser tag

Machine-gun vocalizations as childhood training

Practicing gun sounds in childhood play[32:32]
• Josh and Chuck talk about making machine-gun sounds with their mouths as kids while playing with toy guns, with Josh noting this practice honed his present-day sound-effect skills.

Laser tag stories

Chuck being repeatedly "killed" by an employee[33:25]
• Chuck recalls a weekday morning laser tag game where an employee trapped him and repeatedly shot his sensor as soon as it reset, frustrating him enough to shout at the guy.
Ruby's birthday laser tag domination[34:53]
• Chuck says his first laser tag experience was at his daughter Ruby's birthday party; he coached the boys' team to take high ground and stay put, helping them dominate the game.
• He admits he scored far more points than anyone else, felt a little bad about beating kids, but also got a lot of satisfaction from it.

Iconic Foley examples from various films

Wilhelm Scream and Ben Burtt's influence

Origin and reuse of the Wilhelm Scream[38:51]
• Chuck recounts that the Wilhelm Scream is believed to have been recorded by Sheb Woolley for the movie "Distant Drums," and later used in "The Charge at Feather River" when a character named Private Wilhelm is shot with an arrow.
• Sound designer Ben Burtt, having heard the scream in many Westerns, tracked it down in the "Charge at Feather River" sound library and used it in Star Wars when Luke shoots a stormtrooper that falls off something.
• It became an in-joke among sound editors and, according to a source they mention, has appeared in over 400 films.

E.T., Titanic, Fight Club, and other film Foley tricks

E.T.'s squishy walk[40:59]
• Chuck says E.T.'s walking sounds were created using Jell-O wrapped in a damp T-shirt and raw liver to achieve a squishy but not overly gross sound.
Frozen hair in Titanic[41:40]
• Josh explains that in Titanic's ending, when Kate Winslet's character is freezing on floating debris, the crunchy sound of her frozen hair was made by manipulating frozen lettuce.
Fight Club punches[42:26]
• Chuck notes that real punches sound dull and unimpressive, so in Fight Club they pounded chicken carcasses with baseball bats and cracked walnuts to create intense, cinematic punch and impact sounds.
Meta-Foley in Berberian Sound Studio[43:28]
• Josh describes the film "Berberian Sound Studio," where Toby Jones plays a Foley artist; for scenes of him stabbing a watermelon (to mimic on-screen stabbing), the real production used wet cloth and wood to create the sound of stabbing the watermelon that itself was standing in for a stabbing.
Jurassic Park dinosaur egg[44:29]
• Josh says the cracking sound of the first dinosaur egg hatching in Jurassic Park was produced by a hand inside a melon, combined with the cracking of an ice-cream cone.
Raiders boulder[44:36]
• Chuck cites that the famous rolling boulder in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" was sonically represented by a car with no engine being rolled down a hill.

Star Wars and Ben Burtt's sound innovations

Blaster and TIE Fighter sounds

Blaster created from radio tower cables[45:49]
• Chuck explains that Ben Burtt created Star Wars blaster sounds by hitting taut guy wires supporting radio towers (first in the Poconos, then in the Mojave Desert) and recording the resonant twang.
TIE Fighter roar from elephants[46:54]
• Josh says the signature TIE Fighter sound is layered, distorted recordings of African elephants roaring.

Creature and droid voices: Chewbacca and R2-D2

Chewbacca's vocalizations[47:10]
• Josh notes that Chewbacca's voice was constructed by layering the sounds of various animals, including a walrus, a badger, and a bear.
R2-D2's emotional beeps[47:56]
• Chuck explains that with the advent of synthesizers like the Moog and an early Korg unit, Burtt created R2-D2's beeps and boops on a synthesizer.
• He highlights that the genius was not just making electronic sounds but conveying emotion and personality through those abstract bleeps.

Sound design in nature documentaries

Reasons nature documentaries heavily manipulate sound

Distance, lenses, and ambient noise[49:08]
• Josh explains that wildlife scenes are often shot with very long lenses from far away, making it impractical or impossible to record usable sync sound, especially when ambient noise is overwhelming.
Use of semi-domesticated animals and staged sounds[48:44]
• He mentions nature docs sometimes use semi-domesticated animals to film scenes like a predator chasing prey, then layer in sounds later.
Constructed sounds for otherwise silent phenomena[49:52]
• Chuck points out that visually striking but quiet events like a mushroom growing in time-lapse, or a spider walking on a leaf, get sound effects to make them feel dynamic, even though such events would be virtually silent in reality.
• They note that some documentaries even add sounds to the northern lights, which do not make an audible sound in real life.

Accuracy vs. engagement

Real calls vs. embellished ambience[49:40]
• Chuck says sound designers strive to use accurate animal calls for the actual animals on screen, even while creating more imaginative or exaggerated sounds for other on-screen actions.
Audience expectations and boredom risk[51:07]
• Josh argues that showing raw, silent nature footage with only whatever faint real sound was captured would be far less compelling, and viewers might quickly lose interest.

Economics and undervaluation of sound work

Budget slices for sound vs. other departments

Typical sound budget share[51:07]
• Chuck says when budgeting films, sound often gets around 10% of the budget, sometimes including costs of music rights.
• He notes that camera and lighting generally receive larger, more prioritized funding.

Music rights eating into sound budgets

Music-heavy films trade off with post sound[51:42]
• Chuck gives "Dazed and Confused" as an example of a film where much of the sound budget would have gone to paying for popular music, leaving less money for post-production sound effects and Foley.

Impact on quality and use of libraries

Big budget vs. small budget soundscapes[52:17]
• Chuck says large-budget productions can afford full Foley teams and elaborate sound design, which is why their sound is often so impressive and recognized at awards shows.
• Smaller productions, constrained by budgets, must rely more on generic library effects, which can sound less convincing.

Listener mail: Teen Vogue's serious journalism

Correction about Teen Vogue coverage

Teen Vogue's reputation for serious reporting[53:46]
• Chuck reads an email from Stephanie responding to their earlier surprise that Teen Vogue covered policing, explaining that Teen Vogue is well-known for serious journalism and for taking young women and girls seriously.
• The email cites a Jezebel article by Julianne Escobedo-Shepard titled "If you're shocked Teen Vogue is great, you're not paying attention" as further context.
Hosts' reaction to the correction[54:40]
• They say they appreciate gentle corrections that both nudge them and provide useful information, seeing this as a good example of that kind of feedback.

Lessons Learned

Actionable insights and wisdom you can apply to your business, career, and personal life.

1

Invisible crafts like sound design can be responsible for much of an experience's impact, even when audiences rarely notice them explicitly, so leaders should recognize and invest in these behind-the-scenes contributions.

Reflection Questions:

  • • Which parts of your work or organization create a lot of value but receive little recognition or budget?
  • • How might your outcomes improve if you deliberately invested more attention and resources into these "invisible" areas?
  • • What is one concrete step you could take this month to spotlight and support a behind-the-scenes contributor or function?
2

Specificity and context-aware detail-like tailoring footsteps to an actor's gait or couch creaks to its material-are what make an experience feel real and immersive rather than generic.

Reflection Questions:

  • • Where in your current projects are you using generic, one-size-fits-all solutions instead of context-specific ones?
  • • How could adding one or two carefully chosen details make your product, presentation, or service feel more authentic to its audience?
  • • When you review your work this week, what subtle cues could you refine to better match the real-world context your audience expects?
3

Creative problem-solving often comes from reimagining ordinary materials for new purposes, like using celery for bone breaks or magnetic tape for leaves, rather than waiting for perfect, purpose-built tools.

Reflection Questions:

  • • What familiar tools or resources around you could be repurposed to solve a problem you're facing right now?
  • • How might your approach change if you started by asking, "What sound or effect do I need?" instead of "What standard tool should I use?"
  • • The next time a needed resource is missing, how will you challenge yourself to improvise using what you already have on hand?
4

Constraints like tight budgets or technical limitations force prioritization and can drive ingenuity, but only if you're honest about tradeoffs and deliberate about where to spend for maximum impact.

Reflection Questions:

  • • In your current work, where are constraints silently dictating quality without you consciously choosing the tradeoffs?
  • • How could you reallocate a small portion of your budget or time from low-impact areas to high-impact but underfunded aspects, like "sound" in your own domain?
  • • When you plan your next project, what explicit decision will you make about where to accept "library-quality" shortcuts and where to insist on custom, high-fidelity work?

Episode Summary - Notes by Harper

Tdhtdhtdhtdhtdh: Sound Effects!
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