The Snappers, Clackers, Ka-chunkers and Sha-shonkers That Make Movies Sound Great

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KQED

News, Politics, News Commentary

4.2 • 726 Ratings

🗓️ 15 July 2022

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When E.T. walked across the screen and into the hearts of moviegoers everywhere, that lovable space alien who wanted to “phone home” needed a sound for its walk. Foley artists, the sound magicians who add special effects to movies, decided to use a bag of jello in a damp T-shirt. Indeed, a Foley artist is nothing but ingenious. Snappers, clackers, ka-chunkers, sha-shonkers and things that go “ronk” are just a few things you might find in their toolbox, along with celery — good for broken bones — or paperclips on gloves to imitate a cat walking down the hall. We’ll learn about these tricks of the trade from some of the world’s best Foley artists at Skywalker Sound in Marin. Guests: Anna Wiener, contributing writer, The New Yorker - She is the author of the memoir "Uncanny Valley." Her most recent piece for the New Yorker is titled "Noisemakers." Shelley Roden, Foley artist, Skywalker Sound - Roden has worked as a Foley artist for over 25 years, and has worked on "Black Panther," "Top Gun: Maverick," "Soul," "Turning Red," and hundreds of other films. Scott Curtis, Foley Mixer, Curtis has mixed sound for a variety of movies including "Titanic," "Team America" and "Black Panther." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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0:58.1	From KQED.
0:59.6	From KQED in San Francisco, I'm Alexis Madrigal.
1:14.6	When it walked across the screen and into the hearts of moviegoers everywhere,
1:18.6	E.T. the lovable space alien needed a sound to accompany its movements.
1:24.6	Foley artists, the audio magicians who perform sound for movies, decided to
1:29.1	use a bag of jello in a damp t-shirt, which they moved in sync with the film. Today we talk
1:35.9	with the Foley experts up at Skywalker Sound in Marin, who have walked, whacked, loped, clumped, gumbed,
1:42.6	and bonged their way through dozens of films,
1:45.9	adding the layer of sound that makes you feel like you're there.
1:48.9	We'll learn their tricks of the trade and how to hear the world better.
1:52.7	That's all coming up.
1:58.1	Welcome to Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal.
	...

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