Sonic Design_Project 2
21/4/2025-21/7/2025
Ruthlene Chua Zhen Si 0365222
Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
- Instruction
- Lectures
- Task
- Audio Storytelling
- Reflections
INSTRUCTION
Task
For this particular project, we required to choose a story and create an audiobook version of it, focusing not just on narration but also expressive voice acting for each character. Plan and record all dialogue, then design a fitting soundscape with background ambience and sound effects to enhance the storytelling. Use audio editing software to mix everything into a smooth, immersive experience, as if it were a radio show.
The story I have chosen is "Onward", a Disney and Pixar animated film. The story is about two elf brothers who go on a magical quest to bring back their deceased father for one day using a special spell.
I plan to create a short storytelling segment. This is the outline I’ve written, and I will follow these subtitles to narrate part of the story. Sound effects will also be added.
I took screengrab from this website: LINK
Figure 1.0: Source of the Screenshot
I recorded my voice using the Voice Memos app on my phone. I used different emotions and slightly varied pitch to portray different characters.
Figure 1.1: Complete all the screenshot of all scene
After recording my voice, I reduced the high peaks to make the audio more consistent. Our lecturer taught us to use this method to make the overall recording cleaner and more polished. Some of the techniques used to edit raw voice clips include noise reduction by first selecting a portion of the clip with background noise and using
Effects > Noise Reduction > Capture Noise Print, then applying it to the whole clip through
Effects > Noise Reduction > Noise Reduction (Process).
Figure 1.2: Noise Reduction
Figure 1.3: Capture noise print and edit
There are many ways to reduce unwanted sounds, so I tried different noise reduction methods based on the specific needs of each audio clip. One of the techniques I used was the Dynamics effect in Adobe Audition to help control and balance the audio more effectively.
Figure 1.4: Dynamics sound reduction
Figure 1.5: Progress of sound reduction of all self recording voice
Next, I will work on adding sound effects and background audio. I will look for suitable sounds that match each scene to enhance the storytelling, create a more immersive atmosphere, and make the audience feel more emotionally connected and engaged with the story.
After I added the background music, I adjusted the volume levels to create different atmospheres. I used techniques like fade-in and fade-out to smoothly transition between scenes and enhance the emotional flow. This approach helped match the sound with the visuals more naturally, making the overall experience more immersive and dynamic.
Figure 1.6: Volume editing, fade in and out
The male scream audio I found didn’t match the age of the character in the video, so I used a pitch shifter to make the voice sound younger. Additionally, the original scream sounded like it was coming from a distance, so I adjusted the delay settings to make it sound closer and more fitting for the scene.
Figure 1.7: Pitch shifting and delay echo
The same goes for this sigh sound effect, it sounded like it came from a 30-year-old man, so I adjusted the pitch to make it sharper and more like a teenager’s sigh.
Figure 1.8: pitch shifting from old to young
In one part, the main character needed to chant a magic spell. However, due to the limited sound effect library, I took a sound that resembled magic and adjusted its pitch to make it sound more like a spell incantation.
Figure1.9: Edit pitch into higher pitch
I found a shoe walking sound effect, but it didn’t fit the scene. The character was supposed to be walking in a panicked manner, so I used time stretching to speed it up and better match the frantic movement.
Figure 2.0: Speed up sound by stretching it
After finishing all the added sound effects, I went through everything once more to check if any audio parts stood out too much. And below is the final version of the audio.
As for the visuals, I completed them using After Effects. Below is the combination of both the visuals and the audio.
Figure 2.1: Convert into after effect add on the scene
After finishing all the editing, I exported the video using Adobe Media Encoder and uploaded it to YouTube.
Figure 2.2: Export to adobe media encoder
Figure 2.3: Final Outcome in Youtube
Feedbacks
To make sure your recording reaches 1 minute, it’s actually quite simple. You can start by recording your own voice first and then check the total duration. You can also apply what you learned in your animation class during the film study begin with an outline before completing the rest. The characters can all be performed by the same person, but make sure to vary the voice enough so that it's clear when different characters are speaking. The description part should also reflect this distinction.
When recording, remember to clean up the audio during editing. Pay special attention to removing any high-pitched sounds, especially the harsh "S" sounds at the end of words. Breathing noises and other background sounds can be reduced using the Noise Reduction feature in Adobe Audition, and you can also use the Dynamics effect to improve overall clarity.
Reflection
Observation
For this project, we were asked to turn a story into an audiobook-style narrative, complete with voice acting, sound effects, and background ambience. I chose Onward, a Disney and Pixar film about two elf brothers going on a magical quest. I focused on building a short segment of the story, making sure the audio matched the tone and emotion of each scene. As I worked through it, I realized how detailed audio storytelling can be. It’s not just about placing sound effects in the right spots every sound has to make sense with the story and visuals. Whether it was footsteps, a sigh, or a magic spell, everything needed to be adjusted to fit the character’s mood and the pacing of the scene.
Findings
One thing I noticed during the editing process is that not all sound effects work right away. For example, the walking sound effect I found didn’t match the panic in the scene, so I sped it up using time-stretching. There was also a scream that sounded too mature for the character, so I changed the pitch to make it sound younger. Same with a sigh that sounded like it came from a 30-year-old man. I tweaked it to make it sound more like a teenager. Since I was voicing all the characters myself, I learned that small changes in tone and pitch can make a big difference in helping the audience tell the characters apart. I also had to do a lot of audio cleanup reducing background noise, adjusting the harsh “S” sounds, and using dynamics to balance everything out. Adobe Audition’s tools like noise reduction and compression really helped.
Experience
Working on this project was honestly a fun but intense experience. There were moments where I got so caught up in the editing especially during the sound design parts that I forgot to take screenshots of my process. I was too focused on fixing the sounds and making sure everything flowed well :( It made me realize how important it is to balance creativity with proper documentation, especially when we need to show our workflow. This project also gave me a chance to apply things I’ve learned in other classes, like film studies and animation, starting with a clear outline really helped. It was also a good challenge to voice all the characters and still make them sound different. Once everything was done, I brought the visuals together using After Effects, combined it with the final audio, and exported the video through Adobe Media Encoder. Uploading it to YouTube was a satisfying way to wrap everything up. Overall, it was a great learning experience and gave me a deeper appreciation for the role sound plays in storytelling.
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