Final Soundtrack of Video – Hongpei Cao & Fangyi Qu
Google Drive 5.1 Surround Version Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1no6QsiduSEDFbP8MoLaNKxk5yf9KsKQ9/view?usp=share_link
Guiding the audience through sound
The production of the audio segment commenced relatively late, initiated only after the total duration of the video was firmly established. The production adhered to previously established standards, utilizing a 5.1 surround sound format. Additionally, during rehearsals, we encountered challenges in visually guiding the audience to view specific scenes along the designed path. Consequently, we opted to use sound as the primary means to direct the audience’s attention.
The diagram illustrates the audience’s walking path during the final performance. Initially, the audience proceeds through the green path where they first pass through suspended balloons, then see TV1 directly ahead and a projector to the left, displaying consistent content: AI-generated ocean animations and text animations designed using TouchDesigner. The ambient sound is stereo music. Concurrently, Xianni plays the hand drum in sync with the music, beginning from the middle of the piece and continues guiding the audience forward as the music nears its end. At this point, TV1 is moved aside to form a pathway, leading the audience into the main stage area (indicated by the blue route). Here, the large screen on TV2 shows a video clip of a carp in the air with a voice-over from the carp, “I see, I jumped over the dragon gate,” emitted from the Ls and Rs speakers. The projection screen and speakers at the front of the stage remain silent to focus the audience’s attention on the back of the stage. As the final words are spoken, the sound shifts from the back to the front; simultaneously, the television turns off and the main projector lights up, prompting the audience to turn and enjoy the performance directly in front of them. Thus, the guidance through sound is completed.
Sound Design and Mixing
With only about a week remaining for audio production, the majority of the sound was edited and designed using sounds from personal and commercial sound libraries to save time. The project’s structure consisted of four main components: vocals, sound effects, ambiance, and music. Vocals included narration and demonic whispers, which were processed through pitch shifting, electronification, and overloading to achieve the desired effects. The ambiance was created using multitrack stereo with sound image variations to produce a surround sound track.
Sound effects were produced in a manner typical of film and television sound production: markers were initially set along the timeline, and the tracks were gradually filled to complement the music and convey emotions. We also experimented with various abstract processing techniques, fully utilizing the advantages of the surround sound track to create rapid, continuous sound image changes, reducing auditory fatigue for the audience. As for the music mix, since the music was initially in stereo format, we added a surround sound reverb send to compensate for the lack of rear surround sound.
