we always say that we watch movies would you like to watch a movie let's go watch a movie I'm just gonna go watch a movie but have you ever listened to a movie [Music] [Applause] wow most sound design is intended to go unnoticed but it is often the unsung hero of filmmaking and today we're going to look at the two main categories of sound and how they can be the secret weapon for any filmmaker this is what is diegetic versus non-diegetic sound but before we get started subscribe and click the bell for more filmmaking videos ready in film diegetic is derived from digesis which simply means the world of the film and everything in it everything the characters can experience within their world is diegetic everything that only the audience perceives is non-diegetic the concept of digesis goes all the way back to the Greeks like Aristotle and Plato for them diogesis is the act of telling a story and how the narrator presents it for films you can think of the director as the narrator and everything they include to create a world around the characters some non-diegetic elements are visual these include title cards tyrants or even non-diegetic inserts foreign shots taken from Source completely external from the main digesis but when it comes to the study of diegetic versus non-diegetic it you usually refers to sound theorist Michelle developed this visualization to Mark the differences first he divides all sound into three zones two of these are acrosmetic zones covering sounds we hear but can't see the source these are either off-screen sounds that belong to the digesis like unseen birds chirping in a forest scene or they are non-diegetic sounds but the characters can't hear because they exist outside the world of the film like a musical score [Music] the final category covers the visualized Zone where the source of the sound is visible on screen [Music] all sound falls into one of these categories and some can even switch zones as we'll see in a minute so let's look at some examples of each and how they work starting with diegetic sound did you hear that if the characters can hear it it's diegetic sound this includes atmospheric sounds like the weather Vehicles weapons music from inside the film dialogue can you hear me and some forms of voice over I guess I just miss my friend if the voiceover represents a character's thoughts it is labeled as internal diegetic sound so even though no other characters can hear it it is still part of the story world tell her Ashley had a sick sense of humor when it came to zombies primary role of diegetic sound is to help establish and create the world around the characters but more than just obligatory elements diegetic sound can have a massive impact on the overall storytelling for example sounds we can hear off-screen can inform setting and they can expand the world beyond what we see in the frame foreign that's when real suspense can be made we often take diegetic sound for granted we assume it will always be there and that the sounds will match our expectations by breaking these rules can make for exciting Cinema like this shocking moment from The Last Jedi when we expect a massive overload of sound but instead silence or in this horrific scene when Alex's rendition of Singing in the Rain juxtaposes his actions just like a POV shot shows us what the character sees diegetic sound can be manipulated to let us hear what they hear [Applause] [Music] or when the character's mental state is compromised sound can communicate this just as well as imagery [Music] [Music] diegetic sound can easily be taken for granted by both the filmmaker and the audience but there are opportunities like these that bend the limits in creative ways drug Bank agreeing really I hide the room together now let's look at the role of non-diegetic sound [Music] everything the characters cannot hear is non-diegetic this includes sound effects the musical score and forms of narration this is a story of Boy Meets Girl if the narrator plays no role in the film this is considered non-diegetic that is father had been bred like many other young sons of a gentile family to the profession of the law this type of narration Harkens back to the traditional idea of verbal storytelling like Alec Baldwin's narration for the Royal Tenenbaums which itself is framed as if we were reading from a novel over the next decade he and his wife had three children and then they separated but there is the potential danger of breaking the illusion with non-diegetic narration for example Tarantino's omniscient commentary in the hateful eight Joe Gage volunteered to take smither's dead body outside straws were drawn to see who'd help him the you recognize his voice it suddenly reminds you that this is a movie and the director is essentially breaking the fourth wall Captain Chris Mannix Don the dead General's coat and joined Oswaldo in lighting the candles and lanterns of course this type of interruption in the digesis is done for Creative purposes something Tarantino does all the time don't be a Beatrix kiddo here non-diegetic sound effects can enhance motion and movement listen to how sound effects are added to increase the intensity they can be used for comedy to put a punchline on a joke [Music] and of course the most consistently used non-diegetic sound is the score it might seem counter-intuitive to make a fictional world for us to lose ourselves in only then to apply such an invasive element as music on top of it it should ruin the illusion but we've long been accustomed to it whoa non-diegetic music plays a massive role in the film experience without it Interstellar would be less transcendent [Music] up wouldn't be as heartbreaking [Music] and black panther wouldn't feel so triumphant [Applause] next let's see what happens when sound switches between these two modes also known as trans-diggetic sound some of the most interesting storytelling happens when our expectations are subverted like when what we assumed was non-diegetic suddenly appears to be diegetic could you please stop playing Beethoven Brooks does this a lot with music by playing with our expectations Brooks brings a meta quality to his films that allows us to be in on the joke we might hear a non-diegetic score that suddenly becomes diegetic playing on a character's radio all diegetic music might become non-diegetic while playing over a montage so they know we're coming to help smooth over the time jumps [Music] this also works for sound effects listen closely to this scene in grazing Arizona as Ed is distraught with news that you can't bear children notice how the wind carries over to the next scene I'm barren at first I didn't believe it that this woman who looked as fertile as the Tennessee Valley could not bear children the wind began as diegetic but then switched to non-diegetic to comically reinforce her infidelity in The Big Lebowski we begin with the narration of the stranger which we assume is non-diegetic we are worse through this fella well I want to tell you about until he appears in the final scene hey man how do you do dude I wonder if I see you again switching between diegetic and non-diegetic can be a nuanced way to blur the lines between fantasy and reality Harold just counted brush Strokes all right who just said Harold just counted brush Strokes throughout Birdman we hear drums on the soundtrack and in a few key moments the camera reveals the drummer in the scene as a way to illustrate rigam's unstable mental state in George of the Jungle the division between diegetic and non-diegetic breaks down completely as the narrator argues with characters oh no oh no was right for the exhausted apnapper why don't you see something constructive for a change like what we should do now because I don't like you bro I hate you you snotty there are endless ways to switch between diegetic and non-diegetic sounds let's end with some creative exceptions that don't play by the rules hear the music there are other examples of sound that don't fit neatly into any of these categories how might we categorize American Beauty's narration which is delivered from leicester's disembodied spirit in less than a year I'll be dead of course I don't know that yet as far back as I can remember I always wanted to be a gangster the narration in Goodfellows is constant until the last two minutes when this happens I'd bet 20 30 grand over a weekend and then I'd either blow the winnings in a week or go to the Sharks to pay back the bookies didn't matter didn't mean anything when I was broke now we assume the narration was actually a testimony but because Henry seems to break through the diogesis as if time stops in the courtroom where uncertain whether it really was narration testimony or something in between and now it's all over and that's the hardest part at the end of Psycho we hear Norman's internal monologue speaking in his mother's voice as a completely separate personality and probably watching me I'll let them let them see what kind of a person I am not even gonna sweat that fly I hope they are watching they'll see they'll see and they'll know and they'll say why she wouldn't even harm a fly how should we classify this moment in Joker Arthur quietly sings along to the music we assumed was non-diegetic is the music in his own head [Music] s [Music] [Music] we get a similar moment in la la land the external diegetic background music in the restaurant switches to internal music in her head inspiring her to make a romantic leap [Music] Magnolia breaks down these divisions by having the Ensemble sing along to what is otherwise a non-diegetic song [Music] This unique example seems to occupy both Realms equally [Music] as you can see these two types of sound can be just as useful as cinematography and editing in telling a story although we typically watch movies there's plenty of reason we should be listening to movies just as closely for more on sound design and storytelling you'll find links to these videos in the description and check out Studio binder's pre-production software to give yourself every opportunity to plan how sound will play a part in your next project this is sounds like this video is over time to get back to your own diegetic worlds see you in the next one [Music]