Wall-E: The Importance of Sound in Animation

Wall-E: The Importance of Sound in Animation

The intention of this dissertation is to look at the importance of sound in film, in particular the feature animation Wall-E (2008) and how sound can help us engage with the robot Wall-E. This essay will focus on the work of Ben Burtt, the sound designer of this feature, and his discussions on the process of creating a believable world with this film. With a study of the theories of the Uncanny, I will try to understand how we react as an audience to the robotic characters on screen. I will also use the theory of Suspension of Disbelief in discussing the importance of sound in animation and how the audience will successfully engage with the text.

One of the five senses is hearing. It is often an under appreciated and overlooked sense. As humans, we are very good at interpreting sound and can tell a lot about what is going on around us with just the use of our ears. This is an invaluable communication tool. This, often subconscious, interpreting comes with us as we enter the cinema. With this in mind, it is not hard to understand why sound is thought of as fifty percent of the cinematic experience, as the quote below tells us.

“Sound may tell the story directly, or it may be integrated by the audience along with the picture into a complete whole, without differentiation. In such a state, the sound and picture together can become greater than the sum of the parts.” (Holman, 2010)

Communication is an important part of everyday life. Every day, millions of people world wide communicate through a variety of ways. One of these forms of communication is film. Within film, various characters, whether that be humans, animals, or robots, also find a common language and are able to communica...

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...uccess of the narrative and the success of the exchange between Wall-E and Eve.

In conclusion, by focusing on the work of Ben Burtt and imagined languages, that he has created in Wall-E and also Star Wars, the importance of sound and the effect it can have on audiences. I will also apply Freud's theory of the Uncanny to demonstrate this effect in an attempt to understand the relationship between the robot on screen and the audience members, and the theory of Suspension of Disbelief, also, in a attempt to understand how the audience engages with the text and the use of imaginary language in particular.

Bibliography:

Holman, T. (2010). Sound for film and television. 1st ed. Burlington, MA: Focal Press.

Wollen, PLuxonline.org.uk, (2014). The Field of Language in Film. [online] Available at: http://www.luxonline.org.uk/articles/the_field_of_language_in_film(1).html