Two AIM Audio students are putting their refined audio skills to good use by helping create a Foley for a new film entitled Spirit-Ed. Mariam Salinas and Daniel Perez are among a stellar cast involved in the new fantasy film, scheduled for release in Australia early next year. Daniel and Mariam are both studying a Bachelor of Music at AIM majoring in Audio Technology.

Mariam and Daniel at work 'creating foley'

John Hresc is the lecturer of three Audio Units at AIM - Sound Mixing for Screen; Sound Design; and Sound Recording for Screen/Foley Recording. “As Sound Supervisor on Peter Mether’s latest film, Spirit-Ed, I thought it would be great to get my Foley class involved and have them work on a project that will give them an industry credit,” explains John. “I also wanted to give them experience working on a long-form project from start to finish. So it involves a bigger commitment and more attention to detail than you would on a short film.”

Trimester two was the first time Foley Recording for Film has been offered at AIM. Mariam and Daniel were the very first students and have now gone straight into working on a film that features some very high profile international actors.

Directed by Peter Mether, Spirit-Ed is a magical, fantasy adventure set in Divinity, a school for guardian angels above the clouds. The story charts the perilous adventures of two young angel students, Edmund and Grace, on a quest to earn their wings. Success will allow them to venture beneath the clouds to watch over a recently orphaned boy – failure is too dark to consider. The film, which relies heavily on a team of graphic designers as well as Foley people to bring the movie to life, stars Mariam Margoyles (Professor Sprout, Harry Potter); Bruce Spence (Narnia and Star Wars): and Karl Beattie (X-Men Origins: Wolverine). The production is a proof of concept for the feature.

Foley is part of the post-production process of film making, and will involve Mariam and Daniel creating sounds such as footsteps, clothes rustling, doors opening and running in snow. “Creating Foley is fun and it's like acting but instead of being filmed you are recording the sounds you make to the vision,” says Mariam.

Foley is usually recorded on a Foley stage with a variety of surfaces and props. The Foley artist normally has a screen so they can clearly see the vision they need to record sounds to, and they perform sound effects while watching the vision on the screen to sync the sound.

“Creating Foley is a lot harder and time consuming than most people think,” says Daniel. “You have to usually overdo the sounds so that the right effect and tension is achieved. Something as simple as footsteps usually has to be layered with different sounds, while keeping in mind the right reverberation space is chosen at all times.”

Daniel adds, “It is all about finding the right balance when creating Foley - this involves being creative as most times mimicking the same sounds you see on screen in real life ends up sounding really boring and lacklustre. This is something that can make or break a scene as the audience will usually not notice Foley as we're used to hearing this type of sounds in our everyday lives. However, if you choose the wrong sound, under or overdo the sound then the audience will definitely notice something is wrong therefore ruining the scene.”

Both Daniel and Mariam expect to graduate next year. “I love that AIM offers hands-on opportunities and gives students the chance to experience what it’s like out there in the industry,” says Mariam. And Daniel agrees. “The hands-on experience has been great at AIM, as I believe practical work is the best way to learn. Meeting others and forming working relationships outside of AIM has also been an invaluable opportunity.”

Mariam also enjoys working with other students and AIM lecturers on different projects that are not class-related. “For example, working with composition students on their compositions and assisting AIM lecturers with their own recording sessions and projects.”

The opportunities afforded all AIM students across each stream of study cannot be underestimated, and Mariam is a perfect example of this. The final Recording Technology assignment for Mariam's studies was to record an EP. “I was able to complete the EP with a band called JudahCall, and following the assignment, was asked to be the band’s engineer for all gigs and recordings.”

Mariam is currently in the process of assisting JudahCall record their second album. And although she feels privileged to be putting her audio engineering skills to good use, she “would love to pursue a career within the film industry as a Foley Artist or Sound Editor.”

For Daniel, he plans to continue his involvement in the film side of audio and hopefully TV work. “I'm also finishing some EP recordings for heavy rock/metal bands around Sydney that will be released commercially soon. I’ve also recorded the EP for my band, Gods of Eden, from my home studio, and that will be released in the next few months too”. You can hear some of Daniel’s work at: www.facebook.com/godsofeden

AIM opens the door to a variety of opportunities in the Audio Engineering sphere and prides itself on giving students the best education and practical experience needed to carve out a successful career in the industry.

“A career in Audio may entail a variety of options - Music and Music Production is one aspect and Audio for Film is a combination of many disciplines including Location Recording, Foley Recording, Sound Design and Sound Mixing,” says John. “Each one of them plays a major role in the final outcome of a film’s success.”

For more information on the film Spirit-Ed visit: www.spiritedmovie.com

Article by Natalie Raad
Perfect Words
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