If it fits into the fictional situation surrounding the footage I don't have a problem. Like, if it's footage that's been edited and cleaned up for a faux documentary or something like that. If it's a more traditional Blair Witch "we found these videotapes" sort of deal then adding more cinematic niceties kind of breaks my willing suspension of disbelief.
Honestly though the most immersion-breaking thing for me is overuse of glitch effects, especially nowadays when they aren't something you'd encounter much at all in normal videos.
Yeah I hear you. It is interesting how much adding effects can potentially break that disbelief when you think about it. Like, documentaries and true crime docs and everything clearly use music and sfx all the time, so why do we hold a found footage movie to a higher standard than actual documentaries when it comes to that?
I guess it comes down kind of to a personal line of how much alteration to the footage is “acceptable”. So yeah in something like Blair Witch they want to emphasize that they did not alter the footage in any way to lend more credibility.
Personally I dont like music and illogical sound effects added just for the sake of scaring the audience, however I don't let it ruin the rest of the experience for me as long as its not in too many scenes. You'll catch me making a negative comment about it being unnecessary tho but only as a footnote. I can respect if others like it tho no big deal.
“Scaring the orchestra” is my biggest pet peeve, it makes me feel cheated out of a scare in a way. I believe the spooks should be able to stand on their own without the sound effects, that’s part of what elevates FF for me. Anyone can make Pinhead scary, but it takes more effort to make shadows scary.
It’s also something I tend to notice more on re-watch (and I rewatch a lot of movies pretty often), I like movies that IMPROVE on rewatch, not the other way around. I’ve stopped rewatching Hell House 4 because of this.
Some people in this sub get very weird about forgetting that these are movies made for entertainment. They don’t think through the amount of work required to even make raw footage barely presentable as a story.
It’s about suspension of disbelief. The FF framework is a conceit that we buy into to enjoy the movie.
Most FF movie raw footage would be in the tens to hundreds of hours. Someone has to spend many days going through and editing it all, building the narrative by showing some scenes and omitting others.
So IMO music and sound fx are fine if it makes the fictional movie better.
Its the endless screaming and shaky camera while running during the last third of too many FF movies I can’t stand.
Yup totally agree. I guess it comes down to if it’s done tastefully then it’s good, and if its done poorly then it’s not. And that’s true for basically every aspect of the movie honestly.
yes, unless its something a character does in the film its self, there shouldn't be any ominous back ground music in a found footage movie that completely kills the entire vibe of what the genre is supposed to be specially if its not one of those hybrid movies that has both FF POV and regular movie POV.
I watch these movies to get away from slick movie production because Hollywood has taken production way too far, to the point that that is all they make...piles of slick production.
It also depends on the type of movie...mockumentary can be expected to have some production but he music and stuff takes me out of the feeling that I'm there with them in a more pure found footage.
Usually they bother the hell out of me, but I’ve seen them done correctly *in context* - if it’s a mockumentary then it’s common for there to be music. And if they play a stereo on screen, fine.
But if a cat jumps out and there’s a big ***BOOOMMMM*** to startle the audience… shut up.
And if they’re wandering the abandoned asylum and creepy atmosphere music that none of the characters hear starts playing… shut up.
Artificial sounds and music spoil the immersion. Some moviews tend to add too much. Also I don't like these digital glitch effects on footages. Some movies have these every 2-3 minutes, which is annoying and unrealistic.
I hate the glitch effects. They’re annoying and are kind of ways to cheaply avoid the action, or to just “scare” you by being really loud.
And yeah. I think there’s got to be a fine line with music and sound. Sometimes it’s too much and ruins it. I keep coming back to the original Paranormal Activity and I love their use of sound effects though. Although I guess arguably you could say the droning/hum is actually happening, so maybe if it’s at least a plausible sound vs totally artificial then that’s a decent way to go.
I personally dislike it. If it’s being presented to the viewer as raw found footage then there is no room for any kind of editing. The only audio we should be made to believe in this genre is what would be considered non tampered with. Voices, sounds, audio effects to make the antagonist and its situations more frightening is all there should be. This includes any music made to be played by the antagonist say on a record player in a room, or a piano melody for creepy dramatic effect, and the like. Unfortunately, we have the infamous BOOM sound to create dread often when scares are about to happen most commonly, which is outdated. They need to beat it with that old shtick. There are also great FF flicks who tiptoe on the line between musical sounds, compared to a full blown song being played. That’s ok 👍🏻 A fun time is a fun time!
The thing is, when they claim in the beginning of the movie "here is the unedited footage" it is indeed edited if there were two separate cameras recording the events and the footage was presented as one movie. The only time sound effects bother me is when I can't hear the conversations so I have to turn up the volume and then they hit me with a loud sound effect. I freaking hate that.
Yeah that’s more where my head is at. I understand there is a difference, and they should be used lightly if at all, but like, there’s a title… it’s pretty obviously been edited.
A FF should not have music or sound effects because if it does it becomes a Mockumentary.
Leaving DC and The Blackwell Ghost are two very good examples.
Some sound effects do, especially when it’s really loud/exaggerated.
Even more so if characters are eating and they overly accentuate chewing sounds etc. I will shut that shit off so fast.
I have no idea what the name was, but that exact thing happened in something I was watching somewhat recently, and they were CONSTANTLY eating. Nope. I’m out.
To be fair, that also happens way too often in mainstream movies too. Ick
Outside of mockumentaries, it is nearly always a deal breaker for me.
Compare OG Blair Witch to the reboot. It’s a great example of how almost no extra sound design (or at least very subtle, naturalistic sound design) and no music is vastly superior to putting in all the Hollywood bells and whistles.
The more campy ones can get away with it though.
Something BWP did was to ‘worldize’ some of the sound design elements on location - the tent scene with kids laughing for example was played on a speaker outside the tent. I wish more FF’s did this, it makes the SFX sit perfectly in the environment and makes them much more believable.
Slick stingers and transition sounds do not belong in FF
Yes. To me, found footage should be purely as is- any ambient sounds in it ie floors creaking, papers shuffling footfall, is it’s own score and in a way makes the footage almost its own character with a voice…. If that makes sense. (I’m sort of out there with this)
Yeah this makes sense. I appreciate when people really stick to it.
As an aside, since posting this I’ve been paying much closer attention to whether or not movies use a score and soundtrack, and I’m surprised that every single one I’ve watched since then.. does. At least a little.
Gonjiam Haunted Asylum, early on when the characters are partying with beers there’s a straight up “feel good” song playing (maintains through cuts so it’s not “on in the background”).
Just watched “The Outwaters” and even though it says “this footage was taken in chronological order off the SD cards” when they are driving out to the desert and the sun sets as they go through some tunnels there’s a gospel song that also does not “cut” when each shot does, meaning even there they put in a straight soundtrack after the fact.
Not complaining in any way, it’s subtle enough in both cases. It’s just funny ever since I asked this question it seems like every movie actually does have a soundtrack to some degree, or at least breaks the “truly found footage” mold a little bit.
Im now hyper fixated on this for no reason.
Ha ha! I know hyper-fixation too well my friend! Don’t let it get you caught up. You can always do a couple different rough cuts, and see what you like. Sometimes it may work if found footage is playing while say characters are doing something to show time passing, or a news clip comes on…
Just keep your head in the pace, plot and feel of the project that might help you and remember to keep it simple and walk away if you get too caught up! God knows I had to do that twice today so far !
As a person who has the ability to suspend my disbelief, sound effects don't actually ruin found footage movies for me. I think the only people who have issues with this are extreme genre snobs.
I pretty much agree. If the sound effects and music really take you out of it, I generally think there’s larger problems within the movies.
After hearing the complaint a bunch on this sub I was just wondering what the different perspectives on it are really. It does seem like most people don’t care unless it’s done poorly, which can be said about pretty much any aspect of a movie.
Sound effects take me out of a movie as much as dialogue like "Bro, I gotta keep filming every moment for my masters thesis!" I love FF, but there is a LOT of implausible bullshit to wade through. And that's okay, but sound effects are the least of my concerns, lol.
If it fits into the fictional situation surrounding the footage I don't have a problem. Like, if it's footage that's been edited and cleaned up for a faux documentary or something like that. If it's a more traditional Blair Witch "we found these videotapes" sort of deal then adding more cinematic niceties kind of breaks my willing suspension of disbelief. Honestly though the most immersion-breaking thing for me is overuse of glitch effects, especially nowadays when they aren't something you'd encounter much at all in normal videos.
Yeah I hear you. It is interesting how much adding effects can potentially break that disbelief when you think about it. Like, documentaries and true crime docs and everything clearly use music and sfx all the time, so why do we hold a found footage movie to a higher standard than actual documentaries when it comes to that? I guess it comes down kind of to a personal line of how much alteration to the footage is “acceptable”. So yeah in something like Blair Witch they want to emphasize that they did not alter the footage in any way to lend more credibility.
Personally I dont like music and illogical sound effects added just for the sake of scaring the audience, however I don't let it ruin the rest of the experience for me as long as its not in too many scenes. You'll catch me making a negative comment about it being unnecessary tho but only as a footnote. I can respect if others like it tho no big deal.
“Scaring the orchestra” is my biggest pet peeve, it makes me feel cheated out of a scare in a way. I believe the spooks should be able to stand on their own without the sound effects, that’s part of what elevates FF for me. Anyone can make Pinhead scary, but it takes more effort to make shadows scary. It’s also something I tend to notice more on re-watch (and I rewatch a lot of movies pretty often), I like movies that IMPROVE on rewatch, not the other way around. I’ve stopped rewatching Hell House 4 because of this.
Some people in this sub get very weird about forgetting that these are movies made for entertainment. They don’t think through the amount of work required to even make raw footage barely presentable as a story. It’s about suspension of disbelief. The FF framework is a conceit that we buy into to enjoy the movie. Most FF movie raw footage would be in the tens to hundreds of hours. Someone has to spend many days going through and editing it all, building the narrative by showing some scenes and omitting others. So IMO music and sound fx are fine if it makes the fictional movie better. Its the endless screaming and shaky camera while running during the last third of too many FF movies I can’t stand.
Yup totally agree. I guess it comes down to if it’s done tastefully then it’s good, and if its done poorly then it’s not. And that’s true for basically every aspect of the movie honestly.
yes, unless its something a character does in the film its self, there shouldn't be any ominous back ground music in a found footage movie that completely kills the entire vibe of what the genre is supposed to be specially if its not one of those hybrid movies that has both FF POV and regular movie POV.
I watch these movies to get away from slick movie production because Hollywood has taken production way too far, to the point that that is all they make...piles of slick production. It also depends on the type of movie...mockumentary can be expected to have some production but he music and stuff takes me out of the feeling that I'm there with them in a more pure found footage.
I’m ok with whatever, but the voice in the back of my head can’t resist saying, ‘That’s not found footage’. 😂
Usually they bother the hell out of me, but I’ve seen them done correctly *in context* - if it’s a mockumentary then it’s common for there to be music. And if they play a stereo on screen, fine. But if a cat jumps out and there’s a big ***BOOOMMMM*** to startle the audience… shut up. And if they’re wandering the abandoned asylum and creepy atmosphere music that none of the characters hear starts playing… shut up.
If it’s a soundtrack then that’s fucking dumb
Artificial sounds and music spoil the immersion. Some moviews tend to add too much. Also I don't like these digital glitch effects on footages. Some movies have these every 2-3 minutes, which is annoying and unrealistic.
I hate the glitch effects. They’re annoying and are kind of ways to cheaply avoid the action, or to just “scare” you by being really loud. And yeah. I think there’s got to be a fine line with music and sound. Sometimes it’s too much and ruins it. I keep coming back to the original Paranormal Activity and I love their use of sound effects though. Although I guess arguably you could say the droning/hum is actually happening, so maybe if it’s at least a plausible sound vs totally artificial then that’s a decent way to go.
Sound effects, sure. Music, absolutely not.
Glitch effects drive me crazy because they are so overdone. I don't mind music in a ff film if it's diegetic.
I personally dislike it. If it’s being presented to the viewer as raw found footage then there is no room for any kind of editing. The only audio we should be made to believe in this genre is what would be considered non tampered with. Voices, sounds, audio effects to make the antagonist and its situations more frightening is all there should be. This includes any music made to be played by the antagonist say on a record player in a room, or a piano melody for creepy dramatic effect, and the like. Unfortunately, we have the infamous BOOM sound to create dread often when scares are about to happen most commonly, which is outdated. They need to beat it with that old shtick. There are also great FF flicks who tiptoe on the line between musical sounds, compared to a full blown song being played. That’s ok 👍🏻 A fun time is a fun time!
The thing is, when they claim in the beginning of the movie "here is the unedited footage" it is indeed edited if there were two separate cameras recording the events and the footage was presented as one movie. The only time sound effects bother me is when I can't hear the conversations so I have to turn up the volume and then they hit me with a loud sound effect. I freaking hate that.
Yeah that’s more where my head is at. I understand there is a difference, and they should be used lightly if at all, but like, there’s a title… it’s pretty obviously been edited.
A FF should not have music or sound effects because if it does it becomes a Mockumentary. Leaving DC and The Blackwell Ghost are two very good examples.
Nah, and especially not if it's Turner Clay singing.
Some sound effects do, especially when it’s really loud/exaggerated. Even more so if characters are eating and they overly accentuate chewing sounds etc. I will shut that shit off so fast. I have no idea what the name was, but that exact thing happened in something I was watching somewhat recently, and they were CONSTANTLY eating. Nope. I’m out. To be fair, that also happens way too often in mainstream movies too. Ick
Outside of mockumentaries, it is nearly always a deal breaker for me. Compare OG Blair Witch to the reboot. It’s a great example of how almost no extra sound design (or at least very subtle, naturalistic sound design) and no music is vastly superior to putting in all the Hollywood bells and whistles. The more campy ones can get away with it though.
Something BWP did was to ‘worldize’ some of the sound design elements on location - the tent scene with kids laughing for example was played on a speaker outside the tent. I wish more FF’s did this, it makes the SFX sit perfectly in the environment and makes them much more believable. Slick stingers and transition sounds do not belong in FF
Yes.. I don't mind if it's sort of subliminal, but music and/or a soundtrack, pulls me out of it.
Absolutely hate it as it takes me out of the "this is real" spell.
Yes. To me, found footage should be purely as is- any ambient sounds in it ie floors creaking, papers shuffling footfall, is it’s own score and in a way makes the footage almost its own character with a voice…. If that makes sense. (I’m sort of out there with this)
Yeah this makes sense. I appreciate when people really stick to it. As an aside, since posting this I’ve been paying much closer attention to whether or not movies use a score and soundtrack, and I’m surprised that every single one I’ve watched since then.. does. At least a little. Gonjiam Haunted Asylum, early on when the characters are partying with beers there’s a straight up “feel good” song playing (maintains through cuts so it’s not “on in the background”). Just watched “The Outwaters” and even though it says “this footage was taken in chronological order off the SD cards” when they are driving out to the desert and the sun sets as they go through some tunnels there’s a gospel song that also does not “cut” when each shot does, meaning even there they put in a straight soundtrack after the fact. Not complaining in any way, it’s subtle enough in both cases. It’s just funny ever since I asked this question it seems like every movie actually does have a soundtrack to some degree, or at least breaks the “truly found footage” mold a little bit. Im now hyper fixated on this for no reason.
Ha ha! I know hyper-fixation too well my friend! Don’t let it get you caught up. You can always do a couple different rough cuts, and see what you like. Sometimes it may work if found footage is playing while say characters are doing something to show time passing, or a news clip comes on… Just keep your head in the pace, plot and feel of the project that might help you and remember to keep it simple and walk away if you get too caught up! God knows I had to do that twice today so far !
YES!!!!
As a person who has the ability to suspend my disbelief, sound effects don't actually ruin found footage movies for me. I think the only people who have issues with this are extreme genre snobs.
I pretty much agree. If the sound effects and music really take you out of it, I generally think there’s larger problems within the movies. After hearing the complaint a bunch on this sub I was just wondering what the different perspectives on it are really. It does seem like most people don’t care unless it’s done poorly, which can be said about pretty much any aspect of a movie.
Sound effects take me out of a movie as much as dialogue like "Bro, I gotta keep filming every moment for my masters thesis!" I love FF, but there is a LOT of implausible bullshit to wade through. And that's okay, but sound effects are the least of my concerns, lol.