1: Portfolio Proposal 

My aim in this assignment is to show my skills and abilities as a sound designer. These skills will be shown through my projects during my time doing the HNC Sound Production course. And explain how they relate to my chosen job role as a sound designer. My first chosen artefact is my Daw track from the synthesis and sampling module. Although not directly related to my job role. It has boosted my skills which are transferable between the modules. The second artefact I have chosen is my cover of Fontaines D. C’s Starburster. Which showcases my proficiency in Pro Tools and use of different microphones and techniques. For my third artefact I have chosen my Audio for Multimedia project which is a game trailer from a game called Warframe. This artefact is directly tied with the job role I have chosen and I believe is my best work.  
 

During the planning stage I will be explaining how all these artefacts relate to the job role I have chosen. I will display the projects step by step and explain the process of creating them this will be through my GANTT chart and production plan.  

The development stage will show a brief overview of my developing skills throughout the year and how they helped me expand my knowledge and help me within my chosen role even if not directly related to it. My introduction will be a rough summary of what I’ll be going into detail about throughout the website. On the website there will be my CV showing what I am capable of doing and the knowledge I have pertaining to the chosen role. It will include documentation such as pictures taken of set up equipment and videos to back up my explanations.  

In the evaluation stage I will reflect on the projects I have created and compare it to my original plan. This will be a great opportunity to review my work and see where I can improve and change for the future. It will allow me to have a critical view into my work and allow me to reflect on challenges I have experienced in my time on these projects.  

 

2: Role Description 

Sound Designer 

 

Main tasks and responsibilities 

  - Sound designers use technology creatively to provide sound for Movies, Games and theatre. The responsibility of a sound designer is to make accurate and believable sounds to match whatever is on screen through many techniques. Sound designers need to be proficient in a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) Whilst also having good knowledge of plugins/synthesisers/samplers. They must also be great at working with other professionals in the sound industry to collaborate to make new sounds. For games, sound designers must use different sound implementation systems such as Unity Engine, Unreal Engine and Wwise. 

Salary 

Entry level sound designers can earn in the region of £18,000- £20,000. For a sound designer with more than five years’ experience the average salary is £23,000. And for experienced sound designers the salary can be between £30,000 and £41,000 per anum. This could be paid out as a day rate or full-time annual wage. This all depends on the sound designer’s employment status. 

 

Employment 

Most sound designers work as a freelancer. The exception to this is when larger games or movie companies hire sound designers as a part of the in-company team. The working hours are dependent on which sector the sound designer is in. If working in theatre the hours during rehearsal stages of a show can be long and may be involved during performance dates.  These would be very different to movie and game audio design. As they tend to be more 9-5 or deadline based.  

Skills 

• You need to love sound and have a curiosity for it. 

• You need the ability to do self-directed research and pitch ideas to colleagues. 

• You need an understanding of how sound works along with the other elements of a production.  

• You need an understanding of how to mix for stereo and spatial mixes as well. 

• A good knowledge of acoustics. 

• A great understand and proficiency with DAWs such as Pro Tools, Reaper, Cubase and Logic Pro 

• Great time management  

 

Work Experience 

To gain entry you need relevant experience. This could be a portfolio or getting involved in any aspect of sound design to build up skills. The game industry is extremely competitive to get into and needs experience in sound designing for AAA games.  

 

Career Route 

It is extremely rare to become a sound designer from the get go. As this is a more senior job role. The natural progression route is through being an assistant editor, then a sound fx or sound editor and then finally becoming a sound designer. 

 

Professionals in the sound design field 

Erich Preston is the lead sound designer for Warframe which is a massive online multiplayer game a game which has been highly praised for its sound design for almost a decade. Erich Preston and his team have created extremely innovative and creative sounds over the decade that Warframe has been released. 

 

 3: Artefacts for Inclusion 

Artefact 1 – Recording Project – Starburster Fontaines D.C  

I will use my recording project from the recording and mixing module as my second artefact for my graded unit. This project shows my ability to record live sounds e.g. multiple different instruments and vocals. This artefact shows my ability to work to a tight timescale as well as my abilities to communicate and organise studio sessions with other musicians and sound engineers. This also shows my ability to mix. This project shows my knowledge of correct signal paths, polar patterns and micing techniques for varius instruments. This boosts my sound design skills as it further improves my micing ability which could be used for foley. As well as gaining a deeper understanding of different effects and mixing techniques. I also kept multiple sessions and files for this project. One on my personal USB drive and one at my home computer to maintain the safety of these files. This artefact shows my ability to use corrective and creative EQ and other effects such as compression, delay chorus and saturation just to name a few. I used knowledge from the skills for business module as I had to make up recording and mixing plans. 

 

 

Artefact 2 – Multimedia Project – Warframe Clip 

 

I will be using my project from Audio for Multi Media as my first artefact. This artefact most closely represents the job role I have chosen as it is sound designing.  This artefact proof that I can work and have a great understanding of the DAW I was using (this being Ableton Live) This artefact will show my proficiency in Midi editing, Foley recording, Micing Techniques and sound design skills in general. I showed great timekeeping with this project through booking my slots in the booths or studios in advance to ensure I would have time to finish the recordings with more than enough time to get sunk into the mixing and mastering side of sound design, this would be done through use of EQ’s, Delay, Hybrid Reverb, and compression just to name a few.  This project is also clear proof of my ambition and ear for sound as I was able to create and use sounds that work well with the visuals. With the video I picked being of the sci-fi genre I was able to be as creative as I wanted, I did this through synthesisers and bizarre use of effects to create this sound. To keep my files safe, i kept a copy of my session and all the samples used at my home computer as well as my USB drive. This way i always had a backup and could minimise potential issues.   

 

Artefact 3 – Daw Track  

I will use my daw track from the synthesis and sampling module as artefact for my graded unit. This artefact shows my ability to create a track from scratch using synthesisers and samples. This boosts my skills in my chosen role as a sound designer as picking the right sounds and editing in them to fit the track is in line with what a sound designer would do for a sound design project. This artefact like the others shows my ability to work to a deadline and achieve high quality work in a relatively short timescale. This shows my creative ability and understanding of the DAW (Ableton live suite in my case). I created my own sampler instrument and multiple of my own synth patches for this track along with the use of a whole range of different effects and effective use of automation. This project shows the skills I have gained throughout this module and my organisational skills and work flow with tracks grouped and named appropriately.  I further improved my mixing skills with this project as all the mixing and mastering was done solely by me. This was done through the use of EQ and different effects. I kept the session easily accessible and safe via my personal USB drive.