Sound

Sound is a huge part of any modern film. Things like background music , dialogue, effects and sometimes narration are hugely important when it comes to forming a connection with an audience or enhancing a scenes general feel. During an action sequence for example you could play a fast paced exciting bit of music to make the whole scene feel more dynamic and intense.
A very useful website I found which covers a ton of information on sound in films is http://filmsound.org/

Sound can be placed in to different categories in film depending on where it comes from such as background sound compared to sound which is added in editing.


Non-diegetic sound
Sound whose source is neither visible on the screen nor has been implied to be present in the action: 

• narrator's commentary
• sound effects which is added for the dramatic effect
• mood music

Non-diegetic sound is represented as coming from the a source outside story space. The distinction between diegetic or non-diegetic sound depends on our understanding of the conventions of film viewing and listening.  We know of that certain sounds are represented as coming from the story world, while others are  represented as coming from outside the space of the story events.  A play with diegetic and non-diegetic conventions can be used to create ambiguity (horror), or to surprise the audience (comedy). 
Another term for non-diegetic sound is commentary sound. 

Diegetic sound
Sound whose source is visible on the screen or whose source is implied to be present by the action of the film: 

• voices of characters 
• sounds made by objects in the story 
• music represented as coming from instruments in the story space ( = source music)

Diegetic sound is any sound presented as originated from source within the film's world Diegetic sound can be either on screen or off screen depending on whatever its source is within the frame or outside the frame. 
Another term for diegetic sound is actual sound.


These brief descriptions are from http://www.filmsound.org/


Dialogue


Dialogue is very important when trying to tell a story. Pretty much every film with an actual story will feature dialogue of some kind.  Dialogue is usually defined as written or spoken communication between two or more people. This is something I think my film will have to use to effectively make the story straightforward to follow.


Sound Effects


Sound effects are usually classified as additional effects usually added in editing to often enhance a specific scene or make it more realistic. An example of this would be adding a gun shot effect in editing each time someone fires a gun in a scene.
Wikipedia has a nice description of sound effects related to film and television :


Sound effects or audio effects are artificially created or enhanced sounds, or sound processes used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media. In motion picture and television production, a sound effect is a sound recorded and presented to make a specific storytelling or creative point without the use of dialogue or music. The term often refers to a process applied to a recording, without necessarily referring to the recording itself. In professional motion picture and television production, dialogue, music, and sound effects recordings are treated as separate elements. Dialogue and music recordings are never referred to as sound effects, even though the processes applied to them, such as reverberation or flanging effects, often are called "sound effects".


I think sound effects will be crucial in my film such as even adding things like wind noises can change the audiences connection to the scene and add realism.


Narration


Narration in film is when you have someone talking over the story often giving a description of a characters thoughts or what is happening. Narration can often offer a unique insight in to how a character is thinking or it could also give you hints to what is going to happen a bit further on in the film. The narrator will often be a main character in the film how ever this can change sometimes to be an unknown voice. The narrator will often guide the audience through a story especially if the plot is quite complex.
In my film I doubt I will be using narration as I feel it would not fit with the general theme of my ideas and it would seem forced rather than being an aid to the story or character development.


Music


Music is an incredibly important addition to most films. The effects it can have on a scene are huge. It can control emotions and enhance them immensely. It can also act as a signifier to things that may have already happened in a film or things that will happen later on. IT can add a lot more drama to a scene particularly in action films. Music can also help the audience connect to a character or develop a character more. Music can also be used as diegetic sound to give a sense of realism in a film as the film characters can respond to something that we know to be real.
Music is something I would like to use a fair bit of in my film to try and enhance some specific scenes and effect audience emotions.




I think sound will play a huge part in my production and It will require very careful choices as the wrong bit of music in a scene can completely ruin the scene just like a bad sound effect can make something that should be serious become humorous.