Initially, in my Project Hyperessay 1 post, I addressed wanting to work with music and videos. However, after a skype session with Randall, I realised that although music may change the mood and context, voice changes the identity. Afterall, the core idea of Swappie is to manipulate and multiply identity. Therefore, it has been decided that I would work specifically with the spoken voice though music, ambient sounds as well as sound effects may be used to accompany a video clip.

An example that was provided by Randall is the above Allstate Insurance commercial. The guy’s voice suddenly changes to a deep, authoritative voice of the insurance agent – quickly implying that the Allstate insurance agent would be on top of the situation as soon as it happens. In the world we live in, in order for something to be real, it has to be hyperreal and exaggerated. For example, lipsyncing and fake, made up sounds are recorded in a sound booth and added to the visuals later. Therefore, sound and the spoken voice, if swapped, changes the way we ultimately perceive the world and the recorded medium. Below is an example of how the hyperreal sounds for Toy Story was created as well as recorded.

Though this would be my first time working with sound (being a graphic designer), its a challenge I am embracing; considering how interesting the topic is. Sound has moulded the way we perceive the world and by changing simple everyday sounds like a dog barking accompanying a video of a cat, and the sound of a jetplane with an accompanying video of a car raring by, we change our perceptions in ways we never expect. Sound swapping creates the opposite of believability and solidity.

In addition to the text above, I found this video of a top 10 list of most memorable movie sound effects that piqued my interests. For now, I will be looking into foley, sound swapping and voiceovers and how they can contribute to a radical change and transformation of identity.