Sound Design, Music and the Birth of Evil in Twin Peaks: The Return

Loydell, Rupert ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2730-8489 and Marshall, Kingsley ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2518-7305 (2018) Sound Design, Music and the Birth of Evil in Twin Peaks: The Return. In: Music and the Moving Image, 24-27 May 2018, NYU Steinhardt, New York. (Unpublished)

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Abstract / Summary

'Sound is at least 50% of the picture […] In post, most of the sound is built and it’s usually a process of experimenting. Action and reaction. Trying this or that. I think that in every instance of every sound, there are 760 million sounds that are wrong and there are 34 sounds that are correct. And of the 34, 27 of them are very similar. But 7 of the 34 are completely weird… but they still work' (Lynch, in Bentley: 2017)

The opening line in the first episode of Twin Peaks: The Return, spoken by Carel Struycken’s character, asks FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper to 'Listen to the sounds'. Throughout the series, writer, director and sound designer David Lynch deploys a complex combinaton of sound and visuals in order to depict mysticism, the impossible and bring to life the birth and spread of evil in the Twin Peaks universes

Paying attention specifically to the predominantly dialogue-free episode eight of the series, we wil explore how Lynch makes use of intricate sound design, score, existing source music and music performed within the diegeis in order to complete his intricate visuals. We explore how the episode, and series as a whole, makes intertextual connections to conventional and experimental film form in addition to extending upon established Lynchian worlds, and how manipulation of sounds within the series lends an otherworldly quality to the image.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Subjects: Film & Television
Research
Performing Arts > Music & Sound
Communication > Creative Writing
Communication > Journalism
Courses by Department: The School of Communication
Depositing User: Rupert Loydell
Date Deposited: 14 May 2018 13:25
Last Modified: 18 Nov 2024 15:06
URI: https://repository.falmouth.ac.uk/id/eprint/2869
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