Journal Entry – Week 5

“Steamboat Willie” is known for its use of fully synchronized sound. The film uses sound to aid in its storytelling and setup of the scene. At the very beginning of the film, the audience can hear a loud scratching sound that is paired with smoke coming out of the steamboat’s exhaust. This is followed by a scene of Mickey Mouse whistling, Mickey Mouse is then confronted by a bigger mouse over who gets to steer the boat, while there are no words spoken in this confrontation. The film differentiates the characters by giving the big mouse a raspy, deeper voice, where he speaks gibberish and directs Mickey to the back. The use of sound here functions to add more context to the scene, as without it, it would be harder to decipher what’s actually going on in these interactions.

Although the seven dwarfs in Snow White are made to be very similar, each one has a key difference tied to their personality that differentiates them from one another, and their personality often is shown through the characters movement, facial expressions and speaking patterns. For example, let’s compare Grumpy and Sleepy; Grumpy is animated with a lot of quick and sharp movements, which shows aggression and helps sell his persona of always being somewhat angry. He also always has a frown on his brow, and when he talks, his words come out very quick and antagonistic like. Compare this to Sleepy, who is animated with very slow movements and has constant droopy eyes to show how he’s always tired. He doesn’t speak as much as Grumpy, but when he does, it’s very mumbly and lacks energy. Seeing these traits combined and you would almost never confused the two of these characters.

The film uses sound to emphasize action through its synchronization by allowing characters to vocalize their emotion better. Whether this be from Micky laughing, Minnie screaming when being left behind, or something as small as the whistles on the boat being a higher pitch to exaggerate the idea of catching up to the melody while being animated of them blowing air. All of these reveal the emotions of the characters, what they feel in the moment, and how we as the audience should feel when seeing how they move, accompanied by how they sound.

Sound in “Steamboat” Willie” is used to emphasize the exaggeratedness of its animation style and the context/assets of certain scenes. For example, in the scene where Mickey is in the room of pots/pans and some animals, sound designers take advantage of the scene’s context as Mickey treats the animals like musical instruments through sound association and syncing up the sound effects of the animals with the actual synchronized music. Another thing to note is that throughout the film, every character you see only makes noise/sounds but no dialog. However, at the very end of the short, we get to hear Mickey laugh for the first time, a laugh that we the viewers think as human, a human connection, and it is this laugh that would shape the character’s appeal for the next Mickey Mouse short, 1929’s “The Karnival Kid”, where Mickey’s audio now has spoken words for the first time.

Happy and Sneezy are a good example of the differences between how each of the dwarfs were drawn. While Happy seems to have a smoother animation than some of the others, Sneezy has a more jerkier motion to show how he’s trying not to sneeze. Happy in my opinion has probably one of the more fluid movements than most. Sneezy would seem to have a more solid motion, like a pose-to-pose kind of motion. Not to mention Happy has a higher pitched voice to show how happy he is, and Sneezy’s voiced is slightly toned down to show weariness and also sniffling.

Dopey and Grumpy can be differentiated by the way that they look. Grumpy always has a stern look on his face, he crosses his arms a lot, and his voice matches his face in that it is deep, and he comes across as mean. Dopey smiles a lot, he looks kind of shy, possibly due to his inability to speak, and has very baggy clothing compared to every other dwarf.

View the clip of Snow White meeting the seven dwarfs again. Though each of the seven dwarfs are drawn and animated in a similar manner, there are important differences that tell us something about each of their personalities. Pick two of the dwarfs and show how they are distinguished from each other by the way they move, how they are drawn, their voices and any other means used to show their character.

Grumpy and Dopey are easy to differentiate by how they move and behave. Grumpy walks securely, he crosses his arms, and makes an angry face a lot, showing he is serious and stubborn. His voice is rough and deep, making him sound annoyed. Dopey moves in a funny, clumsy way, often falling or making big gestures. He doesn’t talk, but his big eyes and silly smile make him look playful and innocent. These details show their different personalities.

In “Steamboat Willie” the sound emphasizes the action by the emotions that we see Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse along with all the other characters. They make music with the animals and things around them as they smile. The role that music plays in this film it sets the tone of the moving picture it gives an upbeat sound. It also increased emotions when the music starts both Mickey and Minnie are smiling and enjoying their time. They are in perfect sync with one another when they are making the music.

PROMPT 1

In “Steamboat Willie,” synchronized sound is used to highlight character actions and emphasize scenes. When Mickey turns the ship’s wheel or plays “Turkey in the Straw” with animals as instruments, the sounds match the visuals perfectly and create a rhythmic flow. The music sets the mood and adds to the humor. Sounds also reveal character traits. Mickey’s lively sounds highlight his playful nature, while Captain Pete’s harsh noises emphasize his grumpy side. The rhythmic synchronization of sound makes the film engaging and brings the characters to life.

Steamboat Willie uses synchronized sound to enhance the animation and emphasize actions. Each movement is carefully matched with rhythmic sound effects, creating a seamless blend of audio and visuals. For instance, when Mickey Mouse plays music using various objects and animals aboard the steamboat, the sounds are precisely timed to correspond with his actions, reinforcing the playful and energetic tone of the film. Exaggerated sound effects, such as the ship’s whistle and the squeaking of livestock, further contribute to the film’s comedic and dynamic nature. The film’s use of sound reveals important character traits. Mickey’s inventive and mischievous personality is highlighted through his playful engagement with sound-producing objects.

I chose Dopey and Sleepy, wile all the dwarves have there big ol cheeks that pop right off the sides of there face, Sleepy has his all droopy and his entire face is like this. First we see his teeth and he only has one and that kinda gives him a sleepy baby appearance but his entire face is almost melting as he yawns. His eyes open and blink at different times and he is the only dwarf with crazy eye bags. Dopey seems youngest, he doesn’t have any facial hair like the other dwarves, his cheeks are also less big and red. His ears seem to be the biggest feature he has. He sits a smiles wile others talk and seemingly just looking happy to be here. He seems very nice but he doesn’t talk.. unlike all the other dwarves because well he never tried. He is just so cute.