This document defines various types of sounds that can be used in television and film, including ambient sound, asynchronous sound, dialogue, diegetic sound, incidental music, mode of address, non-diegetic sound, sound bridge, sound perspective, sound effects, soundtrack, synchronous sound, themes, and voice over. It provides descriptions of each type of sound to explain how it relates to what is seen and heard by characters within the story versus what is added for the audience.

1. Ambient sound Sound that is natural to the setting
Asynchronous Sound that does not appear to arise directly from
an object in the shot but is still diegetic
Dialogue Conversations between characters
Diegetic Sounds which can be seen and heard by the
characters
Incidental
music
Background music. It adds atmosphere to the
action
Mode of
address
The tone of voice in which the character speaks
Non diegetic A sound that does not exist in the world of the TV
show and can’t be heard by the characters
Sound bridge Sound that either starts before we cut to a new
scene or sound that we hear before we cut to a new
scene
Sound
perspective
This is where the sound (normally non diegetic) is
connected to a specific character and helps to
explain something about them/ their personality
Sound effects Sounds added during post-production to build up
ambience or to reinforce action
Soundtrack A complete audio component of a film to include all
sounds
Synchronous Audio which is directly matched to a moving image –
sound which appears to the audience to come from
an object in the shot
Themes Music associated with a particular programme, film
or genre
Voice over A type of non-diegetic in which the audience hear a
voice that does not have a source within the frame
(often a character)