The Star Wars franchise has always been known for being iconic in basically every way imaginable. One such way is through their unique sound design. Fans of the series will never forget its remarkable sound such as the "whoosh!" of a light saber, the "pew! pew!" of a blaster, or the banshee-like shrieks of a soaring Tie Fighter.
It's very interesting to learn how some of these sounds are made. Being a sound designer for a project as big as Star Wars requires A LOT of talent and creativity. During the part of the film where the bug-like creatures are crawling on the floor, many random objects, such as a grapefruit for instance, were used to perfect the sounds necessary. I learned that the people who create these sounds from manipulating objects are know as "foley artists". They probably have one of the neatest jobs in the world; creating crazy noises with even crazier objects!
After taking a second listen to some of the other Star Wars movies, I can begin to uncover how some sounds were made and manipulated to create the desired effect. For example, the screech of a Tie Fighter is actually a pitch altered version of a car screeching. Many of the sounds for air crafts in Star Wars films were created using real air crafts and planes and then manipulating the sound to create a new one.
To critique, many sound designers can take a note from Star Wars. Sounds can come from literally anything. It takes an open and creative mind to become an expert sound designer. It takes even more to become the sound designer who is responsible for one or more iconic sound effects, such as Ben Burtt. Wouldn't you have liked to be the one who CREATED the sound of a light saber??
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