Ultimate Guide to Diegetic vs Non-Diegetic Sound - Definitions, Examples, & How to Break the Rules

Diegetic vs Non-Diegetic Sound Explained - A complete guide to film sound, the definitions of both types, their various applications, and how some filmmakers break the rules of sound to tell better stories.
What is Diegetic Sound? ►► bit.ly/wi-nd
Tarantino's Sounds of Violence ►► bit.ly/qt-sv
Build Suspense with Sound ►► bit.ly/sd-dv
Sound Design in Dune ►► bit.ly/du-de
StudioBinder Blog ►► bit.ly/sb-bl
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Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction to Diegetic Sound
00:51 - Origin of Diegetic Sound
02:04 - Types of Sound in Film
03:05 - Diegetic Sound
06:31 - Non-Diegetic Sound
09:40 - Trans-Diegetic Sound
13:01 - Creative Exceptions
16:33 - Takeaways
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Special thanks to:
FRIBOURG FILM ORCHESTRA & CHORUS ►► bit.ly/or-av
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DIEGETIC VS NON-DIEGETIC SOUND EXPLAINED
Film sound comes in two basic types - diegetic vs non-diegetic. Each has a role in the cinematic experience, and in this video, we’re going to explain everything. Including the definitions of each type, their most common and not-so-common applications, and how filmmakers can use the soundtrack to tell better stories.
We always say that we “watch” movies, but have you ever really “listened” to a movie? There is quite a lot of storytelling happening on the soundtrack, but we usually take it for granted. Naturally, our eyes do the heavy lifting as they process all that visual information, but film sound is actually an unsung hero in the overall experience.
WHAT IS DIEGETIC SOUND
To understand diegetic vs non-diegetic sound in film, we first have to understand what “diegesis” means. The concept of diegesis goes all the way back to the Ancient Greeks and it refers to “the act of narrating a story,” including the details the narrator adds or leaves out. In film, this essentially means “the world of the film and everything in it.” And when it comes to film sound, if the characters can hear it, it’s diegetic; otherwise, it’s non-diegetic.
But which is which and why does it matter? Let’s continue with a breakdown of diegetic sound.
DIEGETIC SOUND IN FILM
Again, if the characters can hear it, it’s diegetic sound - even if they only hear it in their head. This is called internal diegetic sound and includes thoughts, narration, music, etc. We can also divide diegetic sound into two subcategories: on-screen and off-screen. This refers to the source of the sound. When we hear birds in a forest scene but can’t see them, it’s still considered diegetic.
NON-DIEGETIC SOUND IN FILM
On the other hand, non-diegetic sound is everything the characters cannot hear. This includes sound effects, some forms of narration, and, the most common element, the musical score. But sometimes sound can actually switch between diegetic vs non-diegetic, which is called trans-diegetic sound. This often helps to blur the line between fantasy and reality.
There are countless ways to use film sound to lure us into or shock us out of the cinematic experience. Now that you know the basics of diegetic vs non-diegetic sound, it’s your turn to make us truly listen to a movie.
#FilmTheory #VideoEssay #Filmmaking
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♬ SONGS USED:
"Club Foot Clavipes (Instrumental)" - Isaac Joel
"Mercury" - Alon Ohana
"Jake's First Flight" - James Horner
"Yes I Am (Instrumental)" - Zach Sorgen
"Wistful (Instrumental)" - Falls
"Glass" - Claudio Laucci
"Something's Different" - Danny Elfman
"Oscillating Form" - Charlie Ryan
"Hey Jude" - The Mutato Muzika Orchestra
"Overture (From The Hateful Eight Soundtrack)" - Ennio Morricone
"Hedwig's Theme" - John Williams
"Murph" - Hans Zimmer
"Married Life" - Michael Giacchino
"Waterfall Fight" - Ludwig Göransson
"Way Out There (Main Title)" - Carter Burwell
"The Way We Get By (Instrumental)" - Spoon
"X Gon' Give It To Ya" - DMX
"Dead Already" - Thomas Newman
"Prelude" - Bernard Herrmann
"Last But Not Least (Instrumental)" - Chelsea McGough
"The End" - The Doors
Music by Artlist ► utm.io/umJx
Music by Artgrid ► utm.io/umJy
Music by Soundstripe ► bit.ly/2IXwomF
Music by MusicBed ► bit.ly/2Fnz9Zq
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Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction to Diegetic Sound 00:51 - Origin of Diegetic Sound 02:04 - Types of Sound in Film 03:05 - Diegetic Sound 06:31 - Non-Diegetic Sound 09:40 - Trans-Diegetic Sound 13:01 - Creative Exceptions 16:33 - Takeaways

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Even though I knew the basic distinction between Diegetic and Non-diegetic, this video was still extremely helpful for some of the finer details Even then, I would still watch this video if I knew everything as it is just super entertaining to watch and is really well presented

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I was low-key expecting the narrator of Studio Binder (or this video) to show his face at the end of the video to tell us that the entire video was Trans-Diegetic. This was super helpful!! I cannot thank StudioBinder enough for their work. More power to you guys. ♥♥♥︎

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The guide is perfect, but the chosen references blow my mind! - as always! Make me want to re-watch all those movies once again. And there are some that I never watched, and I find that I need to. As a video editor, the sound is my secret weapon. This team is just incredible. Long life StudioBinder! Luv you!

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I was just on set yesterday with a friend and we were discussing how Paul Thomas Anderson’s famous non-diegetic sound is constantly used in his films like Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, and Magnolia. The sound, specifically called “Clementine’s Loop” adds a detailed, but so ambiguous feel to what may or may not happen in the film.

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Great observation!

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Love the video! Around 11:42 when you mention the opening sequence in Big Lebowski - I would like to add that the non diegetic music seamlessly transforms into the music being playing in the grocery store as The Dude is introduced sniffing a milk carton he’s considering purchasing. I’ve always loved that detail.

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The first time that I realized that sound was very important was in the movie Titanic. The camera goes up on the stairs and then passes the big clock where you can hear it ticking. Love that.

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this is the first video we made about diegetic vs non-diegetic sound

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The fifth element has this part called the diva dance were an opera sings but it happens in parallel with a fight scene (at a different location). Making the diegetic music trans-diegetic.

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That's what we want to hear :)

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thank you for the good tips! Next time I edit my videos, I will work more carefully with Diegetic and Non Diegetic sounds.

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I remember a film starring Gerard Depardieu called "Too Beautiful For You" that had a scene with a piece by Schubert(?) playing in the background. Depardieu suddenly realizes the music is on the stereo. He had thought it was in his head because "it's tearing me apart!"

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The non-diegetic sounds in “Uncut Gems” had my on edge, the pacing of the film and sounds made my heart race. Literally had to go to another environment outside the theater immediately after to decompress.

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I just noticed that they use vocal samples from James Brown's songs as on-street noise in "Big" (around 4:09 and 4:13 in this video). That is some creative sound design!

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Enjoy!

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amazing! Thank you

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Not the movies and not sound but I used to love when the old US TV show _Green Acres_ would display the (supposedly non-diegetic) onscreen credits and the characters themselves would comment on them, e.g. “Whose names are those?” It completely fit the totally absurd, surreal quality of the show.

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It's funny, this is actually one of the real lessons they actually taught me in Film school.

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Sound is the subtle way to introduce the audience to the world of cinema.

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Unrelated to the video: 16:42 i love how in the studiobinder videos, whenever he says stuff like "Even though we typically watch movies, there's plenty of reason we should be listening to movies just as closely" then shows someone saying " What is that?" . Its really funny and interesting to watch.

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My favourite musical moment is in Grosse Pointe Blank. It starts with non-diegetic Live And Let Die which cuts to a diegetic musak version inside the convenience store.

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Glad you liked it!

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Non filmmaker here, but huge film fan! I’m loving this channel! So, I simply must now ask a question: What about the way Star Wars: Andor used its music? I saw in a BTS show about it that the orchestra was on set the entire filming period so that they were playing the music that was attached to the scene as the scene was being filmed. Generally, scene orchestration would be non diagetic, but this is music that the actors hear as they act out the roles, and some would say that therefore the characters are hearing it to.

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happy to help!

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Thanks!

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🙏🙏

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tarantino's once upon a time in hollywood is full of transdiegetic sound. been thinking about howthe structure for at least 18 months, not knowing what it was called. i have noticed it on other movies since then too. thanks for the label and for the other examples

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Glad it helped!

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cool video! very interesting

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Have you ever listened to a movie?!! Yes. There used to be a program on our local radio, every Sunday, where the audio of the movie was played. It would be shorter in length but it was amazing to listen to those. Of course, they were more dialogue-oriented and the scenes where visual items communicate more would be tough to understand if you already hadn't watched the movie.

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Nice one

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Thanks!

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You guys always come through at the right times! Currently editing my new movie and sound/ music choices has been what I have been working on over the last week or so. I want to make it really pop! Thank you for this video and all the other ones you do. It really helps!

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Good luck!

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I actually listen to movies without the picture all the time at work. I put them on my phone in my pocket and play them in my earbuds when I don't feel like listening to a podcast or music. It's fun to rate which movies are specifically "good movies to listen to" vs "good movies to watch".

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Editing of that intro is blowing my mind

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🔥🔥

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As a sound engineer this is valueable info

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Please do some videos on 1st,2nd,3rd person & omniscient,limited etc Point of views of story telling ✌️

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we have a video on the POV shot you would like! kzbin.info/www/bejne/eH2mgnSjidGYhpI

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@@StudioBinder saw this earlier it'll be better if it's more detailed like I said! ♥️

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Appreciate it!