1. Who exactly is Jack Donovan Foley? Well to state is simply, the pioneer behind the Foley technique named after him. The movie business was already using and adding in sound after recording scenes thats no myth. So what does Jack Donovan Foley so that was so pioneering? What Jack Foley did was tailor make sounds for each scene so that each sound was unique and felt much more real then using generic and often bland sounds. Its a line of work that until his death was never credited. He was never featured in the credit of any film he created sounds for. The foley industry has become massive and there are awards given to films for their sound effects and other sound related arts. But to think it all really started from one man thinking about making something just sound better. Its amazing to listen to just the noises of a film and realise how a silentfilm looks just so out of place.(Picture Right http://filmsound.org/foley/foley.jpg)
2. The technique that Foley created was and still is a way of creating sounds after filming to be edited in after. One example that seems to be very prominent in his career was working on the film "Spartacus". This is a quote from http://filmsound.org/foley/unsung-hero.htm "Director Stanley Kubrick wanted to reshoot the Roman army marching to battle because the location sound was no good. Foley ran out to his car and retrieved a large ring of keys, which he then jangled in sync to the march step, creating the rhythmic "ching" of the armour and saving production the expense of a two-day shoot with soldier extras."As an example of what foley is, this cant get any better. Using everyday objects to create sounds for a film is basically as simple as it gets. Many people who work in the business have their workshops full of hundreds of different objects to create unique and varying sounds for many films. Its a form of work that I view myself as a form of art and I think could be very enjoyable to do.
3. When it came to creating the Foley technique it was done under a bit of commercial pressure. When he was at the age of 23 he was working with Universal Studios in 1914. He worked with them on some of their silent films but when the world of film decided its time for sound made its entrance he and a sound team were brought in by Universal studios to make their silent musical Show Boat a fully sounded film. Due to the fact the Microphones could only just about record voices and singing Foley and a team were given the task of creating the sounds for the rest of the film. This is possibly the first film to unofficially use the Foley technique.
(Picture Right http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Broadcasting_a_radio_play_at_NBC_studio.jpg/330px-Broadcasting_a_radio_play_at_NBC_studio.jpg)
4. To me the reason Foley is still used is because its just so darned effective. I mean watching any film behind the scenes has evidence of it being used, but there is no way you could tell that the sounds were added in after, its something that never occurs to a viewer until told about it. Like I mention above I believe its a great form of art and is very much ingrained into film making itself as a key component. I don't think any great film that has been out in the last 20 years would be the same without the hard work that goes into each and every sound recorded by a Foley Artist. Is there any doubt that it shouldn't be replaced in my mind. No is the simple answer. The work is amazing and its a essential part of every film and if done right can make or break a film. Thats why to me it is a crucial part of film culture and deserves to be part of it for as long as we create films.
(All quotes http://filmsound.org/foley/unsung-hero.htm)
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