Do You Know How E.T. Creates His Walking Sound Effect?
When recalling E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, our memories often run deep from its memorable scenes. Often overlooked is an unsung detail: E.T. walking across the screen!
Have you ever wondered how sound designers create strange noises for E.T. to walk around? The answer may be stranger than expected because his footsteps could be heard as someone squishing their hands in Jelly! Astounding! Let’s explore why such an unlikely source as Jelly could produce such an apt sound for a fictional creature!
Ben Burtt was hired as a sound designer for E.T. to ensure its original and memorable effects would resonate with audiences worldwide. To do this, his main priority was making sure its sounds stood out and were unique. Burtt found inspiration when playing around with Grape Jelly during lunchtime. It was perfect for capturing E.T.’s delicate steps.
Not every jelly texture can provide the ideal sound effect to represent E.T.’s footsteps accurately.
Burtt had such a deep knowledge of sound design he knew Jelly had just the characteristics he needed for that task. It not only created realistic footsteps sound effects but created something genuinely original – all hallmarks of success for any sound designer! That is the beauty of good design.
Jelly may come as a shock, but sound designers take great pride in creating unique ways of making everyday objects sound extraordinary.
One example is the use of actual tortoise mating calls in creating animal sounds in movies like Jurassic Park; similarly, Disney’s “The Lion King” used a mix of growls from real lions as well as vocalizations from bears and even humans as inspiration for its lion roars! They strive for creative solutions to transform mundane things into remarkable sounds!
Even Spielberg, the legendary director behind E.T., was so taken with Burtt’s jelly-squishing sound effect that he used it throughout the movie to enhance the realism of E.T.’s footsteps. At one point, Spielberg exclaimed, “Oh my God – that’s great.”
E.T.’s impact has led many people to embrace its sound effects with open arms, E.T.’s gentle footsteps being one of them. That something as mundane as Jelly being crushed together could create such an iconic noise is a testament to their creativity as sound designers who helped bring E.T. into being.
Sound design may not be top of mind when considering great films, but it is essential in crafting an immersive cinematic experience for audiences. E.T.’s walking effect remains a testament to originality and creativity in sound designing; every time you hear him walk across your T.V. screen or cinematic experience, you should remember this fact and appreciate even further who made it all happen!
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