Sound Used in the Preliminary Task (Non - Diegetic and Contrapuntal)

Non - diegetic sound is sound that cannot be heard be the characters in the text, it can only be heard by the audience. This type of sound is used to emphasise the mood of a scene; for example, in a scene where a character has just died, often sad music is played so the audience can understand that this is a distressing and upsetting scene. It helps the audience to empathise with the characters.

Here is an example of non - diegetic sound from the film, 'The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas':

The opposite to non - diegetic sound is diegetic sound. This is all the sound that the characters in the text can here, such as dialogue, sound effects etc.


Contrapuntal sound is a form of non - diegetic sound. It is a sound bed (sound that continues over the scene) that contrasts the mood of the scene. This is a technique that is often used in horror films, as it emphasises the scary mood. Here is an example from the film, 'Final Destination 3':

The opposite of contrapuntal sound is parallel sound. This is a sound bed that matches the mood of the scene. This is particularly effective in distressing, sad scenes as they help the audience understand and empathise with the characters in the scene, such as in the example, used previously in this post, from 'The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas'.