Making Zero-Budget Animation Sound Effects
Have you ever had to audio licensing issues? It’s a frustrating roadblock, but it forced me to ask a creative question: Is it feasible to own 100% of my indie animation world, including the sounds?
I took on the ultimate zero-budget Foley challenge to remake the soundscape for one of my favourite chocolate egg animations using only household items, old audio archives and my own voice.
Here is how the messy, chaotic experiment went down and what it taught me as I build the world for my indie animated series, Everything Ella.
The Problem: The Archived Animation
A while back, I had to set several of my YouTube Shorts, including my animations, to private due to audio licensing issues caused by interface limitations. While it was disappointing, fair is fair: I wouldn't want anyone using my creations without permission either!
Instead of leaving the animation archived, I decided to use it as a practice run to test if I could record original sound effects and with that own my animations 100%, including audio. And without a budget for this, I had to get creative with household items, audio recordings from my archives and if needed my voice.
Brainstorming
To get started, I made a list of every sound effect I needed and started thinking what sound around the house could replace it. I didn't come up with ideas right away, some ideas took days of paying close attention to everyday household noises.
The sounds I needed were:
- An ambient nature soundscape
- Bird chirping
- Bird struggling
- Egg shell cracking
1. Ambient Nature Soundscape
I originally planned to head outside to record actual birds. But just as I opened the window, the local birds started warning me other about an incoming storm. Minutes later, it was pouring rain: classic Dublin weather!
Pro-Tip for Audio: Don't assume a sound will be there later. Record it the exact second you hear it!
Fortunately, I remembered an old phone recording I made back in 2019 while traveling in New Zealand. You never know when wild field recordings will save your project years down the line!
2. Bird chirping
For the chirp of the baby chick, I couldn't come up with anything useful so I used whistling to recreate the noise which got really close. Then, out of nowhere and days later, I heard it: the metallic toilet paper holder squeaked as it moved. It turned out to be the absolute perfect tone for the chick's quack/chirp!
3. Bird struggling
This was the hardest sound of them all, getting the sound of the chick struggling to get out of its shell. That was when my kitchen ice machine started making its usual struggling rumble, and it clicked: could that be the sound?
4. Egg shell cracking
The last sound I needed was the egg shell cracking as the chick hatches. I thought the simplest idea is often the best, so I grabbed an egg. I didn't want to waste an actual egg, so I played with a spoon tapping and scratching it to see if we could get the right sound. I also used aluminium foil and baking paper which were surprisingly useful. I combined the recorded sounds and mixed them in my video editor, Davinci Resolve.
Mixing the Sounds in my Editor
Now came the mixing stage in DaVinci Resolve (Free version). I’ve read books on audio editing, but it is genuinely challenging as there are a million variables!
Despite hours of tweaking, the ice machine audio just didn't work. There was too much background noise, and I couldn't isolate the "punch" of the hatching movement. I had to accept a "better done than perfect" mindset and resort to using my own voice for part of it. And I am so happy it didn't work because it led to me to hilarious bloopers and the best part of this project.
Pro-Tip: The attitude better done than perfect, has helped me countless times to unblock barriers and finishing my projects. Sometimes, it is about acceptance or coming up with simpler or more creative solutions and somehow it often turns into the most exciting part of the project. So embrace the mistakes and the unexpected!
Part of the message behind creating Everything Ella is all about embracing mistakes and seeing the magic unfold!
If you think you can make the ice machine sound work, check out the challenge below!
The Result: Is it feasible to own 100% of my indie animation world, including the sounds?
The conclusion of this experiment is a resounding YES! It is completely feasible to create your own custom sound effects for animation with a total budget of zero euros. All it takes is a bit of curiosity, a little creativity with everyday household objects, and some basic understanding of your editing software.
I think the homemade sound effect version turned out even better than the licensed audio as it has more personality, especially when you know what the sounds are actually made of. But you don't listen to me, hear it for yourself:
Proving that zero-budget Foley actually works, my curiosity immediately popped the question: Can I take this a step further and make my own music for my indie animation?
Enter Experiment #2! If you want to come along for the ride and see how that next chaotic audio adventure unfolds, make sure to follow along on YouTube so you don't miss the reveal.
The Ice Machine Remix Challenge! 🎧
Can you do a better job editing my chaotic ice machine audio than I did?
I’ve uploaded the raw "Struggling Ice Machine" audio track for free. Download the file, turn it into a hatching chick sound, and post your remix!
👉 Download the Raw Ice Machine SFX Here
Tag @TaniaRosasDesigns on YouTube Shorts or social media so I can see your creation: I'd love to see what you come up with!
What to Read Next
If you enjoyed this zero-budget creative dive, you might enjoy this video on Creative Hobbies with Music and Sound Design!
