Houjun Liu

SU-PWR Citizenfour

general choice of sound

  • ominous/bad: low tonal drone
  • surveillance: loud high frequency buzz
  • final ending music contrasts with erythidng

  • uses immediate dialogue with no visuals to present focus
    • rawness/truth of the dialogue (and arguably Snowden’s good job at phrasing) makes it more compelling
    • nat sound without visuals provide additional focus
  • background music modulates emotional valence

  • fairly significant use of nat packages to emphasize reality
  • the tone of the reading also modulates the opinion

  • the confrontation of the court creates tension
  • parallel contrasting statements

  • transition to Snowden interview feels relatively peaceful compared to the beginning, which is drawing attention in its own way
  • the jovial nature being in the room contrasts to the serious issue at hand
  • the cuts are really quite hard: to emphasize contrast between loud news breaks and the quietness of the hotel room—especially large contrast with regards to Ed Snowden’s wife being raided, etc., which is rather peaceful
    • or the quiet of TV television as compared to the loud noise of the nat package behind

  • the lack of speaking from the camera operator/sounds behind the makes the scene much more intimate

    • i.e. this feels like a private conversation between a few people, despite there being what appears to be an entire camera crew with Laura (and she rarely speaks from behind the camera expect during the identity bits)
    • the contrast of tensions is really interesting
  • TANGENT: Glen Greenwald seems to be pushing Snowden (“I’m not going to hide”)


  • begin of the Monday clip with the time ticking highlights the intensity
  • the light from the reporter traking glen into the elevator (dark) cotrasts with the hotel (light)
    • the microphone close to Snowden’s chest amplifies heart rate

  • The rest of it feels really dull in a sharp contrast, as a fallout.
  • The British government feels more powerful, which is also why when TEMPORA is introduced the low humming ominous sounds are replaced with loud pearcing sounds

  • TANGENT: its really weird to be seeing people putting away phones but then there’s a whole camera
  • the low droning voice returns promising government pressure, while the high buzzing noise returns when surveillance was covered