The history of Foley as a practice goes as far back as the 1920s. Jack Foley (1891-1967), an American sound effect designer, was working for Universal Pictures as an assistant director in 1927. This was when Warner Brothers released the first feature length film with synchronised dialogue. To compete with revolutionary film giant, Universal began to redevelop their sound effects. Operating with simple sources of sound, such as everyday objects, people\u2019s voices, and clothing, Foley\u2019s sound technicians used a skilful method of recording the noises alongside the visuals on screen, in order to create a more immersive experience for American audiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foley never received any on-screen credit for his work during his 33 years at Universal Pictures, yet he is credited with developing the unique craft. His approach was so effective that professionals who chose to get involved in the craft became known as \u2018Foley\u2019 artists. The name has stuck today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Bafta and three-time Emmy nominee Barnaby Smyth has been working with Foley for around 30 years now. He explained how Foley is mostly a stepping stone for sound engineers to get into the world of sound production. For him, it was the craft he fell in love with. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2016, Barnaby set up his own studio, The Laundry Foley Studio in Essex, where he works with a team of skilled artists. They\u2019ve worked on many big projects in TV and film, including Downton Abbey, Baby Reindeer, and Snow White. Most recently, Barnaby was nominated in the 2025 Bafta Television Craft Awards<\/a> category for \u2018sound: fiction\u2019 with his work on House of the Dragon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hungary-based Foley artist and sound designer Bal\u00e1zs Gy\u0151ri became involved in the profession following his career as a musician. He fell into mechanical engineering work, where he mixed records for ten years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, finding work in the music business was on the decline in Hungary. For Bal\u00e1zs, a career which he found \u201ccreative, exciting, inexplicable and unique (and a little less serious)\u201d was on the horizon: foley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His first film \u201cFever at Dawn<\/a>\u201d released in 2015, which told the true story of two holocaust survivors. He set up his own studio \u201cTheFoleyArtist<\/a>\u201d during the pandemic, where he\u2019s since produced his own work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat excites me most about foley work is how I can use steps to enhance a person\u2019s character, create real intimacy through sounds, and create a more authentic \u2018reality.\u2019 And all this has to be done in a way that the viewer can’t think that this was done in post-production. We’re practically trying to drag them into the scene,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Coming up with ideas for a range of sounds (everything from rain to breaking bones) seems challenging. For Barnaby, who has been in the craft for around 30 years now, it\u2019s all about experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBetween myself and my engineer and my other foley artist, we can discuss, and we\u2019ll shoot stuff in the studio. Then we often lay location recordings,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For interesting sound acoustic, the team will record in stately homes or big halls. One of the common recordings in productions is footsteps. For Barnaby\u2019s team, recording trainer footsteps on a sprung, gym-like wooden floor can often be most effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI suppose it\u2019s sort of embedding the foley into the scene wherever you are, whether you\u2019re in a field or in a castle or in a hall, just so it doesn\u2019t sound like it\u2019s a closely recorded footstep that doesn\u2019t belong to that scene.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Like any profession, Foley can be as challenging as it is fun. Finding the right prop can be difficult and take up to two hours. But it\u2019s not something to be rushed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s hard, because you can record a sound like someone sitting on a leather chair. You\u2019re like, oh, that sort of sounds right, but the chair\u2019s not quite right. There\u2019s a bit of a weird creak, or the leather\u2019s making a bit of a guffy air sound, or the mic\u2019s too close,\u201d Barnaby says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A sound mixer will work with the artist, guiding them in their recording. To ensure the sound mixer has an easier time making the recording sound good, Foley can take a while to perfect. The artist and engineer know <\/em>the sound they\u2019re trying to create, so it becomes a matter of recognising when they\u2019ve made that sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Bal\u00e1zs, he finds tasks become easier when sounds are broken down into layers in his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Six to seven layers of sound can bring a visual scene on screen to life. One example of how he breaks a visual down into sounds is a horse and carriage. For the horses, he will produce a rhythm by using coconuts beat together. For the carriage, he will combine a chain, wooden planks, and a leather strap. <\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/jusmedia.co.uk\/studioinsider\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/34\/2025\/05\/foley-1-1024x686.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe first steps<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
Inside the studio<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
The challenges of Foley<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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