Emily Carr has an extensive sound effects library, with clips that you can use for the sound design of your animation and media projects. The University pays an annual fee to license the effects, so you don’t have to worry about obtaining copyright usage. However, you will have to cite the sources in the credits of your piece.
It’s quite straightforward to use the effects library.
Emily Carr’s Library is at <www.ecuad.ca/library>.
Referring to the Front Page, click the “Databases” tab. From that page, click “A-Z Databases,” choose “W” for “Westar Music and Sound Effects”.
A browser page will then open, titled “Westar Music and Sound Effects” Click on the button called “Access Database”. The Westar site should then open.
By clicking on the Sound Effects tab, you will be taken to the Sound Ideas section.
You can use the search menu (which includes Advanced Search options), to seek particular sounds. Similarly, there are filters you can apply.
To evaluate a sound, once you have located a certain clip, click on the “play” button and take a listen.
If it is a sound you would like to use, then click the “download” button.
You will typically be asked to choose a “wav,” “aif,” or “mp3.” Choose “wav” or “aif” as they are lossless compressions. Don’t choose “mp3,” as that format is compressed. For production, you will want to use best-quality lossless and uncompressed formats. Then, when you export a final version, the software you use will compress everything, to render a movie file that is ideal playback purposes.
Downloading will occur from the Sound Ideas site, once the permission settings are evaluated. Allow a few moments of time for the download to occur.
The file will go to the Downloads folder on the workstation you are using. From there, move the clips to the Sounds folder in your overall Production Folder.