A Foley Artist creates sounds on a specially designed Foley stage to align with what is being seen on screen. They often work in a team of two Foley Artists and one Mixer, also referred to as a Foley Engineer, in the studio.

The Mixer must understand the goal of each Foley Artist-produced sound and manipulate microphone placements so that they’re clearly and accurately recording the sound needed.

Meanwhile, the Foley Artists perform on stage to create what is needed, whether it’s something as mundane as a pencil tapping against a table or as imaginative as a monster taking a bite out of a skyscraper.

After a Foley session, a Sound Supervisor or Sound Designer will ensure that the sounds captured work with the picture.

Foley is performed live to picture. Foley Artists do not duplicate sounds from a sound effect library. Taking pre-recorded sounds and editing them to fit the visuals of a film is the job of a Sound Editor.

Foley sound takes on a new dimension with content created for distribution in a foreign market, where Actors may dub the dialogue in another language.

In these situations, even if something is recorded well on the production track, if it’s on top of English dialogue, it has to be replaced. This is because once that dialogue track is removed from the final mix, all other sounds will be removed as well.

To learn more about how to become a Foley Artist, we talked to:

• Gregg Barbanell (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, The Revenant)
• Alyson Dee Moore (Space Jam: A New Legacy, Star Trek: Picard, Inception)
• Jay Peck (Midsommar, Roma, Succession)

The annual salary of a Foley Artist depends on multiple factors.

For one, the nature of the project they’re working on. A small indie film will likely have a smaller overall budget to work with, in comparison to a studio-backed feature. As a result, the pay for the Foley Artist will also be smaller.

Two, the number of projects a Foley Artist can work on in a given year. This particular field is highly competitive, which means that jobs can be scarce. That often translates into a lower overall annual salary.

And three, the Foley Artist’s union membership or lack thereof.

Foley Artists belong to the Motion Picture Editors Guild, also known as the IATSE Local 700. Union membership means guaranteed minimum rates that productions must pay their Foley Artists. Though the type of production will still affect the overall rate, a Foley Artist can make approximately $400-450 per day on a union project.

In comparison, a non-union Foley Artist might make $200 a day. It all depends on what the Foley Artists themselves can negotiate for their daily rate on that project.

Because of these multiple factors, it’s challenging to discern what a Foley Artist, union or not, might make as an annual salary.

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As mentioned, the life of a Foley Artist can be a competitive one. Many Foley Artists stay active for decades with longstanding professional relationships that afford frequent work, which can make it all the more difficult for an aspiring Foley Artist to break into the industry.

That being said, someone who is passionate about the craft and dedicated to making it their life’s work can forge a career as a Foley Artist.

While a significant part of this career is cultivating the skills to be a proficient Foley Artist, they also need to continually be nurturing the professional relationships that will lead to future jobs. As a result, the life of a Foley Artist means constantly hustling for the next gig.

The future of entertainment continues to evolve with options for Foley Artists to work in mediums such as streaming content, so in some ways, there are more opportunities for jobs.

That being said, many of these mediums do not work with union members, which means that the overall rate for a Foley Artist’s work might be significantly lower.

In turn, a Foley Artist may have to work harder to secure the next job to ensure that their overall annual salary affords them a comfortable living wage. This might mean working other types of industry jobs as well to supplement that salary.

These considerations aside, the professional life of a Foley Artist can be highly creative and rewarding. Foley Artists play an important role in bringing to life a film through sound, and because of their specialized skills, they contribute in a way that many other creatives cannot.

There is no one clear path to becoming a Foley Artist, which can be liberating for some people and disappointing for others to hear.

However, because of its role in the world of entertainment, some aspiring Foley Artists may begin their careers with film school where they can become better versed in how sound impacts storytelling. Depending on the program, they may even be able to work on Foley sound stages and get real-world experience as a Foley Artist on student films.

Whether they kick off their careers in film school or not, aspiring Foley Artists should look to any sound-centric opportunities as they build their skillsets, resumes, and professional networks.

That might mean working as a Production Assistant on set, perhaps as part of the Sound Department, or looking for an internship or other entry-level position in a post-production company where they can work with sound professionals.

Mentorship with an established Foley Artist can be a fantastic way to learn the ropes and observe how a professional works. That being said, it can be challenging to forge a relationship with someone who is willing to be that mentor.

It never hurts to ask, though! Through professional sites like IMDB Pro or local post-production houses in your area, you can always reach out to see if you can connect with a Foley Artist or perhaps get a job with one.

As an aspiring Foley Artist begins to build their knowledge and expertise in the post-sound world, as well as grow their professional connections, more opportunities will come where they can finally step into the role of a Foley Artist.

The job of a Foley Artist is to create sounds to fit the narrative and world of a film. In general, that breaks down to recreating movements, footsteps, and prop sounds.

In some cases, it can be straightforward, as in walking across a room to recreate footsteps. But in other cases, they may have to get quite imaginative, as with figuring out how to create the sound of a monster biting into a skyscraper.

That’s why ingenuity and imagination are two significant skills that a Foley Artist must have for the job. Also, patience and experimentation.

The first try at creating a sound might not work. It may take multiple takes, each with slightly different motions or equipment used, to get that sound just right. For a Foley Artist, this is a regular part of the job.

Experience comes from not only professional gigs, but also personal trial and error.

Foley Artists must have a curiosity and passion for creating sounds that go far beyond just working on their craft on the Foley stage. Constantly experimenting with both movements and props to discern what sounds can be made from them will help once they are on that Foley stage and need to create the appropriate sound.

Like most other roles in entertainment, that of a Foley Artist is one of collaboration. Especially when working directly with other Foley Artists, a professional in this field must have an affinity for being open to others’ ideas and knowing how to communicate effectively with them.

In general, great communication skills are also key for developing professional relationships and building a network that will help with getting jobs in the future.

An aspiring Foley Artist does not need a film school degree to get into this line of work.

However, film school can be a great place to start your career. As mentioned, it’s in film school where an aspiring Foley Artist can better understand and learn the role of sound in movies and perhaps get early experience on a Foley stage.

A general education in sound or music can also give an aspiring Foley Artist a firm foundation for the rest of their career. While in school, they can also begin forging those professional relationships that can prove invaluable down the road.

Outside of formal education, an aspiring Foley Artist will absolutely need real-world experience in post-production sound to build their skillsets and reputation as a solid professional in this particular field.

That means taking on any sound-related job that could help in building those skillsets. On-set gigs can initially prove useful, but if there’s an opportunity to work in a post-production sound facility, someone looking to become a Foley Artist should take it.

As an aspiring Foley Artist begins to grow their resume of work and professional contacts, more legitimate Foley gigs will become available. That might mean smaller projects such as an indie film or streaming show that could eventually translate into more high-profile productions like a studio-backed feature or network television show.

Both for networking and building one’s expertise in Foley, the internet can be a valuable resource for an aspiring Foley Artist.

Sites like MasterClass and YouTube offer articles and tutorials on the craft. Social channels like Facebook and Twitter also allow aspiring Foley Artists to connect with others who are interested in sound design.

Even if an aspiring Foley Artist isn’t yet part of the Motion Picture Editor’s Guild, it’s never too soon to find out about its benefits. Barbanell advises, “You have to have a union gig in order to join the union and then you have to report around 400 hours bi-annually to keep your health benefits. It’s a tough one if you’re not working regularly, but the healthcare is excellent if you’re managing to clock the hours.”

Foley Artists may also take advantage of events through their union to connect with other Foley professionals.

Let’s take a look at some of the most outstanding use of foley work through some landmark motion pictures…

• Jurassic Park – Kitchen Scene

By now, we’re all (hopefully) familiar with JURASSIC PARK, a movie that brought dinosaurs back to life. In the film’s third act, when the velociraptors have cornered the kids in the kitchen, sound (read: foley work) plays an instrumental part in creating the tension and suspense that pervades the sequence. From the noises of the kids’ footsteps to the clinking of the utensils to the breathing and claw tapping of the dinosaurs themselves, the scene plays like a masterclass in sound supporting visuals and story. The work is expertly crafted to immerse the audience into the harrowing experience right along with the children on screen and the scene is infinitely more memorable because of its sound design.

• No Country For Old Men – Moss In The Motel Room

The Coen brothers’ masterpiece NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN is a shining example of filmmaking at its purest level. As the film’s hero Moss awaits a killer approaching his room, the subdued but brilliant foley work plays a key role in ratcheting the film’s intensity. Using minimalist visuals and sounds, the sibling filmmakers created an expertly-crafted sequence that dares the audience to breathe as it builds to a stunning climax.

• Alien – Ripley Discovers The Alien

Ridley Scott’s groundbreaking science fiction/horror film ALIEN raised the bar for suspense and tension in both genres. In this scene, the film’s climax (warning: spoilers!), all but one member of an exploratory space crew are dead, having been killed by an unstoppable alien species. At the movie’s end, Ripley, the lone survivor finds herself in the same space as the creature. To her luck, the beast happens to be sleeping. Watch the scene and pay particular attention to the way sound is imbedded into the sequence, moving it along both narratively and emotionally.

• Avatar – The Final Battle

James Cameron’s AVATAR reshaped the cinematic landscape in terms of aesthetics and audio when it first graced the big screen in 2009. The story of an Earth soldier who goes to a far-off planet, meets a native tribe, and soon becomes one of them set new standards for filmmaking. In the film’s climax, an epic battle is joined through the skies of the planet Pandora, as the heroes do battle on flying creatures called Ikran against the machinery of the enemy. Watch some of the sequence and discover how sound couples with visuals to truly elevate the filmic storytelling.

• Wall-E – Opening

Wall-e is Pixar’s animated story of a robot tasked with cleaning up trash on a ruined, debris-covered Earth. Much of the opening of the film’s exposition is spelled out not through dialogue, but rather images coupled with excellently-crafted foley work. In this clip, notice how sound plays a crucial role in building this world and creating a bedrock for the movie’s narrative. And while the images can speak for themselves, the sequence itself would be far less impactful had it been missing sound.

• Psycho – The Shower Scene

The landmark shower scene from Alfred Hitchcock’s signature film PSYCHO set a new precedent for the way movies are made and not just watched, but experienced. In the film, protagonist Marion Crane has made off with some stolen money. She stops at a motel, speaks with the proprietor, and then takes a shower where she meets a terrifying end when a knife-wielding maniac enters the bathroom. Hitchcock and his sound team experimented with microphone placement that created a new sense of immersion for the audience. The stabbing sound of the knife is particularly noteworthy, as even though we hear it, we never see the blade cutting skin. It’s all imagination and foley work.