We'll forever wonder what that goat version sounded like
The sound heard in houses practically every day across the world finally has a story behind it.
In case you thought otherwise, the Netflix "ta-dum" sound went through quite a vigorous journey to the end product that we all know and love today. It only took a full year to create that three-second intro.
A recent podcast episode of 'Twenty Thousand Hetz' saw host Dallas Taylor ask Netflix VP of Product Todd Yellin about how the creation came about. And yes, a goat noise was at one time a front-running contender.
Yellin is a former filmmaker, who loves sound design, so he needed to create something that would one day become synonymous with us knowing that we're about to watch our favourite movie or TV series - in three seconds or less.
He told the host that he enlisted the help of Academy Award-winning sound designer Lon Bender (Best Sound Editing for 'Braveheart') for the project. Yellin wanted something that had some tension, was quirky, and came with a release. They ended up whittling it down to around 20-30 sound effects in different styles. For a long time, one of the team's favourites was one that included a goat noise, which a focus group associated with being "dramatic" "interesting", and even the topic of a "movie" without anyone knowing its real purpose.
However, the deciding factor was Yellin's 10-year-old daughter. She decided which noise was best when the top five contenders had to have only one winner. And now we'll forever wonder what the hell that goat version sounded like.
Via Mashable.