diegetic
dy-uh-JET-ik
/ˌdaɪ.əˈdʒet.ɪk/
Sound or visual elements within a film that exist within the world of the story, audible or visible to the characters.
Diegetic sound includes dialogue, radio music in a scene, or footsteps; non-diegetic sound includes background film scores or narrator voiceovers.
The story behind the word. From Greek 'diēgēsis' meaning 'narration' or 'recounting'. Film theorists in the mid-20th century adapted Plato and Aristotle's distinction between mimesis (imitation) and diegesis (narration) to classify movie sounds.
Word relationships
- actual sound: Actual sound is a practical film production term, whereas diegetic is the formal narrative theoretical term.
- non-diegetic: Elements (like film scores or commentary) existing outside the story world, unheard by characters.
- extradiegetic: Narrative commentary coming from outside the fictional world.
Commonly confused with
- diagnostic: Diagnostic relates to medical or technical analysis, whereas diegetic relates to narrative world sound and elements.
Word family
- diegesis (noun): The fictional world in which a story takes place.
- diegetically (adverb): In a diegetic manner.
Collocations
- diegetic sound
- diegetic music
- diegetic world
- diegetic soundscape
Example sentences
- "The director turned the car radio into diegetic music that seamlessly set the mood for the scene." Film Sound Analysis
- "The sudden transition from non-diegetic orchestral score to raw diegetic silence heightened the shock of the explosion." Theoretical Critique
Memory hook
DIEGETIC = Inside the DIRECT environment of the story's characters. Sound characters can hear.
When not to use
Do not use for orchestral background music that characters in the movie cannot hear.
Fun facts
- A famous example of playing with diegetic sound occurs in 'Baby Driver', where gunshots and windshield wipers sync perfectly to the music the lead character is listening to on his earphones.
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