Archive notice: This article was originally published on July 29, 2014. Links and embedded videos are preserved as part of the historical record.
Audio files can really land a filmmaker in a mess if the sound effect or music they quickly found on the Internet is protected by copyright and costs are incurred for every media use. That is why it is more practical to download sounds for film projects that can definitely be used free of charge and legally.
Antunes’ list includes, for example, Incompetech: the blog of composer Kevin MacLeod offers a large selection of both free and paid pieces of music for download.
The author also recommends the Free Music Archive website, which has many different styles of music, as the website is an interactive archive of high-quality legal audio downloads. The site is maintained by the US radio station WFMU.
Sound effects licensed under the Creative Common License are available at www.freesound.org. The audio files from SoundBible may even be used for commercial projects. Anyone who needs more nature sounds for a project can take a look at the Community Audio Section of The Sounds of Nature Collection or at NatureSoundsforMe.
And always remember: even if the sounds are free and legal, read the FAQs of the respective website and the conditions for each file before downloading and using the tracks, so that you do not end up using sound files for the wrong purpose after all. Because that can cause real trouble if you are very unlucky.
Click here for Jose Antunes’ overview at Pro Video Coalition.
