Audio Overlay For "Removal" of Swear Words?

[Zeek]

Hi All...

I'm working on a *very* last minute Christmas DVD project with some audio that, while damn funny, will definitely not be for the G-rated (or PG, even) members of the family. The ideal thing for me would be to simply extract the offending words and insert a bleep or funny sound of some kind in it's place. However, I've done a bit of homework on simple audio extraction/insertion and have pretty much come to the conclusion that, because of potential synch issues and the amount of time that would be required to get it exactly right, it's probably not worth it.

As a plan B, I was wondering about leaving the original audio uncut and, instead, simply lowering the volume on select portions of it (a half second or second here and there). In additon, I was thinking maybe I could overlap a second small wav file with a beep/arooga/whatever to fill the gap in a little. This would do the job and probably add a little humor that everyone could appreciate, as well.

Unfortunately, my experience with audio editing is very, very limited. I do have an older copy of Cool Edit Pro lying around and, while I know it's very capable of doing what I want it to, I'm a lost cause so far. So, if anyone would be kind enough to give me a clue on that particular software, or suggest an alternative one that would get the job done fast, I'd definitely appreciate it.

Thanks, and Merry Christmas..

Z

[Forum Troll]

http://www.cleanflicks.com/previewTitles.html

They sell and rent tons of movies that have been edited for family viewing. They might have the title you are wanting.

[guns1inger]

Vegas would be ideal for this. Simply apply a volume envelope to the audio track, then shift then add points and shift them up and down as required. Slow going though, having to find and adjust every swear word.

Or just overlay a sound effect on a second track as required.

Frankly, I'd wait until the audience is old enough, rather than spoil it for everyone.

[mattso]

What's the movie? What are the swear words?

[jimmalenko]

Ever have the thought that the "G" or "PG" element of your intended audience have probably heard those words in the playground before anyway and/or can lip-read ?

[Zeek]

Thanks. The movie is just a bunch of stuff I've schlepped together from various camping trips, outings, and stupid stuff I've done with my brothers. The words run the gamut from A to Z, with probably some foreign swear words too boot. Movie will be done along the lines of Jackass, with good reason. And the audience is as "old enough" as old enough is going to get. The censorship is more for the benefit of parents/wives/etc, god forbid.

guns1inger, I have access to Vegas, if I need it. Never messed with it much (I use V-Dub and Scenalyzer for the majority if my editing, and DVD-Lab to author), so I'm not quite sure what you are meaning by shifting points and all that. Could you possibly give me a little more detail? And yeah, the job will be somewhat of a pain - but we're probably only talking maybe 5 or 6 adjustments here. Context of the words is where I'm looking to chop, moreso than just the words themselves - if you know what I mean.

[Zeek]

jimmalenko:

Yeah, sure. But it doesn't matter much. Much of it was filmed in the dark, anyway.

That, and PG/G elements can handle f*** this and f*** that, no problem. It's more like the who f***'d who in the F****** **** , mother f*****, and got **** for it, you piece of ****, you.

[guns1inger]

You can add points to the volume envelope in vegas, and at each point set the volume by shifting it up or down. Add a point and make it 0Db (i.e. normal). Set the next point next to it, and drag it down. Add a new point a little further along the the timeline, and another next to it. This last point should be set to 0Db. The volume will now play normally until it hits the second point, drop to zero, stay there until it hits the third point, and return to normal at the forth point. By varying the distance you can fade audio in and out. Close will be abrupt, further apart will be more gradual.

[Zeek]

Thanks a bunch. Sounds like just what I'm looking for. Gotta get some sleep and I will definitely give it a whirl later today.

Merry Christmas...

[mattso]

Merry Shitmas!

[greymalkin]

i know this may come as a shock to some, but there are people who do not care to use or hear obscenities no matter what age they are.

I know this is late, but I know adobe audition will let you select an area and just convert it to silence. That way you don't have to worry about chopping up the audio and getting out of sync. You could then do a mix paste of a sound effect over that area so once again you don't mess up the timing. I'm sure it's too late for this project, but perhaps on another one.

[gadgetguy]

I know this is late, but I know adobe audition will let you select an area and just convert it to silence. That way you don't have to worry about chopping up the audio and getting out of sync. You could then do a mix paste of a sound effect over that area so once again you don't mess up the timing. I'm sure it's too late for this project, but perhaps on another one.

This option is also available in Cool Edit and Audacity.