Ben Burtt

Ben Burtt

Birthday: 1948-07-12

Place of Birth: Jamesville, New York, USA

Biography: Benjamin "Ben" Burtt, Jr. is a sound designer, film editor, director, screenwriter, and voice actor. He has worked as sound designer on various films, including the Star Wars and Indiana Jones film series, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, WALL-E, and Star Trek. He is responsible for creating many of the iconic sound effects heard in the Star Wars film franchise, including the binary speech of R2-D2, the lightsaber hum, the sound of the blaster guns, and the heavy-breathing sound of Darth Vader, which he made by breathing into a scuba regulator. Burtt has a reputation for popularizing a sound effect dubbed the "Wilhelm scream", which was taken from a character named Wilhelm in the 1953 film The Charge at Feather River.

Movies

WALL·E
WALL·E

What if mankind had to leave Earth and somebody forgot to turn the last robot off? After hundreds of...

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WALL·E's Treasures & Trinkets
WALL·E's Treasures & Trinkets

Short vignettes featured as a DVD Extra Short....

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The Making of 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'
The Making of 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'

A behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of Steven Spielberg's 1982 film "E.T. the Extra-Ter...

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Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery
Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery

Host Howie Long takes viewers on a tour of the "Star Wars" universe, as Fox TV celebrates the re-rel...

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BURN·E
BURN·E

What lengths will a robot undergo to do his job? BURN·E is a dedicated hard working robot who finds ...

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Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba Fett
Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba Fett

A special celebrating the origins and legacy of Star Wars' legendary bounty hunter, Boba Fett....

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From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga
From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga

From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga is a 1983 television documentary special that originall...

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Films Are Not Released, They Escape
Films Are Not Released, They Escape

Ben Burtt and his team explain the process of creating the sound for Star Wars: Episode II - Attack ...

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Animation Sound Design: Building Worlds from the Sound Up
Animation Sound Design: Building Worlds from the Sound Up

Building Worlds From the Sound Up...

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Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema
Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema

Current filmmakers such as Ridley Scott and George Lucas reflect on the importance and influence of ...

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Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon
Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon

A short documentary about Robby the Robot....

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George Lucas: Creating an Empire
George Lucas: Creating an Empire

A Biography of George Lucas....

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A Bucket of Water and a Glass Matte
A Bucket of Water and a Glass Matte

In this 2010 program, Craig Barron and Ben Burtt, leading experts in the fields of visual and sound ...

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Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy
Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy

From the earliest versions of the script to the blockbuster debuts, explore the creation of the Star...

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The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk
The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk

Film historians, and survivors from the nearly 30-year struggle to bring sound to motion pictures ta...

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The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Actor Martin Sheen narrates this newly produced, feature-length high definition documentary, touchin...

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And the Oscar Goes To...
And the Oscar Goes To...

The story of the gold-plated statuette that became the film industry's most coveted prize, AND THE O...

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Wings: Grandeur in the Sky
Wings: Grandeur in the Sky

A making-of featurette for the first Academy Award winning film "Wings" (1927), with plenty of rare ...

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When Star Wars Ruled the World
When Star Wars Ruled the World

A VH1 television special wherein the cast discuss the making of the films and what made the franchis...

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I Am Your Father
I Am Your Father

David Prowse is an eighty years old actor, who has lived behind Darth Vader's mask during three deca...

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State of the Art: The Pre-Visualization of 'Episode II'
State of the Art: The Pre-Visualization of 'Episode II'

Documentary breaking down the planning of the film's set pieces particularly the aerial car chase, c...

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Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of
Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of

Documentary about the work of film director Michael Curtiz....

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The Force of Sound
The Force of Sound

Go inside the sound design of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. From the ignition of a lightsaber to the chi...

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From Puppets to Pixels: Digital Characters in 'Episode II'
From Puppets to Pixels: Digital Characters in 'Episode II'

For Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), there were to be many more visual effects t...

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The Sound of 'Indiana Jones'
The Sound of 'Indiana Jones'

Ben Burtt reveals which sounds he and his team at Skywalker Sound recorded to incorporate into the I...

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Star Wars: Music by John Williams
Star Wars: Music by John Williams

BBC documentary. Witness John Williams composing the legendary score for The Empire Strikes Back and...

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Star Wars: Within a Minute - The Making of Episode III
Star Wars: Within a Minute - The Making of Episode III

This documentary offers a glimpse into all the people, departments, and work that went into creating...

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EditDroid: Rise and Fall
EditDroid: Rise and Fall

Filmmaker George Lucas, spiritual father of the successful Star Wars series decided to invest 40 mil...

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Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound

The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers....

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Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace

Anakin Skywalker, a young slave strong with the Force, is discovered on Tatooine. Meanwhile, the evi...

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Return of the Jedi
Return of the Jedi

Luke Skywalker leads a mission to rescue his friend Han Solo from the clutches of Jabba the Hutt, wh...

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Lincoln: An American Journey
Lincoln: An American Journey

Documentary on the making of Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" (2012)....

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R2-D2: Beneath the Dome
R2-D2: Beneath the Dome

Mockumentary telling the never before told life story of the fictional robot R2-D2 from the Star War...

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Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet
Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet

A documentary about the making of, and legacy of, the Forbidden Planet movie....

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The Making of The Empire Strikes Back
The Making of The Empire Strikes Back

Even the most devout Star Wars fan might not know that filmmaker and journalist Michel Parbot was on...

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Fog City Mavericks
Fog City Mavericks

Fog City Mavericks: The Filmmakers of San Francisco is a compelling exploration of the legendary fil...

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RKO Production 601: The Making of “Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World”
RKO Production 601: The Making of “Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World”

The astonishing story of the genesis, production, worldwide success, and legacy of King Kong (1933),...

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