Ben Burtt

Known for SoundBorn 1948-07-12 (age 77)Jamesville, New York, USA

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.Read more

Movies & web series

The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Special Effects: Anything Can Happen

The American Gangster

When Star Wars Ruled the World

Fog City Mavericks

The Force of Sound

SP FX: The Empire Strikes Back

WALL·E

The Empire Strikes Back

Recorded Live

Animation Sound Design: Building Worlds from the Sound Up

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

LIGHT & MAGIC

Manassas: End of Innocence

Star Wars

Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery

Alien

Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy

The Making of The Empire Strikes Back

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Return of the Jedi

Raiders of the Lost Ark

BURN·E

Star Trek

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

Star Trek Into Darkness

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

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga

Destiny in Space

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

Munich

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

Wings: Grandeur in the Sky

009 Re:Cyborg

Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba Fett

Star Wars: Music by John Williams

Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound

The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk

Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

And the Oscar Goes To...

Lincoln

Willow

Super 8

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

Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of

I Am Your Father