
Person
Ben Burtt
Sound · Born 1948-07-12 · 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.
Known for

Star Wars
Sound Designer

WALL·E
WALL·E / M-O (voice)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Sound Designer

Alien
Sound Designer

The Empire Strikes Back
Sound Designer

Raiders of the Lost Ark
Sound Designer

Star Trek
Special Sound Effects

Return of the Jedi
'Freeze' Officer in Endor Bunker / Tortured Power Droid (voice)

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Editor

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Naboo Courier (uncredited)
Filmography
- 2026Ray GunnSound Designer
- 2022LIGHT & MAGICSelf - Sound Designer and Editor
- 2021Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba FettSelf
- 2021Star Wars Galaxy of SoundsSound Designer
- 2021Jet Jockeys in Love: The Making of CHAIN LIGHTNING ('50)Self
- 2019Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic SoundSelf
- 2018The Force of SoundSelf
- 2015Star Wars: The Force AwakensSound Designer
- 2015I Am Your FatherHimself
- 2014The SignalSound Designer
- 2014And the Oscar Goes To...Self - Interviewee
- 2014EditDroid: Rise and FallSelf
- 2013The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of OzSelf
- 2013Star Trek Into DarknessSound Designer
- 2013Escape from Planet EarthSound Designer
- 2013Lincoln: An American JourneySelf
- 2012LincolnSound Designer
- 2012009 Re:CyborgSound Designer
- 2012John CarterSound Designer
- 2012Wings: Grandeur in the SkySelf
- 2012Red TailsSound Designer
- 2012Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard OfSelf
- 2011Super 8Sound Designer
- 2009Star TrekSpecial Sound Effects
- 2008WALL·E's Treasures & TrinketsWALL·E / M-O (voice)
- 2008Animation Sound Design: Building Worlds from the Sound Up
- 2008BURN·EWALL·E / M-O (voice) (uncredited)
- 2008RKO Production 601: The Making of “Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World”Self
- 2008WALL·EWALL·E / M-O (voice)
- 2008Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal SkullSound Designer
- 2007Fog City MavericksSelf
- 2007Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001Self
- 2007The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to TalkSelf
- 2006Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi IconSelf
- 2006Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden PlanetSelf
- 2005MunichSound Designer
- 2005Within a Minute: The Making of Star Wars Episode IIISelf
- 2005Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed CinemaSelf
- 2005Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the SithEditor
- 2005George Lucas: Creating an EmpireSelf
- 2004Star Wars: Droids - Treasure of the Hidden PlanetStory
- 2004Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars TrilogySelf - Sound Designer
- 2004When Star Wars Ruled the WorldSelf
- 2003The Sound of 'Indiana Jones'Self
- 2002Films Are Not Released, They EscapeSelf
- 2002State of the Art: The Pre-Visualization of 'Episode II'Self
- 2002From Puppets to Pixels: The Making of Star Wars Episode IISelf
- 2002Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the ClonesWat Tambor (uncredited)
- 2002Manassas: End of InnocenceDirector
- 2001R2-D2: Beneath the DomeSelf
- 2000The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Espionage EscapadesSound Designer
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Demons of DeceptionEditor
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Oganga, the Giver and Taker of LifeEditor
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Daredevils of the DesertEditor
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Tales of InnocenceSound Designer
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Mystery of the BluesSecond Unit Director
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Spring Break AdventureSecond Unit Director
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Phantom Train of DoomSecond Unit Director
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Masks of EvilSound Designer
- 1999The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Trenches of HellEditor
- 1999Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom MenaceNaboo Courier (uncredited)
- 1997Star Wars: The Magic & the MysterySelf
- 1996Behind the Scenes with King Kong in Special EffectsDirector
- 1996The Making of 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'Self
- 1996Special Effects: Anything Can HappenDirector
- 1996The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Travels with FatherSound Designer
- 1995The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Attack of the HawkmenWriter
- 1994Destiny in SpaceDirector
- 1992The American GangsterDirector
- 1991The True Story of Glory ContinuesDirector
- 1990Blue PlanetDirector
- 1989AlwaysSound Designer
- 1989Indiana Jones and the Last CrusadeSound Designer
- 1988WillowSound Designer
- 1986Howard the DuckSound Effects Editor
- 1986Star Wars: Droids - The Great HeepAssociate Producer
- 1985Star Wars: DroidsStory
- 1984The Adventures of André and Wally B.Sound Designer
- 1984Indiana Jones and the Temple of DoomSound Designer
- 1983From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a SagaSelf
- 1983Return of the Jedi'Freeze' Officer in Endor Bunker / Tortured Power Droid (voice)
- 1982listen...Sound Effects
- 1981Raiders of the Lost ArkSound Designer
- 1980Porklips NowMilitary Consultant
- 1980The Making of The Empire Strikes BackSelf
- 1980SP FX: The Empire Strikes BackSelf
- 1980The Empire Strikes BackSound Designer
- 1980Star Wars: Music by John WilliamsSelf
- 1979More American GraffitiSupervising Sound Editor
- 1979AlienSound Designer
- 1978Invasion of the Body SnatchersSound Effects Designer
- 1978The Star Wars Holiday SpecialSound Effects
- 1977Star WarsSound Designer
- 1975Death Race 2000Sound Designer
- 1975Recorded LiveSound Re-Recording Mixer
- —A Bucket of Water and a Glass Matte
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