Ben Burtt
Sound
1948-07-12 · 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.
Filmography
TheatersRay Gunn
2026 · Movie
LIGHT & MAGIC
2022 · Series
Under the Helmet: The Legacy of Boba Fett
2021 · Movie
Star Wars Galaxy of Sounds
2021 · Series
Jet Jockeys in Love: The Making of CHAIN LIGHTNING ('50)
2021 · Movie
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound
2019 · Movie
The Force of Sound
2018 · Movie
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
2015 · Movie
I Am Your Father
2015 · Movie
The Signal
2014 · Movie
And the Oscar Goes To...
2014 · Movie
EditDroid: Rise and Fall
2014 · Movie
The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz
2013 · Movie
Star Trek Into Darkness
2013 · Movie
Escape from Planet Earth
2013 · Movie
Lincoln: An American Journey
2013 · Movie
Lincoln
2012 · Movie
009 Re:Cyborg
2012 · Movie
John Carter
2012 · Movie
Wings: Grandeur in the Sky
2012 · Movie
Red Tails
2012 · Movie
Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of
2012 · Movie
Super 8
2011 · Movie
Star Trek
2009 · Movie
WALL·E's Treasures & Trinkets
2008 · Movie
Animation Sound Design: Building Worlds from the Sound Up
2008 · Movie
BURN·E
2008 · Movie
RKO Production 601: The Making of “Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World”
2008 · Movie
WALL·E
2008 · Movie
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
2008 · Movie
Fog City Mavericks
2007 · Movie
Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001
2007 · Movie
The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk
2007 · Movie
Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon
2006 · Movie
Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet
2006 · Movie
Munich
2005 · Movie
Within a Minute: The Making of Star Wars Episode III
2005 · Movie
Ben-Hur: The Epic That Changed Cinema
2005 · Movie
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
2005 · Movie
George Lucas: Creating an Empire
2005 · Movie
Star Wars: Droids - Treasure of the Hidden Planet
2004 · Movie
Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy
2004 · Movie
When Star Wars Ruled the World
2004 · Movie
The Sound of 'Indiana Jones'
2003 · Movie
From Puppets to Pixels: The Making of Star Wars Episode II
2002 · Movie
State of the Art: The Pre-Visualization of 'Episode II'
2002 · Movie
Films Are Not Released, They Escape
2002 · Movie
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
2002 · Movie
Manassas: End of Innocence
2002 · Movie
R2-D2: Beneath the Dome
2001 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Espionage Escapades
2000 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Demons of Deception
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Spring Break Adventure
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Masks of Evil
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Daredevils of the Desert
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Phantom Train of Doom
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Mystery of the Blues
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Tales of Innocence
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Oganga, the Giver and Taker of Life
1999 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Trenches of Hell
1999 · Movie
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
1999 · Movie
Star Wars: The Magic & the Mystery
1997 · Movie
Behind the Scenes with King Kong in Special Effects
1996 · Movie
The Making of 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'
1996 · Movie
Special Effects: Anything Can Happen
1996 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Travels with Father
1996 · Movie
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Attack of the Hawkmen
1995 · Movie
Destiny in Space
1994 · Movie
The American Gangster
1992 · Movie
The True Story of Glory Continues
1991 · Movie
Blue Planet
1990 · Movie
Always
1989 · Movie
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
1989 · Movie
Willow
1988 · Movie
Howard the Duck
1986 · Movie
Star Wars: Droids - The Great Heep
1986 · Movie
Star Wars: Droids
1985 · Series
The Adventures of André and Wally B.
1984 · Movie
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
1984 · Movie
From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga
1983 · Movie
Return of the Jedi
1983 · Movie
listen...
1982 · Movie
Raiders of the Lost Ark
1981 · Movie
Porklips Now
1980 · Movie
SP FX: The Empire Strikes Back
1980 · Movie
The Making of The Empire Strikes Back
1980 · Movie
The Empire Strikes Back
1980 · Movie
Star Wars: Music by John Williams
1980 · Movie
More American Graffiti
1979 · Movie
Alien
1979 · Movie
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
1978 · Movie
The Star Wars Holiday Special
1978 · Movie
Star Wars
1977 · Movie
Death Race 2000
1975 · Movie
Recorded Live
1975 · Movie
A Bucket of Water and a Glass Matte
Movie