Photo: Jo!Hannes / CC BY-SA 4.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Born on July 12, 1948 in Jamesville, United States, Ben Burtt is a film director, screenwriter and film editor. Ben Burtt is 78 years old as of 2026. Schooling on record includes Nottingham High School and University of Southern California. Recorded honors include Special Achievement Academy Award (1978, 1982) and Academy Award for Best Sound Editing (1983, 1990).
My Take
Ben Burtt might be the most influential person most moviegoers have never heard of. He didn't just record sound for Star Wars, he invented an entire sonic vocabulary, the lightsaber hum, R2-D2's chirps, the blaster crack, that we now hear in our heads automatically. Add E.T., Indiana Jones, WALL-E, and a fistful of Academy Awards, and you're looking at a man who taught Hollywood that sound is storytelling, not decoration. What I love is that he treated noises as characters. WALL-E barely speaks, yet Burtt gave that little robot a soul out of beeps and whirs. That's craftsmanship verging on alchemy.
This take was written by generative AI, one per person, from publicly reported facts (editorial policy). It is a reading of the record, not reporting.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Ben Burtt
- Name (Japanese)
- ベン・バート
- Reading
- べん・ばーと
- Born
- July 12, 1948 (age 78)
- Origin
- Jamesville, United States
- Occupation
- film director / screenwriter / film editor / actor / sound designer
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Rat
2. Background
- High school
- Nottingham High School
- University
- University of Southern California
Awards & achievements
- 1978 Special Achievement Academy Award
- 1983 Academy Award for Best Sound Editing
- 1990 Academy Award for Best Sound Editing
- 1982 Special Achievement Academy Award
3. Links
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben%20Burtt
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%99%E3%83%B3%E3%83%BB%E3%83%90%E3%83%BC%E3%83%88
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q816456
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Ben Burtt born?
Born July 12, 1948 (age 78).
Where is Ben Burtt from?
Ben Burtt is from Jamesville, United States.
What does Ben Burtt do?
Ben Burtt works as film director, screenwriter, film editor, actor, sound designer.
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