Wilhelm Scream is what you're thinking of.
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The Wilhelm Scream! It's from the 50s, but it actually got broad popularity due to its use in Star Wars. There's a podcast episode about it where they track it down: https://www.20k.org/episodes/wilhelmscream
Somewhat known fact:
In Return of the Jedi, Han throws a bag and knocks an Imperial Officer off the gangway falling to his death.
That officer was none other than Ben Burtt himself who was the sound designer for the Star Wars series and responsible for popularizing the Wilhelm Scream in modern cinema.
I'm not watching a short, but it sounds like you're talking about the Wilhelm scream. It comes from an older movie.
First seen in lotr movies omegalol
Someone needs to reread xkcd #1053.
You know that never having heard of something and assuming its the first time are two different things, right?
You know that not knowing something and not knowing the context around that thing often go together, right?
You know that I know that you know that knowing something and not knowing something is known to be a different thing when you know the context around the unknown which often knows which knowledge goes together, right?
I think it's hard to say they're assuming it was first seen there in a post where they're literally trying to verify that claim. At best you might be able to say they previously assumed that was the case, but for all we know they're checking someone else's assumption having never believed that that's the case.
The two words you omitted in your original quote make that much more clear: "was it first seen in LOTR movies?"
It's a little joke among filmmakers and sound guys, and frankly, I think it needs to stop. It's a huge illusion break for an audience that's figured it out.
Honestly don’t think I’ve spotted the wilhelm scream in new media for a while, it was fun for a bit but maybe we’re finally free.
They do a better job of making it fit into the sound design nowadays instead of sticking out like a sore thumb like it did in older movies. Harder to catch.
Last thing I saw it in was the Baldur's Gate 3 intro.
Was it? I’ve seen it a dozen times or so but didn’t notice
Yeah it's maddening, once you know it you hear it E V E R Y W H E R E q_q
Even the Steam Controller has an easter egg where it plays the Wilhelm scream randomly if you drop it.
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