David Farmer is an American sound designer at Skywalker Sound. Raised on a farm in Gladys, Virginia, he developed an early interest in music as a guitarist and drummer before deciding to pursue a career in sound after seeing behind-the-scenes footage of sound designer Ben Burtt creating effects for the Star Wars films. He studied Recording Arts at Full Sail University in Florida before moving to Los Angeles, where he began his career as an intern at a Burbank post-production facility. He was inducted into the Full Sail Hall of Fame in 2011. He is best known for his work as sound designer on Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, creating sounds for Ringwraiths, the Balrog, and the Cave Troll. He returned to Middle-earth for the Hobbit trilogy, creating sounds for Smaug. Outside his work, Farmer is an avid field recordist who has released ambient soundscape and white-noise recordings under the artist names Aural Escapes, Dream Candy and Hushaboo.