Midterms Flashcards
(156 cards)
1
Q
Mise-en-scene
A
All of the elements placed in front of the camera to be photographed: settings, props, lightning, costumes, makeup, a figure behavior (meaning actors, their gestures, and their facial expressions); from the French, meaning that which has been put into the scene or onstage. Also includes the camera’s actions and angles and the cinematography. *The totality of expressive content within the image.
2
Q
Cinematography
A
The photography of motion pictures.
3
Q
Location
A
A real place used by filmmakers as the setting of a given scene, as opposed to a set that is specifically designed and constructed for a film.
4
Q
Composition
A
The formal arrangements of shapes within the image, including people, sets, props, and landscape elements. (The relationship of lines, volumes, masses, and shapes at a single instant in a representation.)
5
Q
Shot
A
The basic element of filmmaking – a piece of film run through the camera, exposed, and developed; an uninterrupted run of the camera; or an uninterrupted image on film. A unit of length or duration – a minimal unit of dramatic material.
6
Q
Scene
A
A unit of dramatic action that takes place in one location during a single time period. Consists of several shots or more.
7
Q
Close-up
A
A shot that isolates an object in the image, making it appear relatively large. (Usually of a person’s face).
8
Q
Extreme close-up
A
Might be of the person’s eyes – or mouth – or nose – or any element isolated at very close range in the image.
9
Q
Long shot
A
A shot in which the camera appears to be fairly far away from the subject being filmed, though special lenses can create the impression of great distance where much less distance exists.
10
Q
Extreme long shots
A
Show the object or person at a vast distance surrounded by a great amount of the surrounding space.
11
Q
Medium shot
A
A shot taken from a medium distance from a person or object; in terms of the human body, it’s from the waist up.
12
Q
Three-quarter shot
A
A shot taken from a distance that reveals the human body from the head to just below the knees.
13
Q
Full shot
A
A shot that includes the entire human body from head to toe, with little space above the head and below the feet.
14
Q
Telephoto lens
A
A lens that greatly magnifies distant objects, the way a telescope does; a telephoto lens has a shallow depth of field, meaning that only objects in the distance are in focus, with everything in front of them appearing blurry.
15
Q
Medium close-ups
A
Close-ups taken from the chest up.
16
Q
Eye-level shot
A
A shot taken from the height of an average human being, so the camera appears to be looking straight at the characters and/or objects being filmed.
17
Q
Low-angle shot
A
A shot taken from a camera that is positioned much lower than the subject being filmed, so that the effect is that of looking up at the subject.
18
Q
High-angle shot
A
A shot taken from a camera that is positioned much higher than the subject being filmed, so that the effect is that of looking down on the subject.
19
Q
Bird’s-eye view
A
An extreme overhead shot, taken seemingly form the sky or ceiling and looking straight down on the subject.
20
Q
Dutch tilt (canted angle)
A
When the camera tilts horizontally and/or vertically.
21
Q
Two-shot
A
A shot in which two people appear, usually in medium distance or closer; two-shots are dominated spatially by two people, making them ideal for conversations.
22
Q
Three-shot
A
A shot in which three people dominate the image – not three people surrounded by a crowd, but three people who are framed so as to constitute a distinct group, with little space between them and the frame.
23
Q
Master shot
A
A shot taken from a long distance that includes as much of the set or location as possible and all the character in the scene.
24
Q
24 frames per second
A
the standard speed of a film.
25
Undercranking
A special effect created by slowing down the film as it moves through the camera from its usual 24 frames per second; when undercranked footage is run through a projector – which still operates at the normal 24 frames per second – the effect created is fast motion.
26
Overcranking
A special effect created by speeding up the film as it moves through the camera from its usual 24 frames per second; when overcranked footage is run through a projector – which still runs at the normal 24 frames per second – the effect created is slow motion.
27
Synchronized sound film
Dialogue, sound effects and diegetic music that are heard at the same time that the source appears onscreen. (Characters being seen and heard speaking at the same time onscreen.)
28
Image tracks
That portion of the cinematic medium that contains the picture, as opposed to the soundtrack.
29
Soundtrack
That portion of the cinematic medium that contains aural information – dialogue, music, and sound effects; on celluloid, it’s the squiggly line on the side of the image frames.
30
Lexiconning
A process by which films are shortened for broadcasting on television; the standard 24 frames per second speed is increased by a matter of hundredths of a frame per second, the cumulative effect of which may shorten the film by as much as 6 or 7 percent of its total running time.
31
Frame
(a.) The individual rectangular photographs on a strip of motion picture film which, when run through a projector, yield the impression of movement owing to slight variations in the position of the objects being photographed; (b.) the four borders of the projected image.
32
Retake
A 2nd, 3rd, 10th, or even 100th attempt to film a given shot; the term retake sometimes implies that the shooting occurs on a day subsequent to the original takes; actors are often brought back to the studio at the end of production to shoot retakes of shots and scenes the director finds to be problematic for one reason or another.
33
Editing
The process of splicing one shot to another; (synonymous with cutting).
34
Aspect ratio
The ratio of the film image’s width to its height.
35
Academy ratio
The standard aspect ratio established in 1932 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; it’s often said to be 1.33:1, but in fact it’s 1.37:1 – a rectangle that is about a third again as wide as it is tall.
36
Pan
when the camera itself is stationary but pivots on its axis from side to side.
37
Tilt (vertical pan)
the camera is stationary but tilts up and down
38
Moving shot
when the camera is placed on a moving object
39
Tracking shot (dolly)
when the camera moves parallel to the ground
40
Crane
if the camera moves up and down through space
41
Hand-held cameras
cameras reduced in size so that the operator could carry it while filming; creates hand-held shots
42
Steadicam
fits onto camera operator’s body (via vest) in such a way that when he or she walks, the effect is that of very smooth movement
43
Varifocal lenses
zoom lenses; creates the illusion of the camera moving.
44
Motivated camera movements
those prompted by the characters and events in the film
45
Unmotivated camera movements
those that pertain to the filmmaker’s commentary on characters and events
46
Extra
an actor who has no lines in a crowd scene
47
Long take
meaning that the shot continues without a cut for an unusually long time
48
Sequence shot
a single shot may serve as its own sequence or scene
49
Offscreen space
```
Offscreen right
Offscreen left
Offscreen top
Offscreen bottom
Behind the set
Behind the camera
```
50
Diegetic
offscreen spaces that pertain to the world of the film’s story
51
Nondiegetic
the space behind the set; it doesn’t have anything to do with the world of the film’s story
52
Reframing
reveals and maintains spatial continuity from image to image without cutting
53
Cinerama
uses three interlocked cameras to record three separate images which, when projected across a specially curved screen, yielded a single continuous widescreen image with an aspect ratio of 2.77:1
54
Cinemascope
introduced by 20th century Fox, uses anamorphic lens to squeeze a very wide image onto each frame of standard sized film stock and another anamorphic lens on the projector to spread it back out again
55
Vistavision
developed by Paramount Pictures, was first used in White Christmas (1954). Instead of the film frames running vertically on the celluloid, with the sprocket holes on the side, vistavision frames run horizontally and the sprocket holes are on the top and bottom.
56
Todd-AO
named for producer Mike Todd and the American Optical Company. Another widescreen process with an aspect ratio of 2.20:1. It was an early 70mm process, whereas the others used 35mm film.
57
Letterboxing
preserving the original aspect ratio of a widescreen film when transferring the film to DVD or broadcasting it on television
58
Blocking
a term derived from theater; planning where and when actors move around the stage or film set
59
composition
the arrangement of people and things within the rectangular frame
60
key light
aims directly at the subject--most likely the main character or object in the shot--and is the brightest light source for the shot
61
fill light
a softer lighter, usually placed opposite of the key light; cuts down on shadows created by the bright key light
62
backlight
shines behind the subject or object, separating the subject from the background, enhancing the sense of depth.
63
high key lighting
intense lighting; bright cheerful atmosphere
64
low key lighting
subdued lighting
65
top lighting
lighting from overhead
66
three-point lighting
key light, fill light, backlight
67
5 types of film stock
```
black and white negative
color negative
intermediate stock
black and white print
color print
```
68
negative film
film that is run through a camera and exposed to light frame by frame. Processing this film creates a positive print
69
exposure index
the film's sensitivity to light
70
tinting
dyeing the film's base
71
toning
dyeing one's component in the emulsion
72
monochromatic
comprised of a single color, usually in a variety of shades.
73
depth of field
the area of the image between foreground and background that remains in focus
74
deep focus
objects near the camera, midway, and far from the camera are all in sharp focus
75
rack focus shot
focus pull; changes the plane of focus within the shot by way of a change in focus rather than zoom.
76
Editing/cutting
the process in which filmmakers link individual shots to one another
77
Cut
the simplest transition. attaches two strips of film together with a piece of tape
78
Important transitions
```
Fade-in
Fade-out
Iris-in
Iris-out
Dissolve
Wipe
```
79
Montage
taken from the French meaning assemble. Describes the various ways in which filmmakers string individual shots together to form a series. In France, it means editing. In US, it refers specifically a film sequence that relies on editing to condense or expand action, space, or time.
80
classical Hollywood-style editing
to keep audience so wrapped up in the fictional world created onscreen that they cease to be conscious of watching a movie and think they're witnessing something real.
81
matching on action
when a piece of physical action in the first shot continues in the second shot
82
eye-line matching
direction of the character's gaze determine where the camera is placed
83
graphic matching
matching on the basic of a compositional element
84
Sound on film
records sound onto photographic film in the form of light waves, less cumbersome and was adopted around the world
85
Sound on disc
recorded sounds on phonographs discs (records) which had to be cued to begin playing at precisely the correct instant in order to match the imaged projected on screen
86
Boom microphone
glorified broom handle that a microphone is attached to before being held out over the actor’s heads just out of camera range
87
Radio microphones
small and wireless, easy to hide
88
Shotgun microphones
pick up sounds at some distance but must point exactly in the direction of the sound being miked
89
Analog/digital form sounds
sounds are recorded onto magnetic tape that is edited the same way as an image track
90
Digital audio work station (DAW)
a computer and specialized application that match the digital recording with the image.
91
Postproduction
the period after the images have been shot
92
Foley walker
one who recreates a more accurate effect by walking on sand or gravel and recording the sounds of that result
93
composer
one who writes an original score
94
sound mixer
takes all the different components: dialogue, sound effects, score, etc and bring them together in a balanced way.
95
dialogue
all the spoken words in a film including conversations, monologues, random words in crowd scenes, and voice over narration.
96
music
can be diegetic or nondiegetic
97
synchronous sounds
occurring at the same time; a sound is heard at the same instant as its source appears on the screen.
98
nonsynchronous sounds
sounds that occur at a different time and/or different space than what appears onscreen.
99
asynchronous sounds
sounds that are heard without their sources being seen onscreen (the same as offscreen sound)
100
ambient sound
background noises of the scene’s environment
101
voice over narration (VO)
a character seemingly speaks directly to the audience without appearing onscreen
102
amplitude
volume; the loudness or softness of the sound we hear.
103
sound perspective
aural equivalent of three dimensional vision
104
direct sound
created directly from its source: an actor’s mouth is miked and sounds it produces is recorded.
105
reflected sound
sound that bounces off the floor, ceiling, walls and reaches the microphone a phase later than direct sound.
106
pitch
sound’s fundamental frequency
| high or low
107
timbre
cover virtually every other aspect to a given sound, also called tone quality.
108
3 main categories of film sound
music, sound effects, dialogue
109
Romantic Comedy
a sub genre of the comedy genre in which two people fall in love with each other by going through a series of mishaps and confusions, some notable romantic comedies are Bringing up Baby, Pillow Talk, When Harry Met Sally, and Knocked Up.
110
Room Tone
he faint, barely audible sounds of the particular room in which dialogue has been recorded; room tone is recorded separately from dialogue.
111
Rotoscoping
the projection of live-action footage, frame by frame, onto an animator’s drawing table so that he or she can trace the figures with great precision.
112
rough cut
a preliminary, edited version of a film that includes all the major story elements but without any fine-tuning of the visual and audio tracks
113
scene
a unit of dramatic action that takes place in one location during a single time period.
114
score
the music, usually nondiegetic, that accompanies the image.
115
segmentation
a formal, written breakdown of a film’s narrative into its component parts.
116
sequence
a component of film narrative that maintains a unity of time, place, or dramatic action but introduces a discontinuity; for example, a single dramatic action (a man goes shopping) continues throughout a sequence but the location change ( a large department store, a jewelry shop, a florist, a sporting goods store) and time is speeded up (shots of clocks on the wall reveal the passing of an entire afternoon).
117
sequence shot
a single shot that serves, seemingly paradoxically, as its own sequence or scene; a particular type of long take that covers an entire sequence or scene from beginning to end.
118
shot/reverse-shot pattern
an editing technique that records the interaction between two characters, usually a conversation, who are facing one another with one series of shots often taken over the shoulder of one character and another series of shots taken over the shoulder of the other character; note that the so-called reverse shot is not actually taken from the truly opposite angle, because such an angle would violate the 180 system.
119
shot
the basic element of filmmaking-a piece of film run through the camera, exposed, and developed; an uninterrupted run of the camera; or an uninterrupted image on film.
120
shotgun microphone
a specialized mike that must be pointed directly at a sound source but that can pick up sound at a great distance.
121
slasher film
a subgenre of the horror film characterized by the menacing presence of a psychotic who wields a butcher knife, meat cleaver, machete, straight razor, box cutter, pigsticker, or X-acto knife to bloody and fatal effect; classic examples of the subgenre are Halloween and Friday the 13th.
122
sound bridge
an aural transition from one scene to the next in which the sound of the second scene is heard at the tail end of the image track of the first; for instance, for the last few seconds of an exterior street scene are accompanied by the sound of a telephone ringing, after which the director cuts to a shot of a bedroom interior with a ringing telephone on the night table.
123
sound on disc
an early method of synchronizing sound to motion picture images in which sound was recorded on phonograph discs (records) and played back when the film was screened.
124
sound on film
the dominant method of synchronizing sound to motion picture images in which sound was recorded on phonograph discs (records) and played back when the film was screened.
125
soundtrack
that portion of the cinematic medium that contains aural information dialogue, music, and sound effects; on celluloid, its the squiggly line on the side of the image frames.
126
special effects
any image or element within the image that has been produced by extraordinary technical means-that is, beyond the ordinary technology required to make a film.
127
splatter film
a subgenre of the horror film that features as its main convention the liberal use of stage blood; critics cite the shower montage in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho as the most important precursor of the splatter film, which began in earnest with George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead.
128
star
a film performer who has a national or international reputation and sizable box office appeal and who consistently appears in major roles.
129
steadicam
an apparatus that fits onto a camera operator’s body (via a vest) in such a way that when he or she walks, the camera-which is small and lightweight enough to be carried-records a very smooth movement, as opposed to a hand-held camera that records every bump in every step.
130
story
all the events of the narrative as they occur in chronological order from beginning to end, including not only those that we see and hear, bot those we infer.
131
studio system
the mode of production that dominated American filmmaking from the early 1920s to the late 1940s, a period during which the so-called Hollywood studios were actually vertically integrated distribution companies that produced and exhibited their own products-movies.
132
superimposition
a special effect in which there are two or more images visible onscreen at the same time; the midway point of a dissolve is a superimposition.
133
synchronized sound
dialogue, sound effects, and diegetic music that are heard at the same time that the source appears onscreen.
134
syuzhet
more or less synonymous with plot, the ordering of story events within the film.
135
take
a single attempt to record a shot; a shot may require many takes before a director is satisfied.
136
three-quarter shot
a shot taken from a distance that reveals the human body fro the head to just below the knees.
137
talkies
films with synchronized dialogue; short for talking pictures.
138
telephoto lens
a lens that greatly magnifies distant objects, the way a telescope does; a telephoto lens has a shallow depth of field, meaning that only objects in the distance are in focus, with everything in front of them appearing blurry.
139
three-point lighting
a very commonly used lighting setup, consisting of three main light sources-a key light, a fill light, and a backlight; the effect is a centrally illuminated subject (by the key light) seen in an evenly lit setting (by the fill light) but separated visually from the background (by the backlight).
140
three-shot
a shot in which three people dominate the image-not three people surrounded by a crowd, but three people who are framed so as to constitute a distinct group, with little space between them and the frame.
141
tilt
a camera movement achieved by pivoting the camera on a vertical axis, or up and down, with the camera remaining stationary on the ground; for example, a tilt could begin with the ground floor of a skyscraper and end with the top of the building; to describe this shot, one would say or write, “The camera tilts from the ground floor to the top of the building.”
142
timbre
all the qualities of a sound that are not described by volume and pitch, such as its richness or tinniness, its fullness or hollowness, its nasalness if it’s a human voice, and so on; synonymous with tone quality.
143
title cards
words printed on a page or piece of cardboard, photographed, and edited into a film (usually a silent film) conveying bits of dialogue or information about location, time frame, or backstory.
144
tracking shot
a mobile framing shot in which the camera moves forward, backward, or laterally; also called a dolly.
145
transitions
any number of methods by which one shot is linked to the next; see cut, dissolve, fade-in, fade-out, iris-in, iris-out, and wipe.
146
traveling matte
matte work that consists of two separately shot moving images that are combine in processing.
147
two-shot
a shot in which two people appear, usually in medium distance or closer; two-shots are dominated spatially by two people, making them ideal for conversations.
148
undercranking
a special effect created by slowing down the film as it moves through the camera from its usual 24 frames per second; when under cranked footage is run through a projector-which still operates at the normal 24 frames per second-the effete created is fast motion.
149
vertical integration
the system of production, distribution, and exhibition that characterized Hollywood’s studio system; the so-called studios were essentially distribution and exhibition companies that provided their own product to distribute and exhibit thereby integrating their operations in a three-tiered, or vertical, way.
150
vertical tilt
see tilt
151
VistaVision
a widescreen process developed by Paramount Pictures in 1953 and 1954 to compete with 20th Century-Fox’s CinemaScope; while CinemaScope’s frames ran vertically on the celluloid, VistaVision’s frames ran horizontally, with the sprocket holes on the top and bottle of each frame; most VistaVision films used matters or masking to produce aspect rations that ranged from 1.66:1 and 1.85:1 to 2:1; a few notable VistaVision films are The Searcher, Funny Face, Vertigo, and North by Northwest.
152
wide-angle lens
a lens with a wide horizontal field of view, the opposite of a telephoto lens; wide-angle lenses have great depth of field, meaning that objects at various degrees of distance from the camera can remain in focus, while only objects very close or very far away from the camera are blurry.
153
widescreen
a general term for any of the processes that yield an aspect ration wider than the standard Academy ration of 1.37:1; these include CinemaScope, Cinerama, Panavision, SuperPanavision 70, Techniscope, Technirama, Todd-AO, Tohoscope, VistaVision and UltraPanavision 70.
154
wipe
a type of transition from one shot to another in which the second shot appears to push the first shot off the screen; wipes may take the form of horizontal or vertical line moving across the screen, or they may take graphic shapes such as a star wipe, a spiral wipe or an iris wipe.
155
wire removal
a CGI technique in which the rigging cables that support actor who are suspended in the air are digitally removed rom the image, thus making it appear that the characters are flying.
156
zoom
a lens with a variable focal length, meaning that it shifts from wide-angle to telephoto and back; with a tracking shot, the whole camera moves, whereas with a zoom only parts of the lens move but the camera itself remains in place.
