Film Terms Part 1 Flashcards
Narrative
An adjective describing a film as being primarily a work of fiction, or a noun that loosely means a fictional story.
Documentary
Also an adjective or noun category used to describe a work of fiction.
Plot
Refers to all aspects of the narrative that we see on screen. For example, in the film Jaws, Chief Brody’s talking to the town council on screen would be part of the plot.
Story
Refers to all aspects of the narrative that we do not see on screen; these aspects may include events before, during, or after the plot of the film. In Jaws, for instance, Chief Brody had been a police officer in the city prior to the film’s beginning; this information is part of the story but not part of the plot.
Diegesis
Refers to the narrative that we see on screen. This term is much more specific to film, however, and refers to the world that the characters inhabit as much as the plot of the film. The adjective diegetic, for instance, refers to something the characters in the film could perceive, whereas non diegetic refers to something they could not see.
Point of View
Most people assume film always has a third-person perspective, but even when it does not use a POV shot, film often has a more subjective perspective through the use of camera placement, voiceover, and other cinema techniques.
mise-en-scene
Refers to everything in the frame of the film, which would include lighting, set, props, and the staging and movement of actors. The term derives from the theater, where it is used in a similar way. In the 1950s, a group of French critics at the journal Cahiers du Cinema used this term in a different way. For them, mise-en-scene meant a special aspect of cinema associated with certain directors. Eventually, you will want to understand both meanings of the term, since this secondary meaning is closely connected to the idea of auteurism in cinema… Initially, however, use mise-en-scene in the first sense.
Setting
Like the literary term, this word refers to the time and place of the film. The setting for The Unusual Suspects, for instance, is New York and Los Angeles at a time contemporary with the film’s year of release
Set
This term refers to the actual construction in which the actors are filmed. In The Unusual Suspects, for instance, a set might be the interrogation room in the film. Sets are usually built for a film, as opposed to shooting on location, where a scene is shot in the actual place in which it occurs in the film. If a film crew shot on location in Venice, Italy, for instance, they might actually be shooting the scene in gondolas on the canals. Set is also used generally, however, as a designation for the place where a film is being shot.
Prop
Another term borrowed from theater. A prop is generally any object on set, though clearly the objects that characters will touch become more important. A trumpet, for instance, might be part of the backdrop in a music store scene, but if a character is going to play the trumpet, the prop takes on more importance.
Costumes
What the characters are wearing. Bear in mind that even if a character is wearing contemporary clothing (in some cases, even the actor’s own clothing), the clothing is still considered a costume.
Lighting
This term refers to the way in which lights are used for a given film. Lighting, in conjunction with the camera, sets the visual look for a film. The key light is the main light used for a scene; back light refers to a secondary source, usually placed to the side of the actors. This system is called three-point lighting and was very common in classical Hollywood films. You may also run across the term low-key lighting, which means that the film was shot often using only the key light at a very low setting. This low level of lighting creates dark shadows on the faces of the actors and is particularly moody when used with black and white film. It is most often associated with film noir but is not exclusive to that genre.
Shot
Generally, the smallest unit of unbroken film. The camera can move within a shot, but the second that the film makes a transition to shoot another shot, the previous shot has ended. Alternatively, when used within certian adjectives, shot also refers to the distance between the camera to the subject, almost always the actor. In a long shot (or wide shot) one can see the entire body of the actor; in a medium shot, one can see the actor from the waist up; in a close up, on can see only the actor’s face (there is no such term as “short shot”). You might also see an extreme close up in a film, where you can only see part of the actor’s face (just the eyes, for example). Also, another common term is the two shot, which is generally a medium to medium long shot of two actors; two shots were very common in the classical Hollywood era and continue to be used today.
Pan
The movement of a stationary camera on a horizontal axis. A camera on a tripod that moves up and down (following a plane landing, for instance), would be performing a lift
Tracking Shot
The movement of the shot when the camera is no longer stationary. The term refers to the tracks that cameras were once rolled on when creating one of these shots. Although tracks are still often used with a tracking shot, the term might also refer more generally to a moving shot that appears stable, such as a stedicam shot, which uses a gyroscope to avoid the shaky effects associated with hand held shots. You may also run across the term dolly shot, which refers to what the camera rests on (a platform with wheels) while the camera moves in certain kinds of shots. Dolly shot is sometimes used interchangeably with tracking shot, since dollies often use tracks.
