Détails

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 28 mars 2010

A pdf document produced by teachit.co.uk

Introduction to the media language and text analysis
Introduction to key concepts :
sign, signifier, genre
different types of shots and frames
camera movements
diegetic and non-diegetic souns
tension in the opening scene of vanilla Sky

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Détails

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 14 mars 2010

Série de fiches proposées par http://www.teachit.co.uk

What is a storyboard? : PDF file to download.

Le storyboard : panorama complet et techniquement très bien fait sur le sujet.

Définition, caractéristiques et exemples : Article du site Proenza.

Rear window :  Document pdf à télécharger

Vertigo: the kiss by the ocean (storyboards & stills) : Document pdf à télécharger

Analysing mise-en-scène in film :  Document pdf à télécharger

Introduction to key concepts : Document pdf à télécharger

Film language : Document pdf à télécharger

Looking at a video :  Document pdf à télécharger

Making short films : Document pdf à télécharger

Media terms definition : Document pdf à télécharger

Teacher's guide: Document pdf à télécharger

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Lire la suite : Fiches: introductions, analyses et conseils

Détails

Catherine

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 8 mars 2010

Le raccord peut être visuel ou audio (sonore).

 Le raccord visuel

On peut raccorder deux plans qui ont en commun :

• un décor

• une composition

• une forme, un objet

• un mouvement

• une valeur

• une couleur ...

On peut aussi utiliser le fondu enchaîné

Le raccord audio

• Si un même son se poursuit sur deux plans on a affaire à ce que l’on appelle communément un pont audi.

• Si une source sonore disparaît progressivement au profit d’une autre on a affaire à ce que l’on appelle communément un tuilage audio.

Songez aux raccords employés dans les différents extraits de films que vous avez visionnés.

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Lire la suite : Les effets de liaison

Détails

Catherine

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 8 mars 2010

 

I  L’histoire et son pourquoi

1.     Synopsis

Il s’agit de raconter l’histoire en quelques lignes de façon à éveiller l’intérêt d’un lecteur sans donner l’impression que tout est déjà joué. Il faut donner envie de lire le scénario à un lecteur qu’il faut, par définition, imaginer pressé.

2.     Thème

Il s’agit de préciser quelle facette du thème imposé vous avez choisie.

3.     Tonalité

Il s’agit de préciser le registre dominant du court qui apparentera l’œuvre à un genre particulier, ainsi que les registres secondaires en précisant dans quelles scènes plus particulièrement ils seront développés et leur intérêt

4.     Point de vue, intérêt, conséquence attendue

Il s’agit de dire ce qui a motivé le choix de ce sujet, et de convaincre de l’intérêt de l’émotion et de la réflexion qui vont être suscitées chez le spectateur. 

 

II  La réalisation ou le comment

 

(-Chaque rubrique doit s’appuyer sur une référence cinématographique précise qui viendra l’illustrer

- Pour le sujet 1 : 4 ou 5 items développés de manière approfondie et donc bien illustrés suffiront. En revanche, pour le sujet 2 on exigera une note d'intention plus complète. )

• Le cadre de l’intrigue : lieu de l’action, gestion de l’espace, décors

Précisez et décrivez ce qui va constituer le cadre de l'intrigue, son originalité, son intérêt par rapport à l’histoire.

• L'ambiance visuelle ou le traitement de la lumière 

Quelle source de lumière ? A quel emplacement ? Pourquoi ?

• L'ambiance sonore ou le traitement du son (intra et extra diégétique)

• Mouvements de caméra

Précisez, par exemple, si lors d’un moment fort de votre court des mouvements de caméra seront visibles et justifiez leur emploi, ou dites l’intérêt de la récurrence d’un mouvement de caméra choisi par vous tout au long de votre court etc.

• Cadrage, échelle de plans

• Acteurs

Indiquez le genre d’acteurs que vous choisiriez en vous  appuyant sur les caractéristiques précises de vos personnages et sur les  jeux d’acteur repérés dans certains films de votre connaissance.

• Costumes, accessoires

• Traitement du temps

Dites si la durée de projection correspond à la durée diégétique, précisez l’existence d’ellipses temporelles et l’intérêt de vos choix narratifs.

• Montage     

Expliquez, en sélectionnant ce qui semble le plus pertinent quant au style que vous voulez donner à votre film, et les moments les plus importants, la manière dont les images seront liées entre elles (effets de liaison appelés aussi raccords, durée des plans, effets spéciaux etc.) et dans quel rythme. 

Voir aussi les ressources suivantes :

http://forum.cineastes.com/scenario-f28/note-d-intention-t3200.html

http://www.scenario-buzz.com/2010/01/04/comment-presenter-son-projet-le-synopsis-et-la-note-dintention/

http://www.apprendre-le-cinema.fr/la-note-dintention/

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Lire la suite : La note d'intention

Détails

Catherine

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 8 mars 2010

Le travelling a toujours été privilégié par les réalisateurs…

Le travelling avant va permettre de conserver un grand angle et une grande profondeur de champ avec une image nette dans sa majeure partie, tandis que le zoom, ou travelling optique, va réduire considérablement le champ et, hormis le point focalisé, présentera davantage de flou. 

Le pano-travelling consiste à débuter le mouvement de caméra soit par un panoramique auquel s’enchaine aussitôt un travelling, soit un travelling auquel s’enchaine aussitôt un panoramique (les deux se chevauchant parfois). Dans North by Northwest  d'Hitchcok (1959) nous avons les deux cas : le premier pour l’entrée en scène des gangsters dans le bar de l’hôtel ou à l’ONU, le second dans la salle des ventes pour l’entrée en scène de Thornhill. 

 Le trans-trav ou zoom compensé, consiste à combiner un zoom arrière avec un travelling avant ou un zoom avant avec un travelling arrière de telle sorte que le sujet principal reste cadré de la même manière, seul le décor change de perspective. On appelle aussi cet effet l’effet Vertigo… (voir le film d'Hitchcok)

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Détails

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 12 février 2010

Longue focale

Une longue focale correspond à un petit angle de prise de vue.

Plus la focale est longue, plus l'ouverture angulaire est faible et le champ couvert étroit : nous avons alors un objectif à longue focale (comme le 100 mm). Le téléobjectif, lui, étant un très long foyer réalisé selon une combinaison optique spéciale.

Les focales intermédiaires (comme le 35 mm) correspondent approximativement à la vision de l'oeil humain.

Les longues focales écrasent la perspective, rétrécissent l'espace, aplatissent les lointains, rapprochent les premiers plans des arrière-plans, rendent flou l’arrière plan, ralentissent les déplacements.

Les focales moyennes traduisent correctement (du moins selon les critères de notre œil) ces différents facteurs.

Dans North by Northwest de Hitchcok (1959), lorsque Thornhill se jette à terre sous l’avion la première fois, une longue focale est utilisée : image aplatie, arrière-plan et premier plan se confondent : l’avion semble sur Thornhill… La scène a été tournée en studio par sécurité. Thornhill se jette à terre devant une projection de l'avion plongeant sur lui.

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Les courtes focales

Une courte focale a un angle de prise de vue beaucoup plus grand.

 Plus la distance focale est faible, plus grande est l'ouverture angulaire et plus vaste est la portion d'espace embrassée par l'image (le champ) : nous avons alors un objectif à courte focale, dit aussi à court foyer (comme le 28 mm), l'objectif à très courte focale étant le grand-angle ou grand-angulaire.

 

 Les courtes focales plongent les personnages dans le décor, accusent la perspective, élargissent l'espace, accentuent la profondeur de champ en donnant de la netteté à l’arrière plan, accélèrent les déplacements, tout cela au prix de déformations marginales : les verticales s'incurvent sur le bord de l'image.

Dans North by Northwest, scène de l’avion... Thornhill est debout à gauche de l’écran... une courte focale a été employée...

Quand Thornhill court devant l'avion qui le poursuit... une courte focale a également été employée...

Profondeur de champ exagérée, arrière plan net, et grand angle : le paysage semble s’étendre à perte de vue de toute part...

L'usage de la courte focale (grand angle) correspond aussi au monde étrange d'Orson Welles :

Touch of evil (La soif du mal) (1958)       

                                           

 L'usage de la courte focale associée à la contre-plongée donne une image irréelle du monde, et accentue ici l’infériorité du personnage de Grandi (en arrière-plan) par rapport au massif et menaçant Quinlan...

Citizen Kane (1941)

                       

 

 La courte focale ici permet de voir et les adultes cupides au premier plan en train de décider de l'avenir de l'enfant à son insue, et celui-ci en arrière plan, dans l'encadrement de la fenêtre, jouant dans la neige, monde de pureté et d'innocence...

[Allez voir aussi la vidéo du site magazinevideo « courte ou longue focale ? » : à la fois explicite et drôle… ]

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Détails

Catégorie parente: Cours

Catégorie : Fiches techniques

Publication : 8 février 2010

Article from Katz's Film Encyclopedia.

For more definitions of cinema terms see Glossary of Audio & Video Media Terminology.

Glossaire du cinéma

shot

A single continuous take, filmed in a single session from one camera setup. The basic grammatical unit of the language of film, a shot may range from a single frame taken from a fixed position to a setup involving complex camera movement.

Take

A single continuous shot taken by a motion picture camera without any interruption or break. A film director may order any number of successive takes of the same action until he is satisfied he has got a perfect shot. Each take of a scene is numbered sequentially on a slate which is held in front of the camera and photographed for the purpose of identification in the cutting room. The selected take is printed and incorporated into the work print.

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Camera angle

The camera's point of view when it is set up for shooting. The relative depth, height, or width at which an object or an action is photographed.

The variety of camera angles is almost infinite. There are no strict rules regarding the exact position of the camera relative to the subject photographed.

The choice of camera angle affects the progression of the plot but also the aesthetic quality of a scene and the psychological attitude of the viewer.

The angle from which the camera views the subject determines not only what will be included in any particular shot but to a large extent how the audience will view it — from near or far, from above or below, subjectively or objectively, etc.

Over the years, directors and cameramen have established a set of conventions regarding the technical, aesthetic, and psychological properties of the various camera angles.

The eye-level, high, and low angles are just broad categories, as are the side view angle (which tends to give an object added dimension), the so-called "Dutch" angle/canted framing (which presents an object in a highly effective diagonal tilt), and the many other camera positions that have been discovered and utilized over decades of filmmaking.

Eye-level angle

It is supposed to provide the normal viewpoint and is usually shot from a height of four to six feet, with no distortion of vertical lines. The eye level of the performer, not the cameraman, determines camera height. 
The eye-level angle is considered the most lifelike but least dramatic. It is supposed to provide the normal viewpoint and is usually shot from a height of four to six feet, with no distortion of vertical lines. The eye level of the performer, not the cameraman, determines camera height, and is especially crucial in close-up shots. Because of normal viewpoint, the eye-level shot is considered useful in establishing situations and providing audiences with a frame of reference. (See point-of-view shot, eyeline match.)

High-angle shot

The camera looks down on the subject It is a shot taken from an elevated position looking down on the subject or the action. Such a shot will tend to slow the action and to reduce the height of an object or a person. It may produce psychological side effects, such as giving an audience a sense of superiority over screen characters.
Technically, it may allow a director to cover much ground and action in deep focus.

Low-angle shot

The camera looks up at a subject. It is a shot taken from a low camera setup with the camera tilted upward. Often used for dramatic impact because it makes people and objects seem tall and overpowering. The effect is often dramatic, producing a distortion of perspective and composition. It tends to speed up action and to attribute stature and strength to characters.  

The low-angle setup was dominant in Orson Welles's CITIZEN KANE to suggest the titanic dimension of the tycoon protagonist. To permit the frequent use of the low-angle, Welles had to build his sets complete with ceilings, and the omnipresence of ceilings in the background is one of the many unusual features of CITIZEN KANE. By merely shifting camera angles, a director can suggest not only the ups and downs in a character's fortune but also the attitude an audience should adopt toward any personality or action in the film.

Reverse angle shot

A shot taken from an angle opposite the one from which the preceding shot has been taken. The reverse angle technique is frequently employed in dialogue scenes to provide the editor with alternate facial shots of the actors speaking.

Wide-angle lens

A lens of shorter-than-normal focal length and magnification power which covers a large field of view (in excess of 60 degrees) and tends to exaggerate perspective, making an area appear larger than it actually is, particularly useful in obtaining establishing shots and other long shots and for shooting action in confined areas. Shots taken with a wide-angle lens are often merely called "wide-angle shots."

Crane shot

A shot achieved by attaching a camera to a power-driven lifting device such as a construction crane or a cherry picker.

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 Frame

One of the successive individual images that comprise a motion picture, or the space such an image occupies. Each frame is separated from the others by a horizontal border called a "frame line." The frame is the smallest coherent unit of a film. Like a still photograph, it may contain all the elements of a shot as far as composition is concerned, but it cannot convey motion unless it is shown in conjunction with preceding and following frames at a determined rate of frames per second (24 f.p.s. for 35 mm sound film). An average-length 90-minute feature film is made up of 129,600 separate frames.

Extreme close-up (abbreviated ECU or XCU)

A very tight close-up shot that greatly magnifies a tiny object or shows a magnified view of part of an object or a person, such as a shot of a face featuring only the eyes, nose, and mouth. Also called "detail shot" and, less frequently, "big close-up." Extreme close-ups are useful for showing small objects in detail, but beyond this obvious utility they may be used effectively for dramatic impact or meaningful emphasis.

Close-up (abbreviated CU)

A shot taken from a short distance or through a telephoto lens which brings to the screen a magnified, detailed part of a person or an object. A close-up of a person, for example, might show only his head, a shot of a car's interior might reveal just the steering wheel. A close-up is used to draw attention to a significant detail to clarify a point, designate a meaning, or heighten the dramatic impact of a film's plot.

Close shot (abbreviated CS)

A shot closer than a medium shot but not as tight as a close-up. When the subject is a person, he or she is framed from the top of the head to the waist. When it is an object, the shot is relative to the size of that object

Medium close shot (abbreviated MCS)

A camera setup intermediate between a close shot and a medium shot. The average MCS will cut off the figure of a man at about the knees.

Medium shot (abbreviated MS)

A shot intermediate between a close-up and a long shot. As with most camera angles, this shot cannot be described with mathematical precision. Generally speaking, it would cover the full figure of a man or a small group of men with a small portion of background showing.

Medium long shot (abbreviated MLS)

A shot utilizing a wider angle than a medium shot but not as wide as a long shot. The object or action of principal interest is in the middle distance rather than toward the foreground or far in the background.

establishing shot

A shot, usually a long shot or a full shot at the beginning of a sequence, which establishes the location, setting, and mood of the action. It provides the audience with an initial visual orientation, enabling it to see the interrelationship between the general setting and the detailed action in subsequent scenes.

full shot (long shot)

A shot whose subject completely fills the screen. When the subject is a person his or her full body is included in the shot. The term is sometimes used interchangeably with long shot.

long shot orfull shot (Usually abbreviated in scripts and camera reports as "LS.")

A broad view of objects or action of principal interest. The shot requires a wide angle of photography and a scene in depth. The camera is positioned at a distance that allows general recognition of the subject matter at the expense of detail. When used to identify a setting and establish the background for subsequent detail it is known as an establishing shot.

extreme long shot (abbreviated ELS or XLS)

A wide-angle shot providing a bird's-eye view of a vast area. Usually a static shot filmed from a high vantage point, it is most often used to establish the geography of an area or to suggest wide open spaces.

master shot

A take of an entire scene, generally done as a long shot, that allows filmmakers to intercut close-ups and other shots without causing displacement of the scene. Also known as a cover or coverage shot.

boom shot

A continuous single shot incorporating any number of camera levels and angles. Achieved through the use of a boom, this versatile shot permits the fluid filming of an entire sequence or even a whole film (as Hitchcock nearly did in ROPE, 1948) without breaking up the action into units of montage.

bridging shot

A shot used to cover a lapse in time or place. Examples include newspaper headlines as seen in THE GODFATHER (1972) and the maps used in the INDIANA JONES trilogy.

cameo shot

A shot photographed against a neutral or blacked-out background, using the barest of props in order not to detract from the principal subject of the shot.

reaction shot

A close shot of a person (or persons) reacting to something that is said or done off scene or in a previous shot. A reaction shot may be used as a standard continuity device, such as cutting from one player speaking to another who is reacting to his words, or as a cutaway device, such as cutting from the main action in a boxing ring to the reaction of a spectator in the audience, then returning to the main action.

pull-back shot

A tracking or zoom shot that moves away from the subject to allow the full context of the scene to come into view.

process shot

A shot taken against a moving or still background consisting of previously filmed footage which is projected through a transparent screen behind the current action being filmed, a technique known as back projection or "rear projection." A routine example is the commonly seen shot of an actor driving a car through city traffic. Of course, this may be done on location at great expense and effort. In the much simpler and cheaper process shot, the actor is photographed in the studio, seated at the wheel of a simulated car with removable parts (process body). A previously prepared scene of traffic rushing past landmarks of any desired city is projected on the screen behind the studio car. Both the foreground and background actions are photographed simultaneously in the studio. Thus both actions are unified and the impression is created that the scene was shot on location.

tight shot

A shot in which the subject matter fills almost the entire frame.

two-shot

A close camera shot just wide enough to keep two persons within the limits of the frame.

dolly shot Also called "traveling," "trucking," or "tracking shot."

A moving shot of a moving or stationary subject exercised by mounting the camera on a dolly or camera truck. To dolly-in (or track-in) is to move the camera toward the subject; to dolly-out (or track-out) is to move the camera away from the subject.

tracking shot (also trucking shot, travelling shot, dolly shot)

A shot in which a camera—mounted on tracks, on a vehicle, or on a dolly—moves forward, backward, or sideways, to follow the action and the movements of performers. The camera is said to "track in" when moving closer to the subject and to "track out" when moving away from the subject.

running shot

A traveling shot in which the moving camera keeps up with the pace of a moving person or object.

passing shot

A shot in which a subject moves past a stationary camera or one in which the subject remains stationary while the camera moves past him.

head-on shot

A shot in which the action appears to come directly toward the camera.

over-the-shoulder shot

A common shot in dialogue scenes in which the subject is viewed from an angle just over the shoulder of another performer.

matte shot

A camera shot that produces a contrived effect by combining a prephotographed background with a live-action scene.

flash frame

A shot that lasts only a few frames, occasionally only one, that can barely be noticed by the audience. One second of film consists of 24 frames, so a flash frame is onscreen for less than a tenth of a second.

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Focus: The sharpness of an image.

deep focus

Sharp definition of all objects in front of a camera, both far and near, in the same shot. The effective range in which ordinary camera lenses can produce images in focus is limited by the laws of depth of field. But the development of a deep-focus lens late in the '30s opened new possibilities for directors and cameramen. Director of photography Gregg Toland explored those new possibilities with great effectiveness in the '40s, most notably in Orson Welles's CITIZEN KANE (1941) and William Wyler's THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES (1946) By using a deep-focus shot, a director may comment visually on relationships between characters and events situated at different planes without resorting to an interruptive cut or unnecessarily moving his camera to cover the entire scene. See also André Bazin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Light

ambient light

The use of natural light without the aid of additional lamps, often soft in quality.

back lighting

The illumination of a scene from behind the subject and toward the camera. It tends to produce a light fringe, increase contrast, and make the subject appear to stand out from the background, thus suggesting a third dimension. It is also used for such specific effects as adding sheen to hair.

filler light

Additional lighting that illuminates areas not covered by the key light. Also called fill light.

key light

The principal and dominant source of light used in illuminating a motion picture set. It determines the tone and mood of a scene and is therefore established first by the director of photography, who later builds around it the filler light and other compensating sources of illumination, such as the cross light and back light.

key lighting, high, low

Two contrasting lighting results. In high key lighting, the key light provides most of the light for the scene, while in low key lighting the key is not essential to providing all of the light.

high key

An arrangement of lights in which the key, or main, light evenly covers most of the scene, minimizing contrast.

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Camera movement

The panning, tilting, tracking, or zooming of a motion picture camera. There are certain conventions that are universally observed in camera movement. As a rule, a cameraman will run the camera in a static position for a brief moment before beginning the movement, and again after the movement is completed and the camera comes to rest. This not only makes for a smooth look on the screen but also provides the editor with a choice between a static or a moving situation when he cuts from one shot to another. Another widely observed rule is that movement begins and ends on specific points of interest that have been preselected, with the entire movement rehearsed before shooting. The direction of camera movement is as important as the direction of subject movement within the frame. Thus, a pan from left to right would normally not be followed with a pan from right to left, and so on, just as the movement of a performer from left to right would not be followed by the same subject's movement in the opposite direction.

still

A single photograph taken with an ordinary camera, as opposed to a succession of pictures taken with a motion picture camera. More specifically, a still is a glossy photograph blown up from a frame of a motion picture (action still) or taken by a still photographer on the motion picture set for the purpose of promotion and publicity.

publicity still

A still photograph taken before, during, or after the shooting of a film for the purpose of advertising, publicity, and display in motion picture theaters.

action still

A still photograph blown up directly from the negative of a motion picture, in contrast to ordinary publicity stills which are shot during production with a still camera.

freeze frame

The effect of repeatedly printing a single frame so that the action seems to freeze on the screen into still-like motionlessness. The process can be used to lengthen a scene, to highlight a point, or for sheer dramatic effect. It was used very effectively in the final scene of THE FOUR HUNDRED BLOWS, which ends in a "frozen" close-up of the young hero.

Pan

A camera movement on a horizontal plane from one part of a scene to another. A contraction of "panorama" or "panoramic," the term is sometimes used to describe any pivotal movement of the camera. See also tilt.

swish pan:

A quick movement of the camera, causing the image to blur and not be easily identified. A psychological approximation of the movement of the human eye as it moves from subject to subject.

tilt:

The pivotal movement of a camera in a vertical plane. In a tilt shot, the camera is moved up (tilt up) or down (tilt down), in contrast with a pan shot, in which the camera is moved horizontally.

cut

Abrupt transition from one scene to another without using an optical effect such as a dissolve, a wipe, or a fade. It is achieved by splicing the last frame of one scene with the first frame of the next.

dissolve (Also known as a "lap dissolve")

A screen effect of gradually fusing one shot into another. It is achieved by the overlapping of two lengths of film so that, as the last frames of the first shot gradually darken or fade out, they are blended with the opening frames of the next scene which gradually brighten or fade in. The effect on the screen is that of one scene seeming to melt into another. Some cameras are equipped with dissolve controls, but normally the effect is produced by optical printing in the lab.

The effect is used as a transitional device, usually to indicate a time lapse or a change in location, as distinct from a direct cut, which tends to suggest concurrent action. The length of any particular dissolve depends on the desired effect—a slow dissolve indicating a long time lapse, a relatively quick dissolve indicating a brief passage of time. Technically, the length of the dissolve is measured by the total number of frames required to complete the effect. Since a dissolve demands the superimposition of the end of one scene onto the beginning of the next, at least six extra feet of film must be shot for each scene for the lab to have the necessary footage to achieve the effect. Using a Chinagraph (grease) pencil, the editor indicates a dissolve by marking the desired length of film on his work print with a diagonal line.

Fade (Fade In, Fade Out)

An optical effect that causes a scene to emerge gradually on the screen from complete blackness (fade in), or a bright image to dim gradually into blackness (fade out). The fade is a transitional device that usually signifies a distinct break in a film's continuity, indicating a change in time, location, or subject matter. Most films begin with a fade-in and end with a fade-out. The use of a fade-in/fade-out between sequences within a film is similar to the function of the beginning or end of a chapter in a book or of an act in a play. The length of the fade should be in keeping with the film's tempo and mood. Technically, a fade-in is achieved by a gradual increase of exposure for each frame until the image reaches full brightness; a fade-out is obtained by a gradual decrease of exposure for each frame with the last frame completely black. Normally, fades are made by the optical printer, but they can also be satisfactorily achieved by some cameras. Amateurs often use a fading solution to obtain fades chemically. The gradual increase or decrease in the level of sound in a film is similarly known as a fade-in or fade-out. Thus, typically, a motion picture script would start with the instruction "fade in" on the picture side and "fade in music" (or sound effects) on the sound side.

wipe

An optical effect where one image is replaced by another, usually with a vertical or horizontal movement across the screen. The result is an effect in which the image looks like it was wiped off with a chalkboard eraser. This allows directors to move freely from one scene to the next without using a bridging shot. Director George Lucas used wipes in his STAR WARS trilogy. See fade out, dissolve, iris out.

subjective camera

Camera angle that views action through the eyes of a particular observer, rather than through the usual objective, impersonal point of view. Subjective camera angles are common in films. Whenever a close-up of a particular player is followed by a bit of action, we assume we are seeing the action through that person's eyes. But rarely is an entire sequence, let alone an entire film, shot this way. An extreme and outstanding example of a film shot totally on the subjective camera premise is Robert Montgomery's suspense drama LADY IN THE LAKE (1946). Montgomery directed and starred in this offbeat film, playing the role of Raymond Chandler's private eye Philip Marlowe. The film is told in the first person with nearly all the action seen through the hero's eyes. The audience sees Montgomery only when he is first introduced and whenever his image is reflected in a mirror. When the other actors in the film address Montgomery they look directly into the camera as if looking into his eyes. His reactions are never seen, only heard.

narration

Verbal description or commentary on action taking place. Also known as a voice over. Examples include Orson Welles' confused brogue in THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI (1948) and Harrison Ford's hard-boiled voice over in Ridley Scott's BLADE RUNNER (1982). See commentative sound.

narrative

The chronological or linear construction of a story.

sequence

A number of scenes linked together by time, location, or narrative continuity to form a unified episode in a motion picture. It is often likened to a chapter in a book, the scene being the equivalent of a paragraph and the shot the equivalent of a sentence. Traditionally, but not necessarily, a sequence begins with a fade-in and ends with a fade-out or some other optical transitional device.

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Soundtrack

1. A recording of an original score or a collection of songs from a film. While always a part of movie-making, soundtracks became increasingly popular in the late 1980s and early '90s as another form of film marketing.

2. The recorded sound of a film, which includes dialogue, background noise, sound effects, and a musical score. Magnetic soundtracks, like the kind used for an average cassette tape, have the sound encoded on a magnetic strip attached to the film stock. Optical soundtracks, however, use a beam of light to create a band on the stock that widens and narrows in order to encode the sound signal.

sound effects

Natural or artificially created sounds, other than speech or music, that become part of a motion picture's sound track. Such sounds (a gun popping, a door slamming, a glass breaking, thunder rolling, etc.) are recorded during filming or separately (sound not recorded synchronously with film is known as "wild sound") or borrowed from a library of stock sound effects. Certain large film and TV studios are equipped with a sophisticated sound-effects console that stores hundreds of prerecorded sounds and enables the operator to scan, locate, and introduce directly into the sound track any desired effect within seconds. See also effects track.

voice over (abbreviated V.O. or v/o)

Narration or dialogue spoken by a person not seen on the screen at the time his voice is heard.

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Screenplay (also called script and scenario)

The written text upon which a film production is based. Unlike a stage play, which is generally produced and performed the way, or close to the way, it was originally written, the screenplay is wide open to interpretation and change and seldom reaches the screen intact. While the playwright communicates with his audience almost as directly as a novelist, the screenwriter communicates through intermediaries. His work is an essential element—but only one element—in a collaborative enterprise that is presided over by the director. Scenes may undergo changes of content, motivation, emphasis, or dialogue at several pre-production stages and even as the filming progresses, at the discretion of the director.
As literature, few screenplays stand on their own, nor are they meant to. A good script is not judged by the way it reads but by its effectiveness as a blueprint for a film. To be successful, it must be conceived in visual terms and should sustain a pace of action and dialogue in keeping with the requirements of a motion picture. Its dialogue must integrate well with other elements of the sound track, such as music and effects.
Screen-writing is a multi-stage process that begins with an original idea or an acquired published property, such as a novel, short story, or play. Usually, it is first presented to a producer as a brief synopsis that outlines the story, dramatic highlights, and main characters. Variably known as a concept, or an outline, the synopsis usually runs only a few pages in length. The next step is the treatment, an extensive, detailed elaboration of the ideas contained in the synopsis. A good treatment is presented in well-developed narrative form and covers every event and all the major action in the proposed film in proper, though tentative, continuity. The treatment is followed by a first-draft screenplay, written in script form and containing full dialogue. A rewrite or several rewrites may follow before the script is polished into a final screenplay, or shooting script, a fully approved, scene-by-scene document with full dialogue and detailed camera setups.

In the US, screenplays for feature films are usually presented in a format similar to that of a stage play, with dialogue and directions alternating. On the other hand, documentary and industrial films are presented in a two-column format, with the left column containing camera directions and the right column dialogue, narration, music, and sound effects. The latter format is preferred by most European filmmakers for feature films as well as for documentaries.

treatment

The intermediate stage in the development of a script; it occurs between the synopsis (or step outline) and the screenplay, or shooting script. It consists of a fully developed narrative covering all the principal situations and may include certain key passages of dialogue.

props

1. An abbreviated term for properties: furnishings, fixtures, decorations, or any other movable items that are seen or used on a motion picture (or stage) set but that are not structurally parts of the set. The property department of a motion picture studio stores and catalogues an enormous variety of props, from standard pistols to huge, mechanized, custom-made contraptions of great complexity.

2. An abbreviated term for "prop man."

set

A construction representing an interior or exterior locale in which the action of a motion picture takes place. Over the years the task of set design and erection has progressed from the crude painting of backdrops in the tradition of the stage to a complex art requiring the collaboration of many skilled artists and craftsmen. Sets have become not only more lavish but also more realistic and detailed. They may range from a simple interior to an amazingly accurate mock-up of the interior of a jetliner or a ship, and from the standard main street of a Western town to a highly complicated reproduction of a medieval city, complete with castles and authentic props. Many studios have on their grounds permanent built-up areas representing various locales. Although the facade of the buildings is usually a false front with nothing behind it, the illusion of reality may be perfectly achieved through the rudimentary principles of editing.

The person responsible for the overall look of a film, and for each and every set is the art director. He works in close collaboration with the set designer, whose job it is to translate the art director's ideas into actual drawn plans and construction specifications. Other artists and craftsmen involved in the building of sets in the US (they are all members of IATSE, the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees) are set decorators, mold makers, property craftsmen (prop master, upholsterer, greensman, etc.), set painters, scenic and title artists, ornamental plasterers, and grips.

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For more information about cinema-relmated terms, go to Media College

See also Film Terms Glossary Illustrated

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