Film Studies Need to Know (Or what I should have gotten 1st Semester) Introducing Cinematic and Theatrical Elements in Film

Film production The Design Team- Led by the production designer, responsible for the look of the films settings. Also includes Art director, constructs the sets; the set decorator, the costume designer; and the storyboard artist. The Director’s Crew, supports the director in communicating with each of the other departments.

Film production (continued…) The Photography unit- headed by the cinematographer, in charge of the camera movements, focus, framing, and lighting. gaffer is the head electrician,, who places the rigging of the lights and the “best boy” is their assistant The Sound unit- responsible for all on-set recording of dialogue and sound effects. The Cast- may include well-known stars, supporting players, or extras.

Film production (3/3) After the filming is completed, another set of people become involved Editor- Takes hours of footage and assembles it into a piece that reflects the filmmakers purposes.

Cinematic technique (Framing) Framing- one of the first decisions that a director makes when designing a shot, is deciding how it will be framed. Choices are: Close up, Medium shot, and Long shot. Close up- Actor is only visible from the neck up, takes up most of the screen. Can be used to show the characters emotions, or to emphasize an object. Long Shot- Actor’s entire body is visible, mostly from a distance keeping objects around the actor in sight. Shows the characters surroundings. Medium Shot- Actors seen from the waist up, usually showing the actor doing an action.

Shot types Close up Medium shot Long Shot

Angles Low angle- Director positions the camera below a subject looking up. This has the effect of making a character look larger and more powerful than they normally would. High angle- When a camera is high above the subject, looking down on it. This has the effect of making a character look smaller than normal. Eye level- When the camera is at eye level with the subject. Most movies are shot in the eye level type because that’s how people normally view each other

Angles Low Angle High Angle Eye Level

movement within a shot When a stationary camera’s head moves left to right (or right to left), staying on the horizontal axis, the director is using a PAN. If the stationary camera’s head moves up and down on the vertical axis, it is called a TILT. When the focus of a stationary camera changes within a shot, the movement is called a ZOOM. A DOLLY SHOT refers to any time the camera itself moves, either on tracks, from a helicopter, on someone’s back, or in any other way.

movement within a shot Zoom Tilt Shot Pan

Editing A CUT joins two pieces of film (or two shots) together so that in the finished film it looks like an instantaneous change between shots. A FADE image seen on screen slowly fades to black and white or some other color A DISSOLVE image on screen slowly fades away while the next image is slowly fading in.

Editing There are a number of reasons why an editor assembles his or her shots in a particular fashion. These reasons can include building suspense, making connections between scenes, and moving the story along at a particular flow and rhythm. PARALLEL EDITING, also called CROSS-CUTTING, is used to cut between scenes that are happening simultaneously but not in the same location. POINT OF VIEW editing is used when a director tries to show a character thinking

editing DURATION is the length of each shot. A typical Hollywood shot lasts approximately 5-8 seconds. Long Takes generally feel as if they unfold in real time, allowing the director to set up the scene realistically. SHORT TAKES on the other hand, is typical in the quick-cutting MTV videos in which a single shot can last under a second.

Sound DIEGETIC sound, means the sound (be it music, dialogue, or sound effects) emanates from a source in the movie environment. NONDIEGETIC sound, refers to sound that cannot logically be part of the environment. INTERNAL DIEGETIC sound, is when the audience hears a character’s thoughts (in a voice over or in an aside).

LIGHTING LOW-KEY lighting, contains a lot of shadows with sharp contrasts between light and dark. HIGH-KEY lighting, is characterized by brightness, openness, and light. SIDE lighting, is where one side of the actor’s face is darker than the other. FRONT lighting, occurs when a character is brightly lit without any shadows appearing anywhere.

THEATRICAL ELEMENTS SETS determine an audience’s expectation for the action. Location shooting still is part of the set. COSTUMES are a quick signal for characterization and how we feel about characters often comes simply from the way they are dressed. PROPS are objects that actors manipulate or that are a part of the set and can reveal information about character, setting, and theme.

THEATRICAL ELEMENTS ACTING CHOICES are the most essential (and visible) component of theatrical elements: Goal of every actor to effectively and realistically capture the essence of a character. First decision is whether or not to accept a role…typecasting can be a problem. In the film, you have to pay attention to the actor’s delivery of lines. Also, more subtly and often more importantly, an actor uses movements and gestures to convey the character’s personality.