Film Production: Who Does What?

Preparation (Pre-Production) Producer – oversees logistics Executive Producer – the money Line Producer – on-set liaison Screenwriter – writes the script Treatment – initial script proposal Shooting script – writer’s intended screenplay, often changes during shooting

Shooting (Production) Director – oversees all aspects of shooting Production Designer – oversees the visual creation Cinematographer (director of photography) – oversees camera distance, angle, etc., as well as lighting Actors – bring the script to life

The Director’s Team Casting Director – recommends/selects actors Script Supervisor – oversees continuity Dialogue Coach – feeds lines to actors Second Unit Director – shoots at secondary locations Recordists – capture live sound Clapper Boy – marks scenes and takes before each run of the camera

Production Designer’s Team Art Director – another term for production designer Set Decorator – selects objects/props for set Set Dresser – places objects/props on set Costume Designer – creates the vision for clothing Storyboardists – draw or otherwise draft intended shots Special Effects Teams (matte artists, model makers) – create visual effects that don’t exist in the natural world

Cinematographer’s Team Camera Operator – actually photographs Key Grip – lead stage hand Gaffer – lead electrician Best Boy – gaffer’s assistant Loader – puts film in the camera

Actors Stars Supporting Players Minor Players Extras Stunt Actors

Assembly (Post-Production) Editor – oversees cutting and compiling shots into a coherent whole Composer – creates musical score Dailies – each day’s recorded shots Rough Cut – the first compiled version of the film, often much longer than the final cut Final Cut – the trimmed version to be released Outtakes – leftovers between Rough & Final Spotting – identifying places for sound to be edited in ADR – automated dialogue replacement

Elements of Meaning Film Form And Content

Content/Meaning/Theme Content = (Subject Matter + Form) + Context Content is also known as Meaning or Theme Subject Matter is what the film is about. Form is how the subject matter is presented. Context is when, where and how the filmmaker’s creation meets its perceiver.

Levels of Meaning Referential, a.k.a. Literal observation of the recognizable Explicit, a.k.a. Textual/Connotative directly stated meanings (lines of dialogue) Implicit, a.k.a Universal thematic inference drawn from implication Symptomatic, a.k.a Cultural broader social/symbolic meaning

Elements of Film Form Narrative Elements Plot Character Setting Point of View Metaphor Stylistic Elements Mise-en-Scene Cinematography Editing Sound

Narrative Elements: Plot Exposition (stasis) – Act I Complication – Act I Rising Action (conflict) – Act II Climax – Act II Falling Action – Act III Denouement (resolution) – Act III

Standard Plot Structure

Plot vs. Story Plot is everything seen and heard by the perceiver of the film – everything that is presented, whether it’s a part of the story or not. Story is everything that happens in the lives of the characters – everything they experience, whether it is explicitly presented to the perceiver or not.

Diegesis

Plot and Time Temporal Duration – passage of time for the characters Screen Duration – passage of time for the perceiver Temporal Order – chronology (Flashbacks, flashforwards) Temporal Frequency – repetition of events Beats – major events in the plot

Character Protagonist – central, dynamic character with whom the perceiver identifies/sympathizes Antagonist – obstacle to the protagonist Round – well-developed character whose motivations are clear Flat – opposite of round Dynamic – character who changes significantly Static – opposite of dynamic Characteristics (character traits) Catalyst (goal vs. investigation) Causal relationships – action/reaction

Setting Location – authentic, artificial, interior, exterior, etc. Screen space – everything we see Directed attention – director’s/ cinematographer’s control of what we see/hear Imagery – meaningful objects, colors, sounds

Point of View Restricted Narration – a character’s POV Unrestricted Narration – omniscient POV Perceptual Subjectivity – we perceive what the character perceives Mental Subjectivity – we perceive what the character is thinking

POV and the Perceiver Cues – sights & sounds that cause expectations in the perceiver Suspense – delay in fulfilling expectation Surprise – incorrect, or cheated, expectation Curiosity – cue causes perceiver to wonder about past events Irony – disparity between characters’ & perceiver’s POV Hierarchy of Knowledge – who knows what?

Metaphor Symbol – both literal and figurative Iconography – symbol whose meaning transcends an individual film/story Motif – repeated symbol or image (often related to temporal frequency) Allusion – reference to another work of art