Film Studies Vocabulary

shot

one continuous piece of film footage, ending with an edit

sequence

a series of shots combined to represent a discrete set of actions or a coherent narrative section

trope

a common convention repeated in many films

a symbolic visual, auditory, or narrative element with a predictable meaning

motif

anything repeated more that a few times in a film

a motif can be visual (an image or cinematic technique), sonic (a sound or piece of music), or rhetorical (a word, phrase, metaphor, etc.)

cinematography

a term used to define the ways in which the camera captures the shot

under the heading of cinematography, we speak of such things as the different lenses used by the camera, how the camera frames the shot, the angle of the camera relative to the action, and how the camera moves

editing

refers to how the individual shots are spliced together

the norm here is “continuity editing,” in which shots are put together to achieve narrative continuity—to make the action appear to flow logically and naturally from shot to shot

mise-en-scene

literally meaning “put into the scene,” this term refers to the arrangement of actors and objects in front of the camera

setting, lighting, costuming, and acting are aspect of mis-en-scene

sound

refers to both the sounds that come from the scene itself, such as spoken dialogue or ambient noise, and the sounds that are imposed on the scene, such as voice-overs or musical score

extreme long shot

a shot of a character’s full figure at a great distance, including a panoramic view of the surroundings

long shot

a shot that includes a character’s full figure as well as the surroundings

medium shot

a shot that captures a figure from the waist up

close-up

the frame is filled primarily by the subject’s face, including little to no background

extreme close-up

a shot filled entirely by a small part of the subject’s body

high angle

the camera looks down at the subject

low angle

the camera looks at the subject

canted angle

a shot in which the framing is tipped, or no longer horizontal

pan

the camera scans horizontally from a fixed axis

tilt

the camera scans vertically from a fixed axis

track

the camera follows the action, travelling along a parallel path to capture the movement

long lens

also called a “telephoto lens,” this long focal length lens is used to capture subjects at a distance

it foreshortens the distance between background and foreground

wide lens

a short focal length lens that emphasizes the distance between foreground and background

deep focus

objects in the background and foreground are equally in focus

shallow focus

only objects in one plane are in focus, while others are out of focus

rack focus

a shift from one plane of focus to another within a shot

zoom

changes focal length to create motion toward or away from the subject

superimposition

images are overlaid within the frame

digital animation

images created or modified by computer softwear

title cards

txt from outside the world of narrative appearing on screen to supply information to the audience

continuity editing

the process of putting shots together to create the impression of continuous narrative time and/or visual coherent space

cut

an immediate transition from one shot to the next, with no dissolve, fade, or wipe

straight cuts usually imply continuous action between one shot and the next

dissolve

a shot slowly disappears at the same time the next appears, featuring a time during which one shot is briefly superimposed on another

dissolves often imply some distance in time or space between one shot and the next

fade

a shot slowly becomes darker until the entire screen is black (“fade out” or “fade to black:)

this can be done in reverse: the shot slowly gets brighter until the entire screen is white

a fade out is often paired with a “fade in” in which the next shot slowly emerges from the black or white screen

fades often imply a greater distance in time and/or place between one sequence and the next

wipe

one shot “wipes” another from the screen, usually from one side of the screen to the other, bottom to top, or top to bottom

expanding or contracting shapes (such as stars, circles, or hearts) can also be used to wipe one shot from the screen and reveal the next

180 degree rule

a principle of continuity editing dictating that the camera remains on one side of the action to maintain the viewer’s perspective and understanding of the left-right spatial relationship between characters

shot/reverse shot

alternating shots between subjects, usually in conversation, vied from different camera positions

crosscutting

transitioning back and forth between two or more action sequences taking place simultaneously

eyeline match

a cut between a shot of a person looking towards an object and a shot of the object being viewed

match on action

a cut that transitions between two different views of the same action so that the action appears continuous from one shot to the next

graphic match

a cut that relates consecutive shots through repeated compositional features (shapes, colors, patterns, etc.)

jump cut

a cut that distorts continuity, causing a skip ahead in time or space

composition

the arrangement of subjects, props, and environments within a shot

costumes

clothing designed to express character, social setting, and/or mythos

decor

the set design, whether in studio or on location

includes colors, styles, textures, architecture, props, and the social locations, or psychological states they are intended to evoke

three point lighting

standard lighting using three light sources: a key light to provide the main source of illumination along with a fill light from another side and back light from behind

high key

nearly all parts of the image are brightly illuminated

low key

extreme contrast between light and dark within an image

chiaroscuro

the use of strong contrasts between light and dark to create a sense of visual drama or a sense of volume and dimension to the space and the figures within it

diegetic sound

sound produced in the world of the film, taking place within the narrative (dialogue, sound, etc.)

extradiegetic sound

sound originating from outside the narrative, not produced in the onscreen setting (voice-overs, soundtrack, etc.

sound bridge

a transition assisted by a continuous sound from one scene to the next, often to introduce a new scene before it appears visually

edit on sound

a cut made on a sound cue