Introduction to the Art of Film Chapters 1-4

What is the personal proxemic distance range?

18 inches- 4 ft.

The widescreen aspect ratio is________.

2.35:1

What is the social proxemic distance range?

6-8 feet apart

Bazin criticized the art of editing, but acknowledged its value if the essence of a scene is based on __________. a) division b) unity c)simultaneity d) actual time

A

Fiction films, especially those produced in America, generally follow_______ a) the classical paradigm b) documentary style c)avant-garde cinema d) abstract expressionism

A

High-key lighting can be distinguished by____________. a) bright, even illumination b) dramatic streaks of blackness c) harsh shafts of light d) conspicuous shadows

A

In the world of film, digital technology______. a) is essentially electronic in nature b) stores images on a film strip c) has been replaced by celluloid tech. d) is a chemical and mechanical medium

A

Telephoto lenses produce which one of the following side effects? a) objects are in sharp focus only at one distance from the lens b)they don't allow cinematographers to work discretely c)they are not sensitive to distances d) the whole image is sharp because they have a large depth of field

A

Closed forms emphasize_______.

a manipulated sense of closure

In closed forms, the shot represents....

a proscenium arch

A tilt shot often is used to suggest __________.

a psychological shift within a character

The emotional impact of a documentary image is derived from what? a) its depiction of truth rather than beauty b) its desire to create magic and enchantment, not remind us of real-life problems c) its use of props and actors as semi-abstract visual units d) its emphasis on personal, inaccessible, and iconoclastic self-expression

A

The first fiction film to explore the idea of thematic montage was __________. a) Intolerance b) High Noon C) Birth of a Nation D) The Big Parade

A

Performance capture employs what type of mechanical distortion?

animation

Which one of these is a characteristic of realist cinema? a)tries to preserve an objective view of the actual world. b) deliberately stylizes the raw materials of the image c) expresses a subjective experience of reality d) assumes if it is not pretty, it is not truthful

A

Which one of these is a tendency of formalist cinema? a) Uses the camera as a method of commenting on the subject matter b) Places a premium on simplicity and spontaneity c) concerns itself primarily with content rather than technique d) rarely has noticeable style or technique

A

Who is responsible for controlling the lighting of a film and the quality of the photography? a) the cinematographer b) the director c)the star d) the producer

A

Which one of these best describes the long shot? a) often depicts an object's symbolic significance b) covers the same amount of space as theater stage c) elevates the importance of objects over location d) magnifies the size of an object intentionally

B

Which proxemic distance ranges from twelve feet to twenty-five feet and more away? a) the social b) the public c) the personal d) the intimate

B

Who was the director of Double Indemnity?

Billy Wilder

An image composed of which kind of lines might suggest a character's inner turmoil?

S-shaped

If a character is photographed running in an extreme long shot from a high angle what is the effect?

He will seem ineffectual, more powerless

Which of these is a factor in why digital tech. makes motion picture distribution and exhibition cheaper?

Lightweight disks of new films can be sent to movie theaters.

Which kind of shot did Griffith exploit most for dramatic effect?

The close-up

Movement in the upward direction often suggests....

Joy

Which Soviet filmmaker conducted a famous experiment in editing that provided a theoretical foundation for the use of nonprofessional actors in movies? a) Pudovkin b) Vertov C) Kuleshov D) Eisenstein

Kuleshov

Open forms stress unself-conscious methods to emphasize______.

immediacy

The meaning of a scene or sequence for Soviet montage theorists is found where?

in the juxtaposition of shots

What effect has digital technology had on realism and formalism in film theory?

it has blurred the traditional distinctions between realism and formalism

The Odessa Steps sequence from The Battleship Potemkin is one of the most celebrated instances of montage editing virtuosity in the silent cinema because __________.

it prolongs time by cutting to a variety of people caught up in the chaos

The 180° rule involves which of the following?

keeping the camera on one side of an imaginary line

Film noir is a style of film defined primarily in terms of______

lighting

Moving the camera instead of cutting or editing between shots produces a feeling of what in film?

lyricism

Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch was both applauded and condemned for what particular quality or style of its editing?

lyricism

Traditional animation is being replaced by digital tech. resulting in a new "look" that is ....

more sculptural

In general, the greater the distance between the camera and the subject, the more emotionally__________ the feeling.

neutral

Unlike music, forms in film refer to__________.

objects in reality

During the big-studio era in Hollywood from 1925 to 1955, most cinematographers believed________.

beautiful pictures with beautiful people was the goal.

The shot/reverse-shot (or shot/countershot) editing technique involves __________.

breaking down a scene into cause and effect

In the film Run Lola Run, how does director Tom Tykwer use movement to show us that the lead character is acting decisively?

by staging her movement laterally

Dollying or tracking is a useful technique in point-of-view shots for______.

capturing a sense of movement in or out of a scene

The intimate proxemic distance can be likened to what type of shot?

close-up

Which of these best describes the role of the cinematographer in the filmmaking process?

collaborating with the director to create the appropriate visual style for a film.

According to the French aesthetician Henri Bergson, when people are filmed acting mechanically the result is __________.

comedy

Continuity cutting attempts to do which of the following?

compress the length of time an event takes to play out

the rectangular shape of the movie frame causes what difficulty for filmmakers?

creating a sense of height

According to Bazin, the filmmaker can preserve actual time and space by __________.

panning or tilting

Binary structures in film images emphasize what about the space being photographed?

parallelism

Wide-angle lenses will allow a filmmaker to do which of the following?

deep-focus photography

In _______, classical cutting interprets an action.

emphasizing certain details over others

In the classical cinema, the arrangement of compositional elements generally emphasizes __________.

equilibrium

Why would a director choose a zoom shot instead of dolly or crane shot?

for psychological effect

Georges Méliès A Trip to the Moon was an early example of what type of cinema?

formalist

Generally speaking, the looser the shot, the greater the sense of ______.

freedom

These days, some Hollywood directors are switching from traditional celluloid film to digital video. Often the choice is a reflection of what?

generation

In film, dominant characters are almost always __________.

given more space than other character

Generally speaking, if the character moves from left to right or vice-versa,

he or she will seem a person of action

Bazin pointed out that in the evolution of movies, virtually every technical innovation pushed the medium closer to __________.

realism

In Mel Gibson's film Braveheart, the beheading of the hero is photographed using downward movement to kinetically symbolize what?

release from life

If the angle of a shot is deliberately disorienting, what will it do to the image being photographed?

represent the major meaning of an image

Widescreen is especially effective in scenes that

require elaborately choreographed movements

Which portions of a screen image are the most heavily weighted?

right and top

The master-shot technique of filming involves which of the following?

shooting an entire scene in long shot first

In closed-form films, the camera photographs objects and actors______.

so as to anticipate the dramatic action

Gordon Willis, one of the most respected of all American cinematographers, was best known for_______.

specializing in low-key lighting

According to the French aesthetician Henri Bergson, when people are filmed acting mechanically the result is __________.

spontaneity

If a director wants to convey that one character is more powerful than another in a shot, where would he place the more powerful character in the frame?

standing above the weaker character

A freeze frame does what?

stops movement

In open-form images, the frame______.

suggests a window

For Bazin, the best films were those in which __________.

the artist balanced their personal vision with the objective nature of the medium

The frame functions as what in film?

the basis of composition

Soviet film theorist V.I. Pudovkin claimed that Griffith's use of which kind of shot was too limited?

the close-up

Zooming has what effect on a shot?

the edges of the image disappear on all sides

Which of the following explains why Steven Soderbergh's Traffic is an open form film?

the feeling of spontaneity you get from the visuals

Soviet theorists of this generation were criticized for their championing of montage editing because __________.

this technique detracts from the realism of a scene

If the character is a villain, having them walk toward the camera can seem....

threatening

Film theorist André Bazin believed that using formalist techniques like montage editing did what to filmmaking?

violated the complexities of reality

Classical cutting involves editing for __________. a) realistic emphasis b) emotional emphasis c) physical reasons d) practical reasons

B

Eisenstein's ideas about editing and montage come from the idea that all nature is __________. a) continuous space b) dialectical c) continuous time d) realistic

B

Fast film stock is_________. a) requires ten times more illumination that slow stocks b) highly sensitive to light c) cannot register images without artificial illumination d) able to capture colors precisely in low light

B

Open forms tend to be_______. a) self-conscious b) used by realist filmmakers c) visually appealing d) used by formalist filmmakers

B

Realist filmmakers tend to use normal or standard, lenses because_______. a) the lenses work like a telescope b) these lenses photograph subjects with little distortion c)these lenses safely produce close-ups d)these lenses allow cinematographers to work at a discreet distance.

B

Shots are categorized on the basis of what? a) the distance between the camera and its subject b) how much of the human figure is in the frame c) what is left out of the image as much as what is kept in d) who the director is and what style of filmmaking he or she employs

B

The bird's-eye view conveys what to the audience? a) an objective look at the world b) an omnipotent feeling c) a feeling of inferiority d) a realistic view of the action

B

The deep-focus shot is best describe by which of the following? a) It is sometimes called a telephoto shot because it uses a long lens b) It is a long shot consisting of a number of focal distances c) it is almost always an exterior shot and shows much of the locale d) it only captures objects in focus on one focal plane

B

The formalist filmmaker uses light how? a) to augment natural light b)for its symbolic implications c)to reflect an obvious light source d) for creating a documentary look

B

The least manipulative editing style is __________. a) classical cutting b) sequence shots c) cutting to continuity d) thematic montage

B

What is one way that directors can use color to symbolically enhance a film's dramatic content? a) use the color red to suggest serenity in an image b) use the color blue to suggest tranquility in an image c) use the color yellow to recede an object in an image d) use the color violet to bring an object forward in an image

B

Which of the following is evidence that 3-D movies are here to stay? a)None of the top ten grossing films of all time is a 3-D film. b)One quarter of all screens in the world are 3-D capable. c)no major film director has opted to shoot in 3-D d) the box office for 3-D films has been very poor

B

Which of these best describes how a close-up shot would be used? a) to depict two figures in conversation together b) to show greater detail c) to show the locale of a scene d) to show objects at a number of focal distances

B

Which of these elements of classical cutting did D. W. Griffith help to perfect? a) the long take b) the eyeline math c) deep focus d) dialectical montage

B

A formalist filmmaker would avoid an eye-level shot for which one of the following reasons? a) eye-levels shots are not the norm in film b) eye-level shots tends to distort objects c)eye-level shots are not very dramatic d) eye-level shots are distracting

C

An actor photographed in which of these five basic positions will best convey the character's emotional state? a) profile b) back to camera c) full front d) quarter turn

C

Colorization can destroy the artistry of black-and-white cinematography because______. a) it adversely affects the look of period films b) it emphasizes the exuberance of musicals c) it enhances the dramatic impact of scenes

C

Fast motion is achieved by having events photographed... a) faster than 24 frames per second b) exactly at 24 frames per second c) slower than 24 frames per second d) having the subject move quickly

C

Filmmakers in the early 1900s introduced a more subjective time, one that is determined by the duration of __________. a) the actual event b) the scene c) the shot d) the story being told

C

Filters are often used to do what? a) enhance realistic details like wrinkles b)make an actor look their age c) make an older actor look younger d) add more light to a scene

C

Generally speaking, the closer the shot,________ a) the more elements that can be emphasized b) the smaller the figures in it c) the more intense the emotion d) the more the background is in focus

C

Hitchcock's use of montage style editing in Rear Window is reflected in __________. a) his use of the long take b) his reliance on the actor's performance c) his use of thematically linked shots d) his choice of subject matter

C

If a director wanted us to fear a character in a shot, at what angle would he choose to shoot them? a) bird's-eye b)oblique c) low d) eye-level

C

If you want to compose an intimate shot of a couple kissing in a romantic comedy, which shot type would you use? a) deep-focus shot b)close-up shot c) medium shot d) extreme long shot

C

Realist filmmakers tend to prefer which of the following angles? a) low b)oblique c) eye-level d) bird's-eye

C

Red is a color that's often linked with__________. a) aloofness b) safety c) passion d) serenity

C

The director guides the viewer's eye in an image through the use of __________. a) landscape shots b) subsidiary elements c)dominant contrasts d) visual confusion

C

André Bazin believed that montage superimposes a simplistic ideology over the complexities of actual life. For this reason, he championed which of the following techniques in filmmaking?

Deep-focus photography

In general, cool colors tend to suggest what feeling? a) violence b)stimulation c)aggressiveness d) tranquility

D

The halo effect is the result of placing the light where? a) below the subject b) in direct line with the subject c) off to one side of the subject d) above or behind the subject

D

The three-quarter turn is more intimate than which position in a screen image? a) full-front b)profile c)quarter turn d) back to camera

D

Which one of the following is an example of the realist tendency in film? a) Gold Diggers of 1933 b)A Trip to the Moon c) Hearts and Minds d) The Arrival of a Train

D

Which one of these was a problem with early color film? a) its effect was inappropriate for historical extravaganzas b) it did not work well for films with exotic settings c) it enhanced the sense of beauty in musicals d. it required special consultants to tone down color's tendency to garishness.

D

Wide-angle lenses will_____. a) are good for rack or selective focusing b) make objects moving toward the camera appear to be not moving at all c) compress the distance between foreground and background d) preserve sharp focus from foreground to background

D

Digital technology has what advantage over traditional film?

Digital tech. saves movie producers money

The central portions of the screen generally suggest______.

Dominance

To make their editing transitions smooth, filmmakers generally use __________.

Establishing shots

What is the genre of Double Indemnity?

Film Noir

What type of film is Breathless?

French New Wave

Who was the director of Singin' in the Rain?

Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen

Who discovered most mechanical distortions in cinema?

George Méliès

Bob Fosse directed a half dozen musicals, including the classic, Cabaret. Which of the following differentiated Fosse's style from traditional Hollywood song and dance films of the past?

It incorporated a cinematic choreography.

Who was the director of Breathless?

Jean-Luc Godard

In the earliest years of cinema movies were constructed primarily using __________.

Single takes

Filming at a faster rate than twenty-four fps and projecting the filmstrip at the standard speed will result in __________.

Slow motion

The sharpness or resolution of a digital image is a function of what?

The number of pixels used

Most cinematographers agree that the visual style of a film should be geared toward_______.

The story

Which of the best describes the classical style or paradigm of cinema?

The visual elements are subordinate to presenting characters in action

How are objects and figures affected by being placed near the edges of the frame?

They become insignificant

What is the genre of Rear Window?

Thriller/Suspense

When might a director place an important character completely off-frame?

When a character is associated with mystery

In documentaries, cinematographers are not always able to....

augment the natural lighting of a scene