Motion Industry Practices Final Review

Offscreen Sound

(nonsimultaneous) - derives from a source we do not see a. May be either diegetic or nondiegetic b. Diegetic offscreen sound - effects, music, or vocals that emanate from the world of the story c. Nondiegetic offscreen sound - musical score or narration by someone who is not a character in the story

Onscreen Sound

(simultaneous) - emanates form a source that we can see

Appropriateness:

: does the actor look and act naturally like the character he or she portrays, as expressed in physical appearance, facial expression, speech. Movement, and gesture? If the performance is nonnaturalistic, does the actor look, walk, and talk the way that character might or should? Paradoxically, we expect the actor to behave as if he she or he were not acting but were simply living the illusion of a character we can accept within the context of the movie's narrative. - this appropriateness is called transparency.

Iris

A circular cutout made with a mask that creates a frame within a frame. Also, an adjustable diaphragm that limits the amount of light passing through the lens of a camera.

Eye Line Match Cut

A looks and B looks back

Match Cut:

A matches B in action, subject, graphic content, or eye contact

Boom

A pole like mechanical device for holding the microphone in the air, out of camera range. A boom can be moved in almost any direction.

Fidelity

A sound's faithfulness or unfaithfulness to its source

Wipe:

A transitional device between shots in which shot B wipes across shot A, either vertically or horizontally, to replace it, although (or because) the device reminds us of early eras in filmmaking, directors continue to use it.

Naturalistic Acting:

Actors re-create recognizable or plausible human behavior for the camera; Actors look like the characters should (costume, makeup, hairstyle); Actors think, speak, and move the way people would off screen.

Alienation Effect

Also known as distancing effect. A psychological distance between audience and stage for which, according to German playwright Bertoit Brecht, every aspect of a theatrical production should strive, by limiting the audience's identification with characteristics and events.

Rerecording

Also known as looping or dubbing. The replacing of dialogue, which can be done manually with the actors rereading the lines while watching the footage, synchronizing their lips with it; or, more likely today, through computerized automatic dialogue replacement (ADR). (Dubbing can also refer to the process of replacing foreign language dialogue with English, or the reverse, throughout a film.)

Dailies

Also known as rushes. Usually, synchronized picture/ sound work prints of a day's shooting that can be studied by the director, editor, and other crew members before the next day's shooting begins.

Freeze-Frame:

Also known as stop-frame or hold-frame. A still image within a movie created by repetitive printing in the laboratory of the same frame, so that it can be seen without movement for whatever length of time the filmmaker decides.

180-Degree System:

An imaginary horizontal line between the main objects or characters being photographed to determine where the camera should be placed to preserve screen direction continuity a. The camera must always stay on the same side of the line

Ellipsis

An omission between one thing and another a. The most common manipulation of time through editing b. Economizes the plot, skipping over things that don't need to be present onscreen to be understood

Spatial Relationships

Any single shot limits our sense of space to the framing of that shot

Temporal Relationship

As other shots are placed in close proximity to that original shot, our sense of the overall space in which the characters are moving shifts and expands.

Method Acting:

Based on the theory and practice of Konstantin Stanislavsky, founder of the Moscow Art Theater. a. Actors bring their own past experiences and emotions to the role in an attempt to become a realistic character b. Encourages actors to speak, move, and gesture not in a traditional stage manner but just as they would in their own lives c. Led to new levels of realism and subtlety

Non-Diegetic Sounds

Comes from a source outside a film's world a. Usually has no relevant spatial or temporal dimensions b. Offscreen and recorded during postproduction c. Assumed to be inaudible to the characters onscreen

Film Editor

Decides what shots to use and how to use them a. In preproduction, may suggest composition, blocking, and lighting that will help in the editing itself b. Creative power is put in the service of the director (For every 20 minutes shot, 1 minute is used) c.Editor's Responsibilities

Wholeness & Unity:

Does the challenges inherent in most film productions, has the actor maintained the illusion of seamless character, even if that character is purposely riddled with contradictions? Wholeness and unity are achieved through the actors ability to achieve aesthetic consistency while working with the director, crew, and other cast members; enduring multiple takes; and projecting to the camera rather than to an audience.

Option Contract:

During the classical Hollywood era, an actor's standard seven-year contract was reviewed every six months. If the actor had made progress in being assigned roles and demonstrating box office appeal, the studio picked up the option to employ that actor for the next six months with a raise; if not the studio dropped the option and the actor was out of a job.

Duration

Editing determines the duration of a shot

Improvisation:

Extemporizing or playing through a moment, often involves collaboration between actors and directors in creating stories, characters, and dialogue a. Involve actors and directors creating stories and dialogue that may be incorporated into the script i. An extension of Stanislavsky's emphasis on naturalistic performance

Technology & Acting:

For every advance in the world of special effects, the narrative and the acting that propels it lose some of their importance a. The future of acting is at stake as more and more performances in narrative films are the product of computer-generated imagery (CGI) b. May enrich the illusions that movies create at the expense of film artists themselves, including actors

Dolby System

Invention of Ray Dolby that marked the change from analog to digital movie sound. It reduced noise, enabled a movie's sound to have the same emotional intensity as its pictures, and gave audiences sounds superior to anything they had heard before.

How Filmmaking Affects Acting

Little time for (acting) rehearsals a. Movies are shot out of sequence and fragmented b. The character you are acting with may not be there c. Actors must repeat the same action/line/emotion d. Framing and composition - brings actors together or keeps them apart e. Physical relationship - physical relationships of the actors to each other and to the overall frame can significantly affect how we see and interpret a shot

Ensemble Acting:

Long takes - these takes encourage actors to work together continuously in a single shot

Outtakes

Material that is not used in either the rough cut or the final cut, but its nevertheless cataloged and saved.

Influence of Sound

Monumental conversion with awkward transitions - Allowed more human expression and complex narratives

Diegetic Sounds

Originates from a source within a film's world a. Gives an awareness of the spatial and temporal dimensions of the shot b. Internal or external / onscreen or offscreen / recorded during production or constructed during postproduction

Non-Naturalistic Acting:

Seem excessive, exaggerated, even overacted; May employ strange or outlandish costumes, makeup, hairstyles; Might aim for effects beyond the normal range of human experience; Often intend to distance or estrange audiences from characters; Often found in horror, fantasy, and action films.

Sound Design

Sound should be integral to all three phases of film production (preproduction, production, postproduction) a. A film's sound is potentially as expressive as its images b. Image and sound can create different worlds and are co-expressible c. Film sound has become more innovative and complex, as has the role of sound designers

Early Screen-Acting Styles

Standard seven-year option contracts: a. Movie stars as a product of the studio b. Four classes of performers: supporting players, stock players, featured players, movie

Rhythm

The editor controls a film's rhythm by varying the duration of the shots. a. An editor's choices regarding the rhythm of scenes creates larger patterns of shot duration b. These patterns can be built and broken for dramatic emphasis and impact

Flashback

The interruption of chronological plot time with a shot or series of shots that show what happened earlier in the story - used in almost all movie genres

Flash-Forward:

The interruption of present action by a shot or series of shots that show images from the plot's future.

Editing:

The process (art and technique) by which the editor selects, arranges, and assembles the visual, sound, and special effects to tell a story

Casting:

The process of choosing and hiring actors for a movie a. Casting Society of America (CSA) maintains actors' résumés and photographs b. Budget and expected revenues, Gender, Race, Ethnicity & Age c. Screen tests may be done alone or with other actors

Mixing:

The process of combining different sound tracks onto one composite sound track that is synchronous with the picture.

Coverage:

The use of a variety of shots of a scene - taken from multiple angles, distances, and perspectives - to provide the director and editor a greater choice of editing options during postproduction.

Harmonic Content

The wavelengths that make up a sound.

Screen Tests:

a filming undertaken by an actor to audition for a particular role.

Stunt Persons:

a performer who doubles for another actor in scenes requiring special skills or involving hazardous actions, such as crashing cars, jumping from high places, swimming, or riding (or falling off) horses.

Movie Actors:

a person who portrays a character in a performance.

Walk-Ons:

a role even smaller than a cameo, reserved for a highly recognizable actor or personality.

Persona:

a role or character adopted by an actor

Sound Track

a single element on an individual track that can be combined in a multitrack sound design

Cameos:

a small but significant role often played by a famous actor.

Automatic Dialogue Replacement (ADR):

a sophisticated computer process for synching dialogue rerecorded in postproduction to the moving lips of actors on screen

Blimp:

a soundproofed enclosure somewhat larger than a camera, in which the camera may be mounted to prevent its sounds from reaching the microphone

Fade-Out:

allows a scene to open or close slowly, suggesting a break in time, place, or action - fades out to black field (or color field)

Fade-In

allows a scene to open or close slowly, suggesting a break in time, place, or action - shot fades in from a black color field on a black-and-white film or from a color field on a color film

Major Roles:

also known as main role, featured role, or leading role; A role that is a principal agent in helping move the plot forward. Whether movie stars or newcomers, actors playing major roles appear in many scenes and - ordinarily, but not always - receive screen credit preceding the title.

Minor Roles:

also known as supporting role. A role that helps move the plot forward - and thus may be as important as a major role - but played by an actor who does not appear in as many.

Bit Players

an actor who holds a small speaking part

Stand-Ins:

an actor who looks reasonably like a particular movie star or an actor playing a major role - in height, weight, coloring, and so on -and substitutes for that actor during the tedious process of preparing setups or taking light readings.

Extras:

an actor who usually appears in a nonspeaking or a crowd role and receives no screen credit.

Jump Cut

an instantaneous reverse or advance in action

Master Scene Technique

based on the principle of coverage, meaning that a scene is photographed with a variety of individual shots running from a long shot to a close-up

Shot:

basic building block of film editing, uninterrupted take.

Cutting & Splicing:

before digital editing, a process editors used to cut, glue, and tape film together a. We interpret shots in relation to surrounding shots

Discontinuity Editing:

breaks the rules of continuity editing by seeking transitions that are not smooth, contiguous, or coherent a. There may be mismatches in location; direction or speed of movement; lighting; mise-en-scène; camera angles; and even color

External Sound

comes from a place within the diegesis (the world of the story), and we assume that it is heard by the characters in that world

Crosscutting

cutting together two or more lines of action that occur simultaneously at different locations

Asynchronous Sound:

derives from a source we do not see, it is a sound closely related to the action but not precisely synchronized with it; may anticipate or follow that action

Inherent Thoughtfulness/Emotionality:

does the actor convey the character's thought process or feelings behind the characters actions or reactions? In other words, the character must seem vulnerable to forces in the narrative. They must be able to think about them and, if necessary, change their mind or feelings about them.

Intercutting:

editing of two or more actions that take place at different locations and/or different times but give the impression of one scene

Ambient Sound:

emanates from the ambience of the setting or environment being filmed

Axis of Action

first line in 180 definition) The axis of action shifts as characters move within the frame and as the camera moves

Expressive Coherence:

has the actor used the first two qualities ^^ to create a characterization that holds together? Maintaining expressive coherence enables the actor to create a complex characterization and performance, to express thoughts and reveal emotions of a recognizable individual w/o veering off into mere quirks or distracting details.

Pitch

high or low; defined by frequency

Editor's responsibilities:

i. Spatial relationships between shots ii. Temporal relationships between shots iii. Overall rhythm of the film

Iris-Out:

iris shot that begins with a large circle and contracts to a smaller circle or total blackness

Iris-In:

iris shot that begins with a small circle and expands to a partial or full image

Loudness:

loud/soft; depends on amplitude

POV Editing:

makes us aware of the perspective of a character or group of characters

Frequency:

number of sound waves per second

Internal Sound

occurs whenever we hear what we assume are the thoughts of a character within a scene

24. Non-Simultaneous Sound

off screen sound

Digital Format

offers greater flexibility a. Dialogue is the only type of film sound typically recorded during production

Shot/Reverse Shot:

one of the most common and familiar of all editing patterns, is a technique in which the camera (and editor) switches between shots of different characters, usually in a conversation or other interaction.

Narration

onscreen or offscreen voices; omniscient (3rd person) or from a character

Simultaneous Sound

onscreen sound

Iris Shot

optical wipe effect in which the wipe line is a circle; named after the iris of a camera.

Dialogue:

recorded during production and rerecorded during postproduction) is the speech of the characters a. It is one of the principal means of telling a story b. Dialogue is a function of plot

Continuity Editing:

seeks to achieve logic, smoothness, sequential flow, and the temporal and spatial orientation of the viewers to the images seen onscreen

Dissolve:

shot B gradually appears over shot A and begins to replace it midway through the process

Match-On-Action Cut:

shows us the continuation of a characters or objects motion through space without actually showing us the entire action.

Quality

simple/complex; harmonic content (wavelengths)/ also known as timbre, texture, color. The complexity of a sound, which is defined by its harmonic content. Described as simple, or complex, quality is the characteristic that distinguishes a sound from others of the same pitch and loudness.

Double-System Recording:

sound is recorded on a medium separate from the picture

Typecasting:

the casting of the actors because of their looks or "type" rather than for their acting talent or experience.

Amplitude

the degree of motion of the air within the sound wave

Screen Direction:

the direction of a figure's or object's movement on the screen.

Content Curve

the point at which we have absorbed everything we need to know in a particular shot and are ready to see the next shot

Graphic Match Cut:

the similarity between shots A and B is in the shape and form of what we see.

Split Screen

two images tell multiple stories within the same frame at the same cinematic time

Parallel Editing:

two or more actions happening at the same time in different places

Interior Monologue

we can hear the character's thoughts