Shots, Angles, and Lighting

Film Analysis Part One

Journal Entry!!!What are your top three favorite movies of all time? Explain why, out of all of the choices you have in the world, that these three are the best.

Mise-en-ScèneThe aspects about a film that create the setting and set the mood/tone

These aspects include: sets, props, costume & make-up, lighting, cinematography, actors, etc..

Today, we are going to learn about a few of the aspects of the mise-en-scène: shots, angles and lighting!

Example: The Royal Tenenbaums

Commonly Used Frames

Extreme Long Shot

Long Shot

Medium Shot

Close-Up

Extreme Close-up

Over-the-shoulder shot

Extreme Long ShotPeople are for the most part insignificant; more used to show the setting of a film

Generally used to show landscapes: mountains, sea, desert, forest, cityscapes etc..

Panoramic-type view

Examples: Legends of the Fall, The Bourne Identity

Long ShotAble to see characters more prominently in the shot

Wide enough to show a significant amount of the setting/ mise-en-scène

Establish people-scaled settings rather than the settings that extreme long shots focus on: bedroom, alleys, store, etc.

Examples: Knocked Up, 28 Weeks Later

Medium ShotTwo or more characters are usually shown from the waist up

People are the main focus now, not the setting

Used many times to advance dialogue or for dramatic physical interaction

Examples: Titanic, Back to the Future

Close-upCamera shows only from the shoulders up of the characters

Close-ups used to draw attention to a particular character, isolating them from the rest of the mise-en-scène

Used to show emotional response to a particular event in the film

Examples: The Dark Knight, Black Swan

Extreme Close-upFocuses on one aspect of the character’s face (eyes, nose, etc.), or a particular object in the setting.

Used to elevate drama or suspense

Used to draw attention to a particular object in a film as a means of foreshadowing

Examples: Days of Heaven, Kill Bill: Volume One

Over-the-Shoulder ShotShot that is over the shoulder of one of the characters

More emphasis to what is facing the camera rather than the character who has his/her back turned to the camera

Example: Gladiator, Sin City

Name this shot!!!

Name this shot!!!

Name this shot!

Name this shot!

Name this shot!

Name this shot!

Commonly-Used Angles

Bird’s-Eye View

High Angle

Eye-Level Shot

Low Angle

Oblique Angle

Bird’s-Eye ViewAn angle that looks directly down on the setting/ characters

Appears as if the audience is on a plane, looking down

Many times meant to emphasize setting

Examples: Blade Runner, Dogville

High Angle

Meant to create the illusion of the actor being looked down on

Made to make the characters appear vulnerable, weak or inferior

Examples: Matilda, Silence of the Lambs

Eye-Level ShotShot at the level of the eyes of the audience

Neutral, standard

Examples: Moulin Rogue, The Prestige

Low Angle

Meant to create the illusion of the actor being looked up to

Made to make the characters appear powerful, scary or dominant (opposite effect of high angle)

Examples: Sweeny Todd, Halloween

Oblique AngleThe camera is tilted on the horizontal plane

Used to show a distorted point of view of a character, possibly to make things seem more eerie (used a lot on villains)

Examples: Notorious, Paranormal Activity

Name that Angle!

Name that angle!

Name that angle!

Name that angle!

Name that angle!

Commonly-Used Lighting Effects

High Contrast

Backlighting or “Halo Effect”

Cool Colors or Warm Colors

High Contrast

AKA: Low-key lighting

Lighting that creates contrast between light and dark areas of the shot, with deep shadows and little fill light

Seen A LOT in film noir

Examples: The Third Man, Shadow of a Doubt

Backlighting or “Halo Effect”

Illuminating the characters or the setting from the back

Causes a glowing effect that many times looks like a halo

Examples: Sin City, L.A. Confidential

Cool Colors or Warm Colors

Cool colors (blue, green, purple, etc.) are used to create a feeling of sadness, creepiness, calmness, sorrow, coldness

Warm colors (red, orange, yellow, etc.) are used to create a feeling of passion, anger, happiness, warmth

Examples: Vertigo, Do the Right Thing

Name that lighting!

Name that lighting!

Name that lighting!

Now, boys vs. girls

Girls on one side of the room, boys on the other side

What you are playing for: 2 Formative Extra Credit Points Each for the winning team

How this works: One girl and one boy from each team will take turns competing against one another. Once the still is shown, whoever guesses what the still is an example of, gets a point. If either team can guess the movie that the still came from, that’s another point!

You can use your notes to help you!!!

What angle is this?

What shot is this?

What shot is this?

What lighting is this?

What angle is this?

What shot is this?

What lighting is this?

What lighting is this?

What shot is this?

What shot is this?

What angle is this?

Final Question: Worth 5 Points!

In the next still, name the shot, angle, and lighting!Extra Point if you name the film!

Get out your cell phones!

http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/XCjBumMX6Gh1z2n