Compose a single-spaced, one-page response to the readings assigned each week. The first paragraph of your response should briefly summarize the assigned chapter or chapters. The second paragraph sh

2 F ilm S tu die s F ilm a n d C ult u re S erie s J o hn B elt o n, G enera l E dit o r 3 F IL M S TU DIE S A n In tr o ductio n E d S ik o v C O LU M BIA U NIV ER SIT Y P R ESS N EW Y O RK 4 C O LU M BIA U NIV ER SIT Y P R ESS P ublis h ers S in ce 1 893 N EW Y O RK C HIC HESTE R , W EST S U SSEX c u p.c o lu m bia .e du C opyrig ht © 2 010 E d S ik o v A LL R IG HTS R ESER VED E -IS BN 9 78-0 -2 31-5 1989-2 L ib ra ry o f C ongre ss C ata lo gin g-in -P ublic a tio n D ata S ik o v, E d.

Film s tu die s : a n in tr o ductio n / E d S ik o v.

p. c m . — ( F ilm a nd c u lt u re ) In clu des in dex.

IS BN 9 78-0 -2 31-1 4292-2 ( c lo th : a lk . p aper) — IS BN 9 78-0 -2 31-1 4293-9 ( p bk. : a lk .

p aper) — IS BN 9 78-0 -2 31-5 1989-2 ( e book) 1. M otio n p ic tu re s. I. T it le . II. S erie s.

PN 1994.s 5 35 2 010 2 009033082 A C olu m bia U niv e rs it y P re ss E -b ook.

C UP w ould b e p le ase d to h ear a bout y o ur r e adin g e xp erie nce w it h th is e -b ook a t cu p- e book@ co lu m bia .e du .

R efe re nce s to In te rn et W eb s it e s ( U RLs) w ere a ccu ra te a t th e tim e o f w rit in g. N eit h er th e a uth or n or C olu m bia U niv e rs it y P re ss is r e sp onsib le fo r U RLs th at m ay h ave e xp ir e d o r c h anged s in ce th e m anuscrip t w as p re pare d.

T he a uth or a nd C olu m bia U niv e rs it y P re ss g ra te fu lly a ckn ow le dge p erm is sio n to q uote m ate ria l fr o m J o hn B elt o n, Am eric a n C in em a/A m eric a n C ult u re , 3 d e d. ( N ew Y ork : M cG ra w - H ill, 2 008); c o pyrig ht © 2 008 T he M cG ra w -H ill C om panie s, In c.

5 f o r Adam O rm an a nd th e o th er g re at s tu dents in m y lif e f o r Jo hn B elt o n a nd th e o th er g re at te ach ers in m y lif e 6 C O NTE N TS P R EFA C E: W HAT T H IS B O OK IS — AN D W HAT IT ’S N O T I N TR O DUCTIO N:

REPR ESEN TA TIO N A ND R EA LIT Y O NE MIS E-E N -S C EN E: W IT H IN T H E IM AG E What Is M is e -e n-S ce ne?

The S hot Subje ct- C am era D is ta nce — Why It M atte rs Cam era A ngle Space a nd T im e o n F ilm Com posit io n S TU DY G UID E: A NALY ZIN G T H E S H O T W RIT IN G A BO UT T H E IM AG E T W O MIS E-E N -S C EN E: C AM ER A M OVEM EN T Mobile F ra m in g Typ es o f C am era M ove m ent Edit in g w it h in th e S hot Space a nd M ove m ent 7 STU DY G UID E: A NALY ZIN G C AM ER A M OVEM EN T WRIT IN G A BO UT C AM ER A M OVEM EN T TH REE MIS E-E N -S C EN E: C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y Motio n P ic tu re P hoto gra phy Asp ect R atio : F ro m 1 :3 3 to W id escre en Asp ect R atio : F orm a nd M eanin g Lig htin g Thre e-P oin t L ig htin g Film S to cks: S uper 8 to 7 0m m to V id eo Bla ck, W hit e , G ra y, a nd C olo r A W ord o r T w o a bout L ense s STU DY G UID E: A NALY ZIN G C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y WRIT IN G A BO UT C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y FO UR ED IT IN G : F R O M S H O T T O S H O T Tra nsit io ns Monta ge The K ule sh ov E xp erim ent Contin uit y E dit in g The 1 80° S yste m Shot/R eve rs e -S hot P atte rn STU DY G UID E: A NALY ZIN G S H O T-T O -S H O T E D IT IN G 8 WRIT IN G A BO UT E D IT IN G FIV E SO UND A V ery S hort H is to ry o f F ilm S ound Reco rd in g, R ere co rd in g, E dit in g, a nd M ix in g Analy tic a l C ate gorie s o f F ilm S ound Sound a nd S pace STU DY G UID E: H EA RIN G S O UND, A NALY ZIN G S O UND WRIT IN G A BO UT S O UND A N D S O UNDTR AC KS SIX NARRATIV E: F R O M S C EN E T O S C EN E Narra tiv e S tr u ctu re Sto ry a nd P lo t Sce nes a nd S equence s Tra nsit io ns fr o m S ce ne to S ce ne Chara cte r, D esir e , a nd C onflic t Analy zin g C onflic t STU DY G UID E: A NALY ZIN G S C EN E-T O -S C EN E E D IT IN G WRIT IN G A BO UT N AR RAT IV E S TR UCTU RE SEVEN FR O M S C REEN PLA Y T O F IL M Deeper in to N arra tiv e S tr u ctu re Scre enw rit in g: T he T hre e-A ct S tr u ctu re Segm enta tio n: F orm 9 Segm enta tio n: M eanin g A S egm enta tio n o f In sid e M an STU DY G UID E: S TO RY A NALY SIS A ND S EG M EN TA TIO N WRIT IN G A BO UT W RIT IN G EIG HT FIL M MAKER S Film — A D ir e cto r’s A rt?

Auth ors h ip The A ute ur T heory The P ro duce r’s R ole Team work STU DY G UID E: T H E P R O BLE M O F A TTR IB UTIO N WRIT IN G A BO UT D IR EC TO RS NIN E PER FO RM ANCE Perfo rm ance a s a n E le m ent o f M is e -e n-S ce ne Actin g S ty le s Sta rs a nd C hara cte r A cto rs Typ e a nd S te re oty p e Wom en a s T yp es Actin g in — and o n— Film Public it y : E xtr a -F ilm ic M eanin g STU DY G UID E: A NALY ZIN G A CTIN G 10 WRIT IN G A BO UT A C TIN G TE N GEN RE What Is a G enre ?

Conve ntio ns, R epetit io ns, a nd V aria tio ns A B rie f T axo nom y o f T w o F ilm G enre s— th e W este rn a nd th e Horro r F ilm Genre : T he S em antic /S yn ta ctic A ppro ach Film N oir : A C ase S tu dy F ilm N oir : A B rie f H is to ry F ilm N oir ’s C onve ntio ns STU DY G UID E: G EN RE A NALY SIS F O R T H E IN TR O DUCTO RY S TU DEN T WRIT IN G A BO UT G EN RES ELE VEN SPEC IA L E FFE C TS Beyo nd th e O rd in ary Optic a l a nd M ech anic a l S pecia l E ffe cts Com pute r-G enera te d Im agery ( C G I) STU DY G UID E: E FFE C TS A ND M EA NIN G WRIT IN G A BO UT S PEC IA L E FFE C TS TW ELV E PU TTIN G IT T O GETH ER : A M ODEL 8 - T O 1 0-P A G E PA PER How T his C hapte r W ork s 11 “In tr o ducin g T yle r,” b y R obert P auls o n GLO SSAR Y AC KN O W LE D G M EN TS IN DEX 12 P R EFA C E W HAT T H IS B O OK IS — AN D W HAT IT ’S N O T T his b ook is d esig ned to p ro vid e a b asic in tr o ductio n to th e a ca dem ic d is cip lin e k n ow n a s film s tu die s. It c o ve rs , in th e fir s t e le ve n c h apte rs , t h e fu ndam enta l e le m ents o f fo rm al film a naly sis , fr o m th e e xp re ssiv e c o nte nt o f in div id ual im ages to th e w ays in w hic h im ages lin k w it h o ne a noth er; fr o m th e s tr u ctu re s o f n arra tiv e s cre enpla ys to th e b asic s o f c in em ato gra phy, s p ecia l e ffe cts , a nd s o und. T he b ook’s fin al c h apte r i s a s te p-b y-s te p g uid e to w rit in g a fin al p aper fo r th e k in d o f c o urs e fo r w hic h th is te xtb ook h as b een w rit te n.

Film S tu die s is a p rim er— a p are d-d ow n in tr o ductio n to th e fie ld . It is a im ed at begin ners . It sim plif ie s th in gs, w hic h is to sa y th at th e i n fo rm atio n it c o nta in s is s tr a ig htfo rw ard a nd a im ed a t e ve ry s tu dent w ho is w illin g to le arn it . It’s c o m plic a te d m ate ria l, b ut o nly to a p oin t.

T he g oal h ere is n ot to a sk a nd a nsw er e ve ry q uestio n, c o ve r e ve ry i s su e a nd te rm , a nd p oin t o ut th e e xce ptio ns th at a cco m pany e ve ry r u le . In ste ad, Film S tu die s tr ie s to co ve r th e su bje ct of narra tiv e c in em a a ccu ra te ly b ut b ro adly , p re cis e ly b ut n ot c o m pre hensiv e ly . It is a re la tiv e ly s h ort b ook, n ot a d oors to p o r m ake sh if t d um bbell. It is n ’t m eant to c o ve r a nyth in g m ore th an th e b asic e le m ents o f fo rm al film s tu die s.

This b ook is a bout fe atu re -le ngth n arra tiv e c in em a— movie s th at te ll f ic tio nal s to rie s th at la st fr o m a bout n in ety m in ute s to th re e o r th re e a nd a h alf h ours . It d oes n ot c o ve r d ocu m enta rie s, w hic h a re a bout r e al p eople a nd e ve nts . It’s n ot th at d ocu m enta ry film makin g is n ot w orth s tu dyin g; o n th e c o ntr a ry . It’s ju st th at Film S tu die s is s tr ic tly a n i n tr o ductio n to n arra tiv e cin em a. S im ila rly , th ere is n oth in g in Film S tu die s about ava ntg ard e film s— th ose m otio n pic tu re s th at are r a dic a lly e xp erim enta l a nd n onco m merc ia l in n atu re . F ilm h is to ry is fu ll o f g re at a va nt- g ard e w ork s, b ut th at m ode o f film makin g is n ot w hat 13 th is b ook is a bout.

People who stu dy m ovie s th in k about th em in dif fe re nt and div e rg ent w ays. S ch ola rs have exp lo re d so cio lo gic a l is su es (ra ce , eth nic it y , re lig io n, a nd c la ss a s d epic te d in film s) a nd p sych olo gic a l is su es ( h ow m ovie s e xp re ss o th erw is e h id den id eas a bout g ender a nd se xu alit y , fo r in sta nce , o r h ow a udie nce s re sp ond to co m edie s a s oppose d to h orro r film s), to cit e o nly a fe w o f th e va rio us le nse s th ro ugh w hic h w e c a n v ie w film s. R ese arc h ers c a n d evo te th em se lv e s entir e ly to th e s tu dy o f film h is to ry — th e n uts -a nd-b olt s n am es, d ate s, and id eas o f te ch nolo gic a l a nd a esth etic in nova tio n th at o ccu rre d o n a glo bal le ve l. S im ila rly , th e s tu dy o f in div id ual n atio nal c in em as h as pro vid ed c rit ic a l a udie nce s w it h a b ro ad ra nge o f c in em atic s ty le s to purs u e, p in poin t, a nd e njo y.

Film S tu die s is n ot a bout a ny o f th ese s u bje cts . It is , to re peat, a prim er, n ot a n e xh austiv e e xa m in atio n o f film in te rp re ta tio n, th ough th e book has been exp re ssly desig ned to acco m pany as w id e a va rie ty o f film c o urs e s a s p ossib le .

This b ook c e nte rs o n a sp ects o f film fo rm . Y ou w ill le arn th e c rit ic a l and te ch nic a l la nguage o f th e c in em a a nd th e w ays in w hic h fo rm al devic e s w ork to c re ate e xp re ssiv e m eanin g. H opefu lly , if y o u g o o n to stu dy film fr o m a p sych olo gic a l o r s o cio lo gic a l p ers p ectiv e , o r e xp lo re a p artic u la r n atio nal c in em a, o r ta ke a n u pper-le ve l film c o urs e o f a ny kin d, y o u w ill u se th e k n ow le dge y o u g ain h ere to g o th at m uch d eeper in to th e film s y o u s e e a nd s tu dy. T his b ook s e rv e s a s a fir s t s te p. If th is tu rn s o ut to b e y o ur o nly e xp osu re to film s tu die s, y o u w ill s till b e able to b rin g to b ear w hat y o u le arn h ere to a ny film y o u e ve r s e e in th e fu tu re .

Most film te xtb ooks a re a w ash in tit le s, n am es, a nd d ate s, a nd Film Stu die s is in c e rta in w ays n o d if fe re nt— exce pt in d egre e. In o rd er to illu str a te v a rio us p oin ts w it h e xa m ple s, Film S tu die s d oes re fe r to a num ber o f re al m ovie s th at w ere m ade b y im porta nt film make rs a t sp ecif ic tim es in th e co urs e o f film h is to ry . B ut in m y e xp erie nce , in tr o ducto ry s tu dents , w hen fa ce d w it h th e tit le a nd e ve n th e b rie fe st descrip tio n o f a film th ey h ave n eve r s e en (a nd m ost lik e ly w ill n eve r se e), te nd to tu ne o ut. A s a re su lt , I d ra w a n um ber o f e xa m ple s in Film S tu die s fr o m h yp oth etic a l film s; I w ill a sk y o u to u se y o ur o w n 14 im agin atio n ra th er th an dra w im possib ly on kn ow le dge yo u don’t alr e ady h ave a bout film s y o u h ave n’t s e en. M ore ove r, e ach in div id ual film cla ss has it s ow n scre enin g lis t. In deed, fr o m a pro fe sso r’s pers p ectiv e , o ne o f th e g re at p le asu re s o f te ach in g c in em a s tu die s cla sse s lie s in p ic kin g th e film s to s h ow a nd d is cu ss.

Film S tu die s tr ie s not to g et in th e w ay o f in div id ual p ro fe sso rs ’ ta ste s. In s h ort, th is b ook does n ot c o m e w it h it s o w n p re arra nged lis t o f film s y o u m ust s e e.

Som e film s tu die s te xtb ooks c o nta in h undre ds o f illu str a tio ns— film stills , d ra w in gs, g ra phs, a nd fr a m e e nla rg em ents , m any o f w hic h a re in c o lo r.

Film S tu die s d oes o ffe r illu str a tio ns w hen n ece ssa ry , b ut in ord er to k e ep th e b ook a ffo rd able , th ey a re n ot a p ro m in ent fe atu re .

In fa ct, Film S tu die s tr ie s to b e a s p ra ctic a l a nd u se fu l a s p ossib le in many ways. It aim s fo r th e wid est re aders h ip and is pit c h ed acco rd in gly . It dra w s m ost of it s exa m ple s fr o m Am eric a n film s beca use th ey a re th e film s th at m ost A m eric a n s tu dents h ave s e en in th e past and are lik e ly to se e in th e fu tu re . It is desig ned to acco m pany a w id e sp ectr u m of film co urs e s but is fo cu se d m ost cle arly o n th e ty p e o f m ain str e am “In tr o ductio n to F ilm ” c la ss th at is ta ught in p ra ctic a lly e ve ry c o lle ge a nd u niv e rs it y in th e U nit e d S ta te s and C anada.

I h ope it w ork s fo r y o u.

15 I N TR O DUCTIO N R EPR ESEN TA TIO N A ND R EA LIT Y C onsid er th e w ord REPR ESEN TA TIO N (s e e g lo ssa ry ). W hat d oes it m ean — and w hat te ch nolo gy does it ta ke — to re pre se nt re al people or p hysic a l o bje cts o n film ? T hese a re tw o o f th e b asic q uestio ns in film s tu die s. T he d ic tio nary d efin es th e v e rb to r e pre se nt a s “to s ta nd fo r; t o s ym boliz e ; to in dic a te o r c o m munic a te b y s ig ns o r s ym bols .” T hat’s a ll w ell a nd g ood a s fa r a s it g oes. B ut in th e fir s t o ne h undre d y e ars o f m otio n p ic tu re s, th e s ig ns a nd s ym bols o nscre en w ere a lm ost a lw ays r e al b efo re th ey e nded u p a s s ig ns a nd s ym bols o n m ovie s cre ens.

We ta ke fo r g ra nte d ce rta in th in gs a bout p ain tin g a nd lit e ra tu re , c h ie f a m ong th em th at th e o bje cts a nd p eople d epic te d in p ain t o r d escrib ed in w ord s d o n ot n ece ssa rily h ave a p hysic a l r e alit y . Y ou c a n p ain t a p ic tu re o f a w om an w it h out u sin g a m odel o r e ve n w it h out h avin g a s p ecif ic re al w om an in y o ur m in d. Y ou c a n p ain t la ndsca pes y o u’v e n eve r a ctu ally s e en, a nd in fa ct y o u d on’t h ave to p ain t a ny r e al o bje cts a t a ll. Y our p ain tin g c a n b e e ntir e ly n onre pre se nta tio nal— ju st s p la sh es o f c o lo r o r s tr e aks o f b la ck p ain t. A nd b ear in m in d th at a ll w ork s o f a rt, in a ddit io n to b ein g re pre se nta tio ns, a re a ls o re al th in gs t h em se lv e s. The wom an Leonard o da Vin ci pain te d again st a m yste rio us la ndsca pe m ay o r m ay n ot h ave e xis te d, b ut th e p ain tin g c o m monly k n ow n a s th e Mona L is a is c e rta in ly a r e al, m ate ria l o bje ct.

In lit e ra tu re , to o, w rit e rs describ e cit ie s th at neve r exis te d and p eople w ho n eve r liv e d. B ut o n film — at le ast n arra tiv e film s lik e th e o nes y o u’r e g oin g to le arn a bout in th is b ook— dir e cto rs h ave to h ave s o m eth in g re al to p hoto gra ph. N ow , w it h th e in cre ase d u se o f d ig it a l a nd c o m pute r-g enera te d im agery ( CG I ), o f c o urs e , th in gs a re c h angin g i n th at re gard , b ut th at’s a s u bje ct fo r a la te r c h apte r. F or th e tim e b ein g, c o nsid er th e fa ct th at in c la ssic a l w orld c in em a, in a ll b ut a fe w v e ry ra re c a se s, d ir e cto rs h ad to h ave s o m eth in g re al to p hoto gra ph 16 wit h a film ca m era . A film make r co uld co nce iv a bly ta ke a str ip o f CELLU LO ID —th e p la stic m ate ria l th at film is m ade o f— and d ra w o n it o r pain t it o r d ig s cra tc h es in to it s s u rfa ce ; e xp erim enta l film make rs h ave been kn ow n to use ce llu lo id as a kin d of ca nva s fo r nonre pre se nta tio nal a rt. B ut o th erw is e a film make r m ust p hoto gra ph re al p eople a nd th in gs. T hey m ay b e a cto rs w earin g m ake up a nd co stu m es, b ut th ey’r e s till re al h um an b ein gs. T hese a cto rs m ay b e walk in g th ro ugh co nstr u cte d se ts , but th ese se ts have a physic a l re alit y ; w alls th at lo ok lik e sto ne m ay a ctu ally b e m ade o f p ain te d wood, b ut th ey a re s till r e al, m ate ria l w alls .

Eve n a nim ate d film s a re p hoto gra phed: a rtis ts p ain t a se rie s o f AN IM ATIO N C ELS , and th en each ce l is photo gra phed. T he physic a l re alit y o f The H unch back o f N otr e D am e —th e W alt D is n ey m ovie , n ot th e V ic to r H ugo n ove l— is n ot th e c h ara cte r o f Q uasim odo, n or is it a n acto r p la yin g Q uasim odo, b ut ra th er th e e la bora te , c o lo rfu l, s ty liz e d dra w in gs th at h ad to b e p hoto gra phed, p ro ce sse d, a nd ru n th ro ugh a pro je cto r to m ake th em m ove . T hose d ra w in gs h ave a p hysic a l r e alit y , and D is n ey a nim ato rs a re m aste rs a t m akin g th em s e em d oubly re al th ro ugh s h adin g, la ye rin g, a nd o th er m eans o f c re atin g a s e nse o f depth .

Let’s appro ach th is is su e anoth er w ay. If P ic a sso , W arh ol, and Rem bra ndt e ach p ain te d a p ortr a it o f th e s a m e p ers o n, m ost e duca te d people w ould im media te ly u nders ta nd th at th e re su lt w ould b e th re e ve ry dif fe re nt- lo okin g pain tin gs. W e re co gniz e th at a pain tin g’s meanin g is at le ast partly a m atte r of it s FO RM —th e sh ape and str u ctu re o f th e a rt w ork . E ve n if th re e p ain te rs fr o m th e s a m e g enera l cu lt u re in th e s a m e g enera l p erio d p ain te d th e s a m e p ers o n— sa y, Rem bra ndt, H als , a nd V erm eer— we w ould s e e th re e d if fe re nt v ie w s of th at p ers o n— th re e v e ry d if fe re nt p ain tin gs.

The s a m e h old s tr u e in lit e ra tu re . If, s a y, E rn est H em in gw ay, J a m es Jo yce , a nd C huck P ala hniu k a ll d escrib ed th e s a m e p ers o n, w e w ould end u p re adin g th re e d iv e rs e p ie ce s o f p ro se . T hey’d a ll b e w rit te n in Englis h , a nd th ey’d b e d escrib in g th e s a m e in div id ual, b ut th ey s im ply would n’t re ad th e s a m e. S om e d eta ils m ay b e s im ila r, b ut e ach w rit e r would describ e th ose deta ils dif fe re ntly usin g dif fe re nt w ord s and se nte nce s tr u ctu re s. A nd b eca use th e fo rm w ould b e d if fe re nt in e ach 17 ca se , w e w ould ta ke a w ay fr o m th e w rit in g th re e d if fe re nt im pre ssio ns —th re e w ays o f th in kin g a nd e xp re ssin g a nd fe elin g.

But p hoto gra phy, p artic u la rly m otio n p ic tu re p hoto gra phy, a ppears on th e s u rfa ce to b e o f a d if fe re nt o rd er. Y ou ta ke a r e al th in g, a nd y o u photo gra ph it . Y ou ta ke a n e ve nt a nd yo u film it . A nd u nle ss yo u monke y w it h th e c a m era o r th e film p ro ce ssin g a nd d o a ll k in ds o f th in gs to d elib era te ly c a ll a tte ntio n to y o ur p re se nce a s th e film make r, if y o u a nd y o ur fr ie nd a nd h er fr ie nd a nd h er fr ie nd’s fr ie nd a ll film ed th e s a m e e ve nt, y o u w ould a ll c o m e u p w it h s im ila r lo okin g film s— or so y o u m ig ht a ssu m e.

This b ook w ill s h ow y o u h ow a nd w hy e ach o f y o ur film s w ould b e dif fe re nt a nd w hy th ose d if fe re nce s m atte r to th e a rt fo rm . Y ou w ill le arn to s e e th e w ays in w hic h film make rs e xp re ss id eas a nd e m otio ns wit h th eir c a m era s.

For e xa m ple , le t’s sa y th at th re e a sp ir in g d ir e cto rs — all fr o m th e Univ e rs it y o f P it ts b urg h— decid e to film w hat th ey e ach c o nsid er to b e a c h ara cte ris tic s ce ne a t a m ajo r le ague b ase ball g am e. T he th re e film stu dents head ove r to PN C Park w it h noth in g but sm all vid eo ca m era s, a nd th ey d on’t le ave th eir s e ats in th e r ig ht fie ld g ra ndsta nd.

Eth an is p la nnin g to u se h is fo ota ge in th e ro m antic co m edy h e’s makin g b ase d o n a g uy h e k n ow s w ho is o bse sse d w it h o ne o f th e Pir a te s’ in fie ld ers . E th an’s fr ie nd, S hin L ae, is m akin g a d ra m a a bout a lit tle boy w it h autis m w ho lo ve s base ball. A nd S hin Lae’s fr ie nd, Sanja na, h asn ’t y e t fig ure d o ut w hat h er s to ry w ill b e le t a lo ne h ow s h e will deve lo p it , but sh e alr e ady kn ow s th at sh e w ants to in clu de ra ndom s h ots ta ke n a t a b ase ball g am e.

When th e P ir a te s’ L uis C ru z h it s a fo ul b all in to th e s ta nds, th e th re e film make rs e ach h ave th eir c a m era s r u nnin g. It’s th e s a m e m om ent in tim e, th e s a m e fo ul b all, b ut th e th re e y o ung d ir e cto rs s e e th e e ve nt fr o m th re e dif fe re nt p ers p ectiv e s. E th an w ants to sh ow th e w hole actio n fr o m b egin nin g to e nd in a c o ntin uous s h ot, s o ju st b efo re th e win dup h e fr a m es th e p it c h er, b atte r, a nd c a tc h er in th e s a m e im age so he ca n sh ow th e ball m ove fr o m m ound to pla te to air and, eve ntu ally , th anks to h is a bilit y to m ove th e c a m era h e’s h old in g, th e ball fin ds it s w ay in to a fa n’s b are fis t. H is b uilt - in m ic ro phone p ic ks u p th e s h arp c ra ck o f th e b at c o nnectin g w it h th e b all, th e c ro w d’s in it ia l 18 ro ar o f e xp ecta tio n, th e c o lle ctiv e g ro an o f d is a ppoin tm ent w hen th e ball c ro sse s th e fo ul lin e, a nd fin ally a q uic k b urs t o f d is ta nt a ppla use at th e fa n’s c a tc h .

Shin Lae, on th e oth er han d, ca re s m ore about th e bois te ro us re actio n o f a g ro up o f C ub S co uts n earb y th an s h e d oes a bout th e partic u la r b atte r o r th e e ve nts o f th e g am e it s e lf . W hen s h e n otic e s th at th e p it c h er is a bout to w in d u p, s h e p oin ts h er c a m era n ot a t eit h er th e p it c h er o r th e b atte r b ut in ste ad a t th e s co uts , w ho a re a fe w ro w s above her. S he sim ply re co rd s th e boys’ sh outs and fa cia l exp re ssio ns, w hic h ra nge fr o m e agern ess to g le e to d is a ppoin tm ent and fin ally to e nvy a s th e fa n s u cce ssfu lly n abs th e b all. S anja na, meanw hile , h as n ot b een p ayin g a tte ntio n to th e b ase ball g am e a t a ll.

(S he h ate s s p orts a nd h as o nly a gre ed to c o m e a lo ng in o rd er to film th in gs.) W hile E th an a nd S hin L ae g et in cre asin gly w ra pped u p b y th e gam e, S anja na h as b eco m e fa scin ate d b y a g ro up o f s h ir tle ss, h eavily ta tto oed, a nd in cre asin gly d ru nk b ik e rs to h er rig ht. S he h as a lr e ady film ed a se cu rit y g uard te llin g th em to q uie t d ow n, b ut so m eth in g about th is g ro up o f u rb an o utla w s a ppeals to h er— partic u la rly th e fa tte st, h air ie st o ne. S he a im s h er c a m era o n h im a nd h im a lo ne a nd ju st film s h im s it tin g th ere , y e llin g, d rin kin g, s w earin g, a nd— eve ntu ally —ra is in g h is h air y p aw a nd n abbin g L uis C ru z’s fo ul b all to th e c h eers of th e c ro w d. S he tilt s h er c a m era u p s lig htly to k e ep h is h ead fr o m le avin g th e im age, and tilt s it back dow n w hen th e cro w d sto ps ch eerin g a nd th e b ik e r ta ke s h is s e at a gain .

Sam e g am e + s a m e s ce ne + s a m e a ctio n = th re e d if fe re nt film s.

Why? B eca use e ach film make r h as m ade a s e rie s o f c h oic e s, a nd each o f th ose c h oic e s h as a rtis tic , e xp re ssiv e c o nse quence s.

This is o ne o f th e k e y a esth etic is su es o f c in em a s tu die s— le arn in g to s e e th at a n a ppare ntly u nm edia te d e ve nt is in fa ct a m edia te d w ork of a rt. A t fir s t g la nce , w e te nd n ot to s e e th e m edia tio n in vo lv e d in th e cin em a; w e d on’t s e e th e art . A ll w e s e e— at fir s t— is a re pre se nta tio n of th e physic a l re alit y of w hat has been photo gra phed. A nd in a str a nge p ara dox, c la ssic a l A m eric a n film makin g is s a ddle d w it h th e notio n th at it ’s p ure ly a rtif ic ia l. T he lig htin g te nds to b e id ealiz e d, th e acto rs ’ fa ce s a re id ealiz e d b y m ake up, th e s e ttin gs a re s o m etim es id ealiz e d. . . . J u st to d escrib e s o m eth in g a s “a H olly w ood v is io n o f 19 lif e ” is to s a y th at it ’s p hony. T he o bje cts a nd p eople in H olly w ood film s a re th us to o r e al a nd to o fa ke , a ll a t th e s a m e tim e. H ow c a n w e make s e nse o f th is ?

20 C HAPTE R 1 M IS E-E N -S C EN E: W IT H IN T H E IM AG E W HAT IS M IS E-E N -S C EN E?

F ilm s tu die s d eals w it h th e p ro ble m s o f re alit y a nd re pre se nta tio n b y m akin g a n in it ia l a ssu m ptio n a nd p ro ce edin g lo gic a lly fr o m it . T his a ssu m ptio n is th at a ll re pre se nta tio ns h ave m eanin g. T he te rm MIS E- E N -S C EN E ( als o m is e -e n-s cè ne) describ es th e prim ary fe atu re of c in em atic re pre se nta tio n. Mis e -e n-s ce ne is th e fir s t ste p in u nders ta ndin g h ow film s p ro duce and re fle ct m eanin g. It’s a te rm t a ke n fr o m th e F re nch , a nd it m eans th at w hic h h as b een p ut in to th e s ce ne o r put o nsta ge . E ve ry th in g— lit e ra lly e ve ry th in g— in th e film ed i m age is d escrib ed b y th e te rm mis e -e n-s ce ne : it ’s th e e xp re ssiv e t o ta lit y o f w hat y o u s e e in a s in gle film im age. M is e -e n-s ce ne c o nsis ts o f all of th e ele m ents pla ce d in fr o nt of th e ca m era to be p hoto gra phed: s e ttin gs, p ro ps, lig htin g, c o stu m es, m ake up, a nd fig ure b ehavio r ( m eanin g a cto rs , th eir g estu re s, a nd th eir fa cia l e xp re ssio ns) .

I n a ddit io n, mis e -e n-s ce ne in clu des th e c a m era ’ s a ctio ns and a ngle s a nd th e c in em ato gra phy , w hic h s im ply m eans p hoto gra phy fo r m otio n p ic tu re s. S in ce eve ry th in g in th e film ed im age co m es under th e h eadin g o f m is e -e n-s ce ne, th e te rm ’s d efin it io n is a m outh fu l, s o a s h orte r d efin it io n is th is :

Mis e -e n-s ce ne is th e to ta lit y o f e xp re ssiv e c o nte nt w it h in th e im age . F ilm s tu die s a ssu m es th at e ve ry th in g w it h in t h e im age h as e xp re ssiv e m eanin gs. B y a naly zin g m is e -e n-s ce ne, w e b egin to s e e w hat th ose m eanin gs m ig ht b e.

The te rm mis e -e n-s ce ne w as fir s t u se d in th e th eate r to d escrib e th e s ta gin g o f a n a ctio n. A th eate r d ir e cto r ta ke s a scrip t, w rit te n a nd p rin te d o n th e p age, a nd m ake s e ach s ce ne c o m e a liv e o n a s ta ge w it h a p artic u la r s e t o f a cto rs , a u niq ue s e t d esig n, a c e rta in s ty le o f l ig htin g, a nd so o n. T he scrip t sa ys th at a sce ne is se t in , sa y, a 21 su burb an liv in g ro om . O ka y, y o u’r e th e d ir e cto r, a nd y o ur ta sk is to cre ate a s u burb an liv in g r o om s ce ne o n s ta ge a nd m ake it w ork n ot a s an in te rc h angeable , in dis tin guis h able s u burb an liv in g r o om , b ut a s th e sp ecif ic liv in g ro om of th e partic u la r su burb an ch ara cte rs th e pla yw rig ht h as d escrib ed o n th e p age— ch ara cte rs y o u a re tr y in g to brin g to lif e o nsta ge. T he s a m e h old s tr u e in th e c in em a: th e d ir e cto r sta rts fr o m s cra tc h a nd s ta ges th e s ce ne fo r th e c a m era , a nd e ve ry ele m ent o f th e r e su lt in g im age h as e xp re ssiv e m eanin g. E ve n w hen a film is s h ot o n LO CATIO N —at a p re exis tin g, r e al p la ce — th e d ir e cto r h as ch ose n th at lo ca tio n fo r it s e xp re ssiv e v a lu e.

It’s im porta nt to n ote th at m is e -e n-s ce ne does n ot h ave a nyth in g to do w it h w heth er a g iv e n s ce ne is “re alis tic ” o r n ot. A s in th e th eate r, film s tu die s d oesn ’t ju dge m is e -e n-s ce ne b y h ow c lo se ly it m im ic s th e world w e liv e in . J u st a s a th eate r d ir e cto r m ig ht w ant to c re ate a th oro ughly w arp ed s u burb an liv in g ro om s e t w it h o ve rs iz e d fu rn it u re and d is to rte d w alls a nd b iz a rre ly s h aped d oors in o rd er to e xp re ss h er fe elin g th at th e c h ara cte rs w ho liv e in th is h ouse a re c ra zy, s o a film dir e cto r c re ate s m is e -e n-s ce ne a cco rd in g to th e im pre ssio n h e o r s h e wis h es to cre ate . S om etim es m is e -e n-s ce ne is re la tiv e ly re alis tic lo okin g, a nd s o m etim es it is n ’t .

Here ’s th e fir s t s h ot o f a h yp oth etic a l film w e’r e m akin g: w e s e e a man s ta ndin g u p a gain st a w all. T he w all is m ade o f . . . w hat? W ood?

Concre te ? B ric ks? L et’s s a y b ric ks. S om e o f th e b ric ks a re c h ip ped.

The w all is . . . w hat c o lo r? W hit e ? N o, le t’s s a y it ’s r e d. It’s a n ew w all.

No, it ’s a n o ld w all, a nd s o m e g ra ffit i h as b een p ain te d o n it , b ut e ve n th e g ra ffit i is o ld a nd fa ded. Is it in doors o r o utd oors ? D ay o r n ig ht?

We’ll g o w it h o utd oors in th e a fte rn oon. T he m an is . . . w hat? S hort?

No, h e’s ta ll. A nd h e’s w earin g . . . w hat? A u nif o rm — a b lu e u nif o rm .

Wit h a b adge.

Bear in m in d, n oth in g h as h appened y e t in o ur film — we ju st h ave a polic e m an sta ndin g again st a w all. But th e m ore m is e -e n-s ce ne deta ils w e a dd, th e m ore v is u al in fo rm atio n w e g iv e to o ur a udie nce , and th e m ore p re cis e o ur a udie nce ’s e m otio nal r e sp onse w ill b e to th e im age w e a re sh ow in g th em . B ut a ls o b ear in m in d th e d if fe re nce betw een w rit te n p ro se a nd film ed im age. A s re aders , y o u h ave ju st been p re se nte d w it h a ll o f th ese d eta ils in v e rb al fo rm , s o n ece ssa rily 22 yo u’v e g otte n th e in fo rm atio n s e quentia lly . W it h a film im age, w e s e em to s e e it a ll a t o nce . N oth in g is is o la te d th e w ay th in gs a re in th is writ te n d escrip tio n. W it h film , w e ta ke in a ll th e vis u al in fo rm atio n quic kly , and w e d o s o w it h out b ein g a w are th at w e ’ re ta kin g it in . A s it happens, s tu die s o f h um an p erc e ptio n h ave p ro ve n th at w e a ctu ally ta ke in v is u al in fo rm atio n s e quentia lly a s w ell, th ough a g re at d eal more s p eedily th an w e d o w rit te n in fo rm atio n. M ore ove r, film make rs fin d w ays o f d ir e ctin g o ur g aze to sp ecif ic a re as in th e im age b y manip ula tin g co m posit io ns, co lo rs , are as of fo cu s, and so on. B y exa m in in g e ach o f th ese a sp ects o f c in em a, film s tu die s a tte m pts to wake u s u p to w hat’s in fr o nt o f u s o nscre en— to m ake u s a ll m ore co nscio us o f w hat w e’r e s e ein g a nd w hy.

To co ntin ue wit h our exa m ple of m is e -e n-s ce ne: th e m an is handso m e in a B ra d P it t s o rt o f w ay. H e’s a w hit e g uy. In h is la te th ir tie s. B ut h e’s g ot a b la ck e ye . A nd th ere ’s a tr a ce o f b lo od o n h is lo w er lip .

So w e’v e g ot a c o p a nd a w all a nd s o m e s ta ge b lo od, a nd w e film him w it h a m otio n p ic tu re o r v id eo c a m era . N oth in g h as h appened b y ch ance here ; w e, th e film make rs , have m ade a se rie s of artis tic decis io ns e ve n b efo re w e h ave tu rn ed o n th e ca m era . E ve n if w e happen to h ave ju st s tu m ble d u pon th is g ood-lo okin g c o p w it h a b la ck eye s ta ndin g a gain st a b ric k w all a nd b le edin g fr o m th e m outh , it ’s o ur decis io n n ot o nly to film h im b ut to u se th at fo ota ge in o ur film . If w e decid e to u se th e fo ota ge, w e h ave m ade a n e xp re ssiv e s ta te m ent wit h it . A nd w e h ave d one s o w it h o nly o ne s h ot th at’s m ayb e s ix se co nds lo ng. T his is th e p ow er o f m is e -e n-s ce ne.

What’s our next sh ot? A body ly in g nearb y? A n em pty str e et?

Anoth er c o p? A g ia nt s lim y a lie n? A ll o f th ese th in gs a re p ossib le , a nd all o f th em a re g oin g to g iv e o ur a udie nce e ve n m ore in fo rm atio n about th e fir s t s h ot. S ubse quent s h ots s ta nd in re la tio n to th e fir s t sh ot, a nd b y th e tim e y o u g et to th e te nth o r tw entie th o r h undre dth sh ot, th e sh eer am ount of exp re ssiv e in fo rm atio n— th e co nte nt of in div id ual sh ots , and th e re la tio nsh ip s fr o m sh ot to sh ot— is sta ggerin g. B ut w e’r e g ettin g a head o f o urs e lv e s; th is is th e s u bje ct o f ch apte r 4 .

23 TH E S H O T By th e w ay: w hat is a SH O T ?

A s h ot is th e b asic e le m ent o f film makin g —a p ie ce o f film r u n th ro ugh th e c a m era , e xp ose d, a nd d eve lo ped; a n unin te rru pte d ru n o f th e c a m era ; o r a n u nin te rru pte d im age o n film .

That’s it : y o u tu rn th e c a m era o n, y o u le t it r u n, y o u tu rn it o ff, a nd th e re su lt — pro vid ed th at y o u h ave re m em bere d to p ut film in th e c a m era —is a s h ot. It’s a n u nedit e d s h ot, b ut it ’s a s h ot n oneth ele ss. It’s th e basic b uild in g b lo ck o f th e m ovie s.

Desp it e th e use of th e w ord sce ne in th e te rm mis e -e n-s ce ne , mis e en-s ce ne d escrib es th e c o nte nt n ot o nly o f a s e quence o f s h ots but o f a n in div id ual s h ot. A s h ot is a u nit o f le ngth o r d ura tio n— a min im al u nit o f d ra m atic m ate ria l; a sce ne is a lo nger u nit usu ally co nsis tin g o f s e ve ra l s h ots o r m ore .

Eve n at th e basic le ve l of a sin gle sh ot, m is e -e n-s ce ne yie ld s meanin g. T he fir s t s h ot o f a n im porta nt c h ara cte r is it s e lf im porta nt in th is re gard . H ere ’s a n e xa m ple : Im agin e th at y o u a re g oin g to film a murd er m ovie , a nd y o u n eed to in tr o duce y o ur a udie nce to a w om an who is g oin g to b e k ille d la te r o n in th e film . W hat d oes th e fir s t s h ot o f th is w om an lo ok lik e ? W hat does sh e lo ok lik e ? B eca use of th e exp re ssiv e im porta nce o f m is e -e n-s ce ne, e ve ry d eta il m atte rs . E ve ry deta il is a s ta te m ent o f m eanin g, w heth er y o u w ant it to b e o r n ot.

(T hese a re p re cis e ly th e q uestio ns A lf r e d H it c h co ck fa ce d w hen h e made h is g ro undbre akin g 1 960 film , Psych o .) Is sh e p re tty ? What does th at m ean ? W hat is s h e w earin g?

What d oes th at m ean ? If s h e’s re ally a ttr a ctiv e a nd w earin g s o m eth in g s kim py— well, a re y o u s a yin g sh e d ese rv e s to b e k ille d? W hat if s h e’s a ctu ally q uit e u gly — what a re yo u s a yin g th ere ? D o y o u w ant y o ur a udie nce to lik e h er o r d is lik e her? It’s y o ur c h oic e — yo u’r e th e d ir e cto r. S o w hat s ig nals a re y o u goin g to s e nd to y o ur a udie nce to g et th at e m otio n a cro ss? L et’s s a y yo u’r e g oin g to p ut s o m eth in g o n th e w all b ehin d h er. A nd it ’s . . . a b ig stu ffe d b ir d . N o, it ’s . . . a p air o f T exa s lo nghorn s. N o, it ’s . . . a b ro ke n mir ro r. N o, it ’s a c ru cif ix . O r m ayb e it ’s ju st a b ig e m pty w all. E ach o f th ese p ro ps a dds m eanin g to th e s h ot, a s d oes th e a bse nce o f p ro ps and d eco ra tiv e e le m ents .

24 This is w hy m is e -e n-s ce ne is im porta nt: it te lls u s s o m eth in g a bove and b eyo nd th e e ve nt it s e lf . A gain :

mis e -e n-s ce ne is th e to ta lit y o f exp re ssiv e co nte nt wit h in th e im age . And eve ry deta il has a meanin gfu l c o nse quence .

Let’s s a y y o u’r e film in g a s h ot o utd oors a nd a b ir d flie s in to th e ca m era ’s fie ld o f v is io n a nd o ut th e o th er s id e. S uddenly , a c o m ple te ly accid enta l e ve nt is in y o ur m ovie . D o y o u k e ep it ? D o y o u u se th at sh ot, o r d o y o u film a noth er o ne? Y our film is g oin g to b e s lig htly dif fe re nt w hic h eve r TA KE y o u c h oose . ( A ta ke is a s in gle r e co rd in g o f a sh ot. If th e d ir e cto r d oesn ’t lik e s o m eth in g th at o ccu rs in T ake 1 , s h e may ru n th e s h ot a gain b y c a llin g o ut “T ake 2 ”— and a gain a nd a gain —“T ake 2 2”— “T ake 3 5”— “T ake 5 9”— until s h e is r e ady to c a ll “ p rin t!” ) If y o u’r e m akin g th e k in d o f film in w hic h e ve ry th in g is fo rm ally s tr ic t and co ntr o lle d, th en yo u pro bably don’t w ant th e bir d . If how eve r yo u’r e tr y in g to c a ptu re a k in d o f ra ndom a nd u npre dic ta ble q ualit y , th en y o ur lit tle b ir d a ccid ent is p erfe ct. W hen film s tu dents d is cu ss yo ur w ork , th ey’ll b e ta lk in g a bout th e b ir d — th e s ig nif ic a nce o f r a ndom eve nts o f n atu re , p erh aps e ve n th e s ym bolis m o f flig ht. T hat b ir d is now p art o f y o ur film ’s m is e -e n-s ce ne, a nd it ’s e xp re ssin g s o m eth in g —wheth er y o u w ant it to o r n ot. W heth er c rit ic s o r a udie nce s a t th e mult ip le x s p ecif ic a lly n otic e it o r n ot, it ’ s th ere . It’s a p art o f th e a rt work . It’s in th e film , a nd th ere fo re it h as e xp re ssiv e m eanin g.

Here ’s an exa m ple fr o m a re al film ca lle d Gentle m en Pre fe r Blo ndes , a 1 953 m usic a l c o m edy s ta rrin g M arily n M onro e a nd J a ne Russe ll. T here ’s a s ce ne in w hic h J a ne R usse ll p erfo rm s a m usic a l num ber w it h a c re w o f a th le te s o n th e A m eric a n O ly m pic te am . T he num ber w as s u ppose d to e nd w it h a c o uple o f th e m uscle b oys d iv in g ove r J a ne R usse ll’s s h ould ers a s s h e s it s b y th e s id e o f a s w im min g pool. A s it tu rn ed o ut, h ow eve r, o ne o f th e a cto rs a ccid enta lly k ic ke d her in th e h ead a s h e a tte m pte d to d iv e o ve r h er in to th e p ool. W it h th e ca m era still ru nnin g, th e film ’s gla m oro us sta r got kn ocke d vio le ntly in to th e w ate r and ca m e up lo okin g lik e th e pro ve rb ia l dro w ned ra t. It w as o bvio usly a n a ccid ent. B ut th e d ir e cto r, H ow ard Haw ks, d ecid ed to u se th at ta ke in ste ad o f a ny o f th e a ccid ent- fr e e re ta ke s h e a nd h is ch ore ogra pher su bse quently film ed. S om eth in g about th e accid ent appeale d to H aw ks’s se nsib ilit y : it exp re sse d 25 so m eth in g v is u ally a bout s e x a nd s e x r o le s a nd g ender a nd a nim osit y and th e fa ilu re o f ro m ance . T here ’s a s u dden a nd s h ockin g s h if t in mis e -e n-s ce ne, a s J a ne R usse ll g oes fr o m b ein g th e c la ssic a lly m ade- up H olly w ood m ovie sta r in a ca re fu lly co m pose d sh ot to bein g dunke d in a p ool a nd c o m in g u p s p utte rin g fo r a ir , h er h air a ll m atte d dow n, a nd im pro vis in g th e e nd o f th e s o ng. H aw ks lik e d th at v e rs io n bette r; it s a id w hat h e w ante d to s a y, e ve n th ough it h appened e ntir e ly by c h ance . T he s h ot, in it ia lly a m is ta ke , to ok o n e xp re ssiv e m eanin g th ro ugh it s in clu sio n in th e film .

SU BJE C T-C AM ER A D IS TA NCE— WHY IT M ATTE R S At th e e nd o f B illy W ild er’s Sunse t B oule va rd (1 950), a n a gin g s ta r tu rn s to h er d ir e cto r a nd u tte rs th e fa m ous lin e, “I’m re ady fo r m y clo se -u p.” B ut w hat e xa ctly is a c lo se -u p? O r a lo ng s h ot? A nd w hy d o th ese te rm s m atte r?

One w ay d ir e cto rs h ave o f p ro vid in g e xp re ssiv e s h adin g to e ach sh ot th ey film is to v a ry th e d is ta nce b etw een th e c a m era a nd th e su bje ct b ein g film ed. E ve ry ru le h as it s e xce ptio ns, o f c o urs e , b ut in genera l, th e c lo se r th e c a m era is to th e s u bje ct, th e m ore e m otio nal weig ht th e s u bje ct g ain s. (T o b e m ore p re cis e , it ’s re ally a m atte r o f how c lo se th e c a m era ’s le ns m ake s th e s u bje ct s e em to b e; th is is beca use a c a m era ’s le ns m ay b rin g th e s u bje ct c lo se r o ptic a lly e ve n when th e ca m era is p hysic a lly fa r a w ay fr o m th e su bje ct. S ee th e glo ssa ry ’s d efin it io n o f TE LE PH O TO L E N S fo r c la rif ic a tio n.) If w e s e e a n em pty liv in g ro om a nd h ear th e s o und o f a te le phone rin gin g o n th e so undtr a ck b ut w e c a n’t im media te ly fin d th e te le phone o nscre en, th e ca ll m ay s e em r e la tiv e ly u nim porta nt. B ut if th e d ir e cto r q uic kly c u ts to a CLO SE-U P o f th e te le phone, s u ddenly th e p hone c a ll a ssu m es g re at sig nif ic a nce . B eca use th e d ir e cto r h as m ove d th e c a m era c lo se to it , th e phone— once lo st in th e liv in g ro om se t— beco m es not only is o la te d w it h in th e r o om b ut e norm ous o n th e s cre en.

A c lo se -u p is a s h ot th at is o la te s a n o bje ct in th e im age, m akin g it appear re la tiv e ly la rg e . A c lo se -u p o f a h um an b ein g is g enera lly o f th at p ers o n’s fa ce . A n extr e m e c lo se-u p m ig ht b e o f th e p ers o n’s 26 eye s— or m outh — or nose — or any ele m ent is o la te d at ve ry clo se ra nge in th e im age.

Oth er su bje ct- c a m era -d is ta nce te rm s are als o sim ple and se lf - exp la nato ry . A MED IU M SH O T appears to be ta ke n fr o m a m ediu m dis ta nce ; in te rm s of th e hum an body, it ’s fr o m th e w ais t up. A TH REEQ UAR TE R S H O T ta ke s in th e hum an body fr o m ju st belo w th e kn ees; a FU LL S H O T is o f th e e ntir e h um an b ody. A LO NG S H O T a ppears to b e ta ke n fr o m a lo ng d is ta nce . R em em ber: le nse s a re a ble to cre ate th e illu sio n of dis ta nce or clo se ness. A dir e cto r co uld co nce iv a bly u se a te le photo le ns o n a c a m era th at is ra th er d is ta nt fr o m th e su bje ct and still cre ate a clo se -u p. The actu al physic a l posit io n o f th e c a m era a t th e tim e o f th e film in g is n ’t th e is su e— it ’s what th e im age lo oks lik e o nscre en th at m atte rs . T he c rit ic a l ta sk is not to tr y to d ete rm in e w here th e c a m era w as a ctu ally p la ce d d urin g film in g, o r w heth er a te le photo le ns w as u se d to c re ate th e s h ot, b ut ra th er to b egin to n otic e th e exp re ssiv e re su lt s of su bje ct- c a m era dis ta nce o nscre en.

There a re g ra datio ns. Y ou ca n h ave med iu m c lo se-u ps , ta ke n fr o m th e c h est u p; extr e m e lo ng s h ots , w hic h s h ow th e o bje ct o r pers o n at a va st dis ta nce su rro unded by a gre at am ount of th e su rro undin g s p ace . If, a t th e e nd o f a w este rn , th e fin al s h ot o f th e film is a n e xtr e m e lo ng s h ot o f a n o utla w rid in g o ff a lo ne in to th e d ese rt, th e d ir e cto r m ay b e u sin g th e s h ot to c o nve y th e c h ara cte r’s is o la tio n fr o m c iv iliz a tio n, h is s o lit u de; w e w ould s e e h im in th e fa r d is ta nce su rro unded b y m ile s o f e m pty d ese rt. Im agin e h ow d if fe re nt w e w ould fe el a bout th is c h ara cte r if , in ste ad o f s e ein g h im in e xtr e m e lo ng s h ot, we s a w h is w eath er-b eate n fa ce in c lo se -u p a s th e fin al im age o f th e film . W e w ould b e e m otio nally a s w ell a s p hysic a lly c lo se r to h im a t th at m om ent b eca use w e w ould b e a ble to re ad in to h is fa ce th e em otio ns h e w as fe elin g. H is s u btle st e xp re ssio ns— a s lig htly ra is e d eye bro w , a te nsin g o f th e m outh — would fill th e s cre en.

27 FIG URE 1 .1 E xtr e m e c lo se -u p: a s in gle e ye d om in ate s th e im age.

FIG URE 1 .2 C lo se -u p: th e c h ara cte r’s fa ce fills m ost o f th e s cre en.

FIG URE 1 .3 M ediu m s h ot: th e c h ara cte r a ppears fr o m th e w ais t u p.

FIG URE 1 .4 L ong s h ot: b eca use th e c a m era h as m ove d b ack e ve n fu rth er, th e c h ara cte r n ow appears in a c o m ple te s p atia l c o nte xt.

28 FIG URE 1 .5 E xtr e m e lo ng s h ot: th e c a m era is n ow v e ry fa r a w ay fr o m th e c h ara cte r, th ere by dw arfin g h im o nscre en. W hat a re th e e m otio nally e xp re ssiv e q ualit ie s o f e ach o f th ese illu str a tio ns ( fig s. 1 .1 th ro ugh 1 .5 )?

Here ’s a fin al o bse rv a tio n o n s u bje ct- c a m era d is ta nce : E ach film esta blis h es it s o w n s h ot s ca le , ju st a s e ach film make r e sta blis h es h is or her ow n sty le . W here as O rs o n W elle s in Cit iz e n K ane (1 941) em plo ys a n e xtr e m e c lo se -u p o f K ane’s lip s a s h e s a ys th e k e y w ord , “R ose bud,” H ow ard H aw ks w ould n eve r p ush h is c a m era s o c lo se to a ch ara cte r’s m outh a nd is o la te it in th at w ay. T he D anis h d ir e cto r C arl Theodor D re ye r sh ot h is m aste rp ie ce The P assio n o f Jo an o f A rc (1 928) a lm ost e ntir e ly in c lo se ups; a s a re su lt , w hat w ould b e a lo ng sh ot fo r D re ye r m ig ht b e a m ediu m s h ot fo r J o hn F ord o r B illy W ild er.

If w e begin w it h th e id ea th at th e hum an body is genera lly th e measu re fo r su bje ct- c a m era dis ta nce , th en th e co nce pt’s re la tiv it y beco m es c le ar: a c lo se -u p is o nly a c lo se -u p in re la tio n to s o m eth in g els e —th e w hole b ody, fo r e xa m ple . T he s a m e h old s tr u e fo r o bje cts and la ndsca pe e le m ents . In s h ort, w e m ust a ppre cia te th e fa ct th at su bje ct- c a m era d is ta nce s a re re la tiv e b oth w it h in in div id ual film s— th e se quence in Cit iz e n K ane th at in clu des th e e xtr e m e c lo se -u p o f K ane utte rin g “R ose bud” b egin s w it h a n e qually e xtr e m e lo ng s h ot o f h is mansio n— and fr o m film to film : D re ye r’s c lo se -u ps d if fe r in s ca le fr o m th ose u se d b y F ord o r W ild er.

CAM ER A A NG LE In addit io n to su bje ct- c a m era dis ta nce , dir e cto rs em plo y dif fe re nt ca m era a ngle s to p ro vid e e xp re ssiv e c o nte nt to th e s u bje cts th ey film .

When d ir e cto rs s im ply w ant to film a p ers o n o r ro om o r la ndsca pe 29 fr o m a n a ngle th at s e em s u nobtr u siv e a nd n orm al ( w hate ve r th e w ord norm al a ctu ally m eans), th ey p la ce th e ca m era a t th e le ve l o f a n adult ’s e ye s, w hic h is to s a y fiv e o r s ix fe et o ff th e g ro und w hen th e ch ara cte rs are sta ndin g, lo w er w hen th ey are se ate d. This , not su rp ris in gly , is c a lle d a n EYE-L E VEL S H O T .

When th e d ir e cto r s h oots h is o r h er s u bje cts fr o m b elo w , th e re su lt is a LO W -A N G LE S H O T ; w it h a lo w -a ngle s h ot, th e c a m era is in e ffe ct lo okin g u p a t th e s u bje ct. A nd w hen h e o r s h e s h oots th e s u bje ct fr o m above , th e r e su lt is a HIG H-A N G LE S H O T ; th e c a m era is lo okin g d ow n. A n extr e m e o ve rh ead s h ot, ta ke n s e em in gly fr o m th e s ky o r c e ilin g a nd lo okin g s tr a ig ht d ow n o n th e s u bje ct, is k n ow n a s a BIR D’S -E YE V IE W .

The te rm s clo se -u p , lo w -a ngle s h ot , extr e m e lo ng s h ot , a nd o th ers assu m e th at th e c a m era is fa cin g th e s u bje ct s q uare ly , a nd fo r th e most p art s h ots in fe atu re film s a re in deed ta ke n s tr a ig ht- o n. B ut a ca m era ca n tilt la te ra lly on it s axis , to o. W hen th e ca m era tilt s horiz o nta lly a nd/o r v e rtic a lly it ’s c a lle d a DUTC H T IL T o r a can te d a n gle .

FIG URE 1 .6 E ye -le ve l s h ot: th e c a m era p la ce s u s a t th e c h ara cte r’s h eig ht— we’r e e quals .

30 FIG URE 1 .7 L ow -a ngle s h ot: w e’r e lo okin g u p a t h er; lo w -a ngle s h ots s o m etim es a ggra ndiz e th e s h ot’s s u bje ct.

FIG URE 1 .8 H ig h-a ngle s h ot: w e’r e lo okin g d ow n a t h er n ow ; th is ty p e o f s h ot m ay s u ggest a ce rta in s u perio rit y o ve r a c h ara cte r.

FIG URE 1 .9 B ir d ’s -e ye s h ot: th is s h ot is ta ke n fr o m th e h ig hest p ossib le a ngle . W hat m ig ht b e th e e xp re ssiv e c o nse quence s o f th is s h ot?

31 FIG URE 1 .1 0 D utc h tilt ( o r c a nte d a ngle ) s h ot: th e c a m era is n ot o n it s n orm al h oriz o nta l o r ve rtic a l a xe s, a nd th e r e su lt in g im age is o ff- k ilt e r; D utc h tilt s a re s o m etim es u se d to s u ggest a ch ara cte r’s u nbala nce d m enta l s ta te .

Of e ve ry th in g y o u re ad in th is b ook, th e o pposit e a ls o m ay b e tr u e at tim es, sin ce e ve ry a tte m pt to d efin e a p henom enon n ece ssa rily re duce s it b y ig norin g s o m e o f th e q uir k s th at m ake film s c o ntin ually in te re stin g. T here ’s a fin e lin e to tr e ad b etw een p ro vid in g a u se fu l basic defin it io n th at yo u want and need and ale rtin g yo u to co m plic a tio ns o r o utr ig ht c o ntr a dic tio ns th at q ualif y th e d efin it io n. T his is c e rta in ly tr u e w it h a ny d is cu ssio n o f th e e xp re ssiv e te ndencie s o f lo w -a ngle and hig h-a ngle sh ots . T yp ic a lly , dir e cto rs use lo w -a ngle sh ots to a ggra ndiz e th eir s u bje cts . A fte r a ll, “to lo ok u p to s o m eone” means th at y o u a dm ir e th at p ers o n. A nd h ig h-a ngle s h ots , b eca use th ey lo ok d ow n o n th e s u bje ct, a re o fte n u se d to s u btly c rit ic iz e th e s u bje ct b y m akin g h im o r h er s e em s lig htly dim in is h ed, o r to d is ta nce a n a udie nce e m otio nally fr o m th e c h ara cte r.

At tim es, a c a m era a ngle c a n in fa ct d is to rt th e o bje ct o nscre en. B y fo re sh orte nin g a n o bje ct, fo r e xa m ple , a v e ry h ig h a ngle s h ot d oes make a n o bje ct o r p ers o n a ppear s m alle r, w hile a v e ry lo w a ngle c a n do th e o pposit e . B ut th ese a re ju st b ro ad te ndencie s, a nd a s a lw ays, th e e ffe ct o f a p artic u la r ca m era a ngle d epends o n th e co nte xt in whic h it a ppears . F ilm s ch ola rs c a n p oin t to h undre ds o f e xa m ple s in cla ssic a l cin em a in w hic h a hig h- or lo w -a ngle sh ot pro duce s an unexp ecte d e ffe ct. In Cit iz e n K ane , fo r in sta nce , W elle s c h oose s to film h is c e ntr a l c h ara cte r in a lo w -a ngle s h ot a t p re cis e ly th e m om ent of his gre ate st hum ilia tio n, and a te ch nic a l devic e th at is ofte n em plo ye d to s ig nal a dm ir a tio n a ch ie ve s e xa ctly th e o pposit e e ffe ct b y 32 makin g K ane lo ok clu m sy and to o big fo r his su rro undin gs, and th ere fo re m ore p it ia ble a nd p ath etic .

FIG URE 1 .1 1 T w o-s h ot: th e d efin it io n is s e lf - e xp la nato ry , b ut n ote th e e qualiz in g q ualit y o f th is ty p e o f s h ot; th ese tw o c h ara cte rs h ave th e s a m e v is u al w eig ht in a s in gle s h ot.

FIG URE 1 .1 2 T hre e-s h ot: th e tw o-s h ot’s s o cia lly b ala nce d q ualit y e xp ands to in clu de a th ir d pers o n, b ut n ote th e g re ate r s u bje ct- c a m era d is ta nce th at g oes a lo ng w it h it in th is e xa m ple .

33 FIG URE 1 .1 3 M aste r s h ot: th e w hole s e t— in th is c a se , a d in in g r o om — and a ll th e c h ara cte rs are ta ke n in b y th is ty p e o f s h ot.

Shots c a n a ls o b e d efin ed b y th e n um ber o f p eople in th e im age.

Were a dir e cto r to ca ll fo r a clo se -u p of his pro ta gonis t, th e assu m ptio n w ould b e th at a s in gle fa ce w ould d om in ate th e s cre en.

When a d ir e cto r s e ts u p a TW O-S H O T , h e o r s h e c re ate s a s h ot in w hic h tw o p eople a ppear, g enera lly in m ediu m d is ta nce o r c lo se r, th ough o f co urs e th ere c a n b e tw o-s h ots o f a c o uple o r o th er ty p e o f p air w alk in g th at w ould re ve al m ore o f th eir lo w er b odie s. T he p oin t is th at tw o- sh ots a re d om in ate d s p atia lly b y tw o p eople , m akin g th em id eal fo r co nve rs a tio ns.

A TH REE-S H O T , o f c o urs e , c o nta in s th re e p eople — not th re e p eople su rro unded b y a c ro w d, b ut th re e p eople w ho a re fr a m ed in s u ch a way a s to c o nstit u te a d is tin ct g ro up.

Fin ally , a MASTE R S H O T is a s h ot ta ke n fr o m a lo ng d is ta nce th at in clu des a s m uch o f th e s e t o r lo ca tio n a s p ossib le a s w ell a ll th e ch ara cte rs in th e s ce ne. F or e xa m ple , a s ce ne s e t in a d in in g ro om co uld b e film ed in m aste r s h ot if th e c a m era w as p la ce d s o th at it ca ptu re d th e w hole d in in g ta ble , a t le ast tw o o f th e fo ur w alls , a ll o f th e 34 people s it tin g a ro und th e ta ble , a nd m ayb e th e b otto m o f a c h andelie r hangin g o ve r th e ta ble . T he d ir e cto r c o uld ru n th e e ntir e s ce ne fr o m begin nin g to e nd a nd, la te r, in te rc u t c lo se -u ps, tw o-s h ots , a nd th re e- sh ots fo r v is u al v a ria tio n a nd d ra m atic e m phasis .

SPA CE A ND T IM E O N F IL M Lik e dance and th eate r, film is an art of both sp ace and tim e.

Chore ogra phers m ove th eir dance rs aro und a sta ge fo r a giv e n am ount o f tim e, a nd s o d o th eate r d ir e cto rs w it h th eir a cto rs . B ut a dance ca n ru n slo w er or fa ste r so m e nig hts , esp ecia lly if it is n ’t co nnecte d to a p ie ce o f m usic . A nd if th e a cto rs in a p la y s kip s o m e o f th eir lin es o r e ve n ta lk fa ste r th an u su al in a g iv e n p erfo rm ance , th e pla y c a n r u n s h orte r s o m e n ig hts th an o th ers .

But a 1 10-m in ute film w ill b e a 1 10-m in ute film e ve ry tim e it is scre ened, w heth er on th e silv e r scre en at a m ult ip le x or on a sta ndard sp eed D VD p la ye r in y o ur liv in g r o om . T his is b eca use s o und film r u ns a t a s ta ndard 24 f r a m es p er s eco nd , a nd it d oes s o not o nly th ro ugh th e ca m era w hen e ach sh ot is in div id ually film ed b ut a ls o th ro ugh th e p ro je cto r w hen it is p la ye d in a th eate r . In th e e arly d ays o f cin em a, c a m era o pera to rs c ra nke d th e film th ro ugh th eir c a m era s b y hand a t a s p eed h ove rin g a s c lo se a s p ossib le b etw een 1 6 a nd 1 8 fr a m es p er s e co nd. If c a m era o pera to rs w ante d to s p eed a ctio ns u p onscre en, th ey w ould underc ra nk, or cra nk slo w er: fe w er fr a m es would b e film ed p er s e co nd, s o w hen th at fo ota ge w as ru n th ro ugh a sta ndard p ro je cto r a t a s ta ndard s p eed, th e a ctio n w ould a ppear to sp eed u p. If th ey w ante d to c re ate a s lo w -m otio n e ffe ct, th ey w ould d o th e opposit e : th ey w ould OVER CRAN K , or cra nk fa ste r, ca usin g th e pro je cto r to s lo w th e m ove m ent d ow n w hen th e s h ot w as p ro je cte d. In sh ort, underc ra nkin g pro duce s fa st motio n, while ove rc ra nkin g pro duce s s lo w m otio n.

The in tr o ductio n of SYN CHRO NIZ E D SO UND FIL M —ch ara cte rs bein g se en a nd h eard sp eakin g a t th e sa m e tim e o nscre en— in th e la te 1920s m eant th at th e IM AG E T R AC KS a nd th e SO UNDTR AC KS h ad to b e both re co rd ed and pro je cte d at th e sa m e sp eed so as to avo id 35 dis to rtio n. 2 4 fr a m es p er se co nd w as th e sta ndard sp eed th at th e in dustr y c h ose . Y ou’ll le arn m ore a bout s o und te ch nolo gy in ch apte r 5 .

And a lt h ough vid eota pe— unlik e film ’s ce llu lo id — is n ot d iv id ed in to in div id ual fr a m es, th e s a m e p rin cip le a pplie s: v id eo’s e le ctr o m agnetic ta pe is re co rd ed a t th e s a m e s p eed a t w hic h it is tr a nsm it te d a nd scre ened. A 6 0-m in ute v id eo w ill a lw ays r u n 6 0 m in ute s— no m ore , n o le ss.

There is a p hilo so phic a l p oin t to film ’s te ch nic a l a ppre hensio n o f tim e. U nlik e a ny o th er a rt fo rm , m otio n p ic tu re s c a ptu re a s e em in gly exa ct s e nse o f r e al tim e p assin g. A s th e g re at H olly w ood a cto r J a m es Ste w art o nce d escrib ed it , m otio n p ic tu re s a re lik e “p ie ce s o f tim e.” Then a gain , a d is tin ctio n m ust b e m ade b etw een re al tim e , th e k in d measu re d by clo cks, and re el tim e —th e pie ce s of tim e th at, fo r exa m ple , S pik e L ee m anip ula te d b y e dit in g to c re ate Malc o lm X , a film th at co ve rs th e ce ntr a l eve nts of a 39-y e ar-o ld m an’s lif e in 202 min ute s.

One fa m ilia r c o m plic a tio n, o f c o urs e , is th at w hen film s a re s h ow n on te le vis io n th ey a re o fte n LE XIC O NNED to fit th em in to a tim e s lo t a nd sq ueeze in m ore c o m merc ia ls .

Lexic o nnin g in vo lv e s s p eedin g u p th e sta ndard 2 4 fr a m es p er s e co nd b y a m atte r o f h undre dth s o f a fr a m e per s e co nd, w hic h m ay s h orte n th e film a s m uch b y a s 6 o r 7 p erc e nt of it s to ta l ru nnin g tim e. Als o note th e fa m ilia r warn in g th at acco m panie s m ovie s on TV : “V ie w er dis cre tio n is advis e d. The fo llo w in g film h as b een m odif ie d fr o m it s o rig in al v e rs io n. It h as b een fo rm atte d to fit th is s cre en a nd e dit e d to ru n in th e tim e s lo t a llo tte d and fo r c o nte nt.” P eople w ho lo ve film s h ate th is P ro cru ste an p ro ce ss.

(P ro cru ste s w as a m yth ic a l k in g w ho h ad a b ed to w hic h h e s tr a pped and to rtu re d h is v ic tim s. T hose w ho w ere to o s h ort fo r th e b ed w ere str e tc h ed to fit it , a nd th ose to o ta ll h ad th eir h eads a nd le gs c h opped off.) W ould a n a rt g alle ry tr im th e to p, b otto m , a nd s id es o f a p ain tin g ju st s o it w ould fit in to a p re exis tin g fr a m e?

36 FIG URE 1 .1 4 A s tr ip o f c e llu lo id , d iv id ed b y fr a m es, w it h th e s o undtr a ck r u nnin g v e rtic a lly dow n th e le ft a lo ngsid e th e im age fr a m es.

CO M PO SIT IO N One co nfu sin g a sp ect o f film stu die s te rm in olo gy is th at th e w ord FR AM E h as tw o d is tin ct m eanin gs. T he fir s t, d escrib ed a bove , r e fe rs to each in div id ual r e cta ngle o n w hic h a s in gle im age is p hoto gra phed a s th e s tr ip o f c e llu lo id r u ns th ro ugh a p ro je cto r. T hat’s w hat w e’r e ta lk in g about w hen w e s a y th at film is re co rd ed a nd p ro je cte d a t 2 4 fr a m es per se co nd: 24 of th ose lit tle re cta ngle s are fir s t fille d wit h photo gra phic im ages w hen th ey a re e xp ose d to lig ht th ro ugh a le ns, and th en th ese fr a m es a re p ro je cte d a t th e s a m e s p eed o nto a s cre en.

But th e w ord fr a m e als o describ es th e bord ers of th e im age onscre en— th e re cta ngula r fr a m e of dark n ess on th e scre en th at defin es th e e dge o f th e im age th e w ay a p ic tu re fr a m e d efin es a fr a m ed p ain tin g o r p hoto gra ph. S om etim es, in th eate rs , th e s cre en’s fr a m e w ill be fu rth er defin ed by cu rta in s or oth er m askin g. Y our te le vis io n s e t’s fr a m e is th e m eta l o r p la stic e dge th at s u rro unds th e gla ss s cre en. In fa ct, y o u c a n m ake th re equarte rs o f a fr a m e a s y o u s it re adin g th is b ook s im ply b y h old in g y o ur h ands in fr o nt o f y o u, p alm s out, a nd b rin gin g y o ur th um bs to geth er. T he to p o f th is h andm ade fr a m e is o pen, b ut y o u c a n g et a g ood s e nse o f w hy th e fr a m e is a n im porta nt a rtis tic c o nce pt in th e c in em a ju st b y lo okin g a ro und y o ur ro om a nd fr a m in g v a rio us o bje cts o r e ve n y o urs e lf in a m ir ro r.

37 Note th at y o ur lit e ra lly h andm ade fr a m e is m ore o r le ss a s q uare if yo u ke ep yo ur th um bs to geth er. N ow cre ate a w id er re cta ngle b y to uch in g y o ur rig ht fo re fin ger to y o ur le ft th um b a nd v ic e v e rs a . S ee how th is fr a m in g c h anges th e w ay th e ro om lo oks. A nd b e a w are o f th e s u bje ctc a m era d is ta nce a nd c a m era a ngle o f th e im agin ary s h ots yo u c re ate . A sk y o urs e lf w hy c e rta in “s h ots ” lo ok b ette r th an o th ers .

Do y o u fin d th at y o u h ave a ta ste fo r o bliq ue a ngle c lo se -u ps, fo r exa m ple , o r d o y o u s e e th e w orld m ore a t e ye le ve l?

The pre cis e arra ngem ents of obje cts and ch ara cte rs w it h in th e fr a m e— th e p ic tu re -fr a m e k in d o f fr a m e— is c a lle d CO M PO SIT IO N . E ach tim e yo u move d yo ur handm ade fr a m e, yo u cre ate d a new co m posit io n, e ve n if y o u d id n’t m ove a ny o bje cts a ro und o n y o ur d esk or a sk y o ur r o om mate to m ove fu rth er a w ay.

As in p ain tin g, c o m posit io n is a c ru cia l e le m ent o f film makin g. In fa ct, c o m posit io n is a p ain te rly te rm . ( F ew if a ny a rt c rit ic s e ve r r e fe r to th e m is e -e n-s ce ne o f a p ain tin g.) C om posit io n m eans th e re la tio nsh ip of lin es, vo lu m es, m asse s, and sh apes at a sin gle in sta nt in a re pre se nta tio n. C om posit io n is re la tiv e ly s ta tic , th ough fe w e le m ents re m ain tr u ly m otio nle ss in a m otio n p ic tu re ; m is e -e n-s ce ne is m ore dyn am ic . M is e en-s ce ne is th e re la tio n o f e ve ry th in g in th e sh ot to eve ry th in g els e in th e sh ot ove r th e co urs e of th e sh ot , th ough so m etim es film crit ic s ca n e xte nd th eir d is cu ssio n o f co m posit io nal co nsis te ncy to in div id ual s p ace s r e pre se nte d in th e film a nd e ve n o ve r th e c o urs e o f th e e ntir e film . O ne c o uld w rit e a g re at p aper o n a ny o f th ese div e rs e m is e -e n-s ce nes, payin g partic u la r atte ntio n to th eir co m posit io nal e le m ents : th e co urty a rd in H it c h co ck’s Rear W in dow (1 954), th e bar’s base m ent in D avid F in ch er’s Fig ht C lu b (1 999), Ric k’s C afé in M ic h ael C urtiz ’s Casa bla nca ( 1 942), o r S al’s P iz ze ria in Spik e L ee’s Do th e R ig ht T hin g ( 1 989).

Lik e a pain te r, a dir e cto r’s partic u la r arra ngem ent of sh apes, masse s, ve cto rs , ch ara cte rs ’ bodie s, te xtu re s, lig htin g, and so on wit h in each film im age is one of th e co rn ers to nes of his or her cin em atic s ty le . T hin k a gain o f th e b ir d th at fle w in to th e h yp oth etic a l sh ot d escrib ed a bove . T hat e xa m ple w as n ot o nly a n in sta nce o f meanin g bein g pro duce d unin te ntio nally ; it was an in sta nce of co m posit io nal c h ange a s w ell. H ere ’s a re la te d e xa m ple : If a d ir e cto r 38 had ta ke n se ve ra l h ours to se t u p a la ndsca pe sh ot w it h a n e ye to w ard a s tr ic t, s ta tic c o m posit io n— a w este rn b utte o n th e le ft s e en a t su nse t w it h a flo ck o f sh eep sta ndin g m ore o r le ss still a t clo se r dis ta nce o n th e r ig ht, a nd a r a nch h and o n a h ors e in n ear d is ta nce a t more o r le ss p re cis e ly th e c e nte r o f th e im age— and s u ddenly o ne o f th e s h eep b olt e d a w ay fr o m th e h erd a nd w ent ru nnin g a cro ss th e ca m era ’s fie ld o f v is io n, th at d ir e cto r m ay in sis t o n a RETA KE w it h th e erra nt s h eep s a fe ly p ut a w ay in a fa ra w ay p en. W hy? B eca use h e co nsid ere d h is c o m posit io n r u in ed. T hen a gain , a noth er d ir e cto r m ig ht use th e ta ke w it h th e ru nnin g sh eep beca use sh e m ig ht se e it s su dden, ra pid , la te ra l m ove m ent a cro ss th e s cre en a s a b enefic ia l if accid enta l a ddit io n to h er c o m posit io n.

Addin g to th e p ro ble m s o f c in em atic c o m posit io n is th e fa ct th at motio n p ic tu re s a re (c le arly ) a ll a bout motio n , s o to a c e rta in e xte nt alm ost e ve ry c o m posit io n is flu id : p eople m ove , th e w in d b lo w s th in gs aro und, c a rs s p eed b y, a nd th e c a m era it s e lf m ay m ove . M ore ove r, a s yo u w ill le arn in ch apte r 4 , s h ots a re c o nnecte d to o th er s h ots in a pro ce ss c a lle d ED IT IN G , a nd th e c o m posit io n o f o ne s h ot o ught to h ave so m eth in g to d o n ot o nly w it h th e s h ot th at fo llo w s it b ut w it h th e s h ot th at p re ce des it .

One fin al co nce pt in th is in tr o ducto ry ch apte r: th e sh ape o f th e im age. C once iv a bly , m ovie s c o uld b e ro und, c o uld n’t th ey? In deed, Thom as E dis o n’s fir s t film s were ro und. O bvio usly film s a re n’t ro und anym ore .

1 T hey ta ke th e fo rm o f re cta ngle s o f v a rio us w id th s. T he te rm ASPEC T ra tio d escrib es th e p re cis e re la tio n o f th e w id th o f th e re cta ngula r im age to it s heig ht. His to ric a lly , asp ect ra tio s are pro ble m atic . T he s ile nt a sp ect r a tio w as a ctu ally 1 .3 3:1 , a s lig htly w id e re cta ngle , th e w id th o f th e im age b ein g o ne a nd o ne th ir d th e s iz e o f it s h eig ht. M akin g m atte rs m ore c o nfu sin g, th e film in dustr y s ta ndard —th e s o -c a lle d AC AD EM Y R ATIO (n am ed a fte r th e A ca dem y o f M otio n Pic tu re A rts a nd S cie nce s, th e g ro up th at g iv e s th e O sca rs , a nd th at in stit u te d th e s ta ndard ra tio in 1 932)— is o fte n re fe rre d to a s b ein g 1.3 3:1 , b ut in a ctu al fa ct th e A ca dem y ra tio is 1 .3 7:1 — a v e ry s lig htly wid er r e cta ngle th an th at o f s ile nt film s.

All H olly w ood film s afte r 1932 w ere m ade w it h th e sta ndard 39 Aca dem y a sp ect r a tio o f 1 .3 7:1 — th at is , u ntil th e 1 950s, w hen v a rio us wid escre en te ch nolo gie s w ere d eve lo ped a s a w ay o f c o m petin g w it h te le vis io n. B ut a gain , th at’s th e s u bje ct o f a la te r c h apte r.

STU DY G UID E:

A N ALY ZIN G T H E S H O T You w ill le arn th ro ugh th e c o urs e o f re adin g th is b ook th at film is a c o m plic a te d a rt fo rm w it h m any te ch nic a l a nd e xp re ssiv e a sp ects , a nd o ne o f th e k e y p ro ble m s in analy zin g m otio n p ic tu re s is th at th at th eir im ages a re in fa ct in m otio n. S o to s im plif y th in gs h ere a t th e b egin nin g o f th e c o urs e , tr y th e fo llo w in g e xe rc is e :

Get a v id eota pe o r D VD o f a fe atu re film fr o m a ny p erio d in film h is to ry . In fa ct, if possib le , g et o ne yo u’v e a lr e ady se en a nd e njo ye d. F ast fo rw ard to a ny p oin t yo u ch oose , a nd th en fr e eze -fr a m e th e im age.

You a re n ow lo okin g a t a s in gle fr a m e o f a s in gle s h ot. W hat d o y o u n otic e a bout it s mis e -e n-s ce ne? P ro perly s p eakin g, s in ce th is is a s ta tic im age, a s in gle fr a m e, y o u a re bein g a ske d to n otic e e le m ents o f it s c o m posit io n ra th er th an th e to ta lit y o f e xp re ssiv e co nte nt in a n e ntir e s h ot. R em em ber w hat m is e -e n-s ce ne m eans:

all o f th e e le m ents pla ce d in fr o nt o f th e c a m era to b e p hoto gra phed: s e ttin gs, p ro ps, lig htin g, c o stu m es, make up, and fig ure behavio r (m eanin g acto rs , th eir gestu re s, and th eir fa cia l exp re ssio ns) . A nd c o m posit io n:

th e r e la tio nsh ip o f lin es, v o lu m es, m asse s, a nd s h apes at a s in gle in sta nt . C om posit io n is r e la tiv e ly s ta tic ; m is e -e n-s ce ne is d yn am ic .

Your a ssig nm ent is to n otic e th e v a rio us c o m posit io nal e le m ents in th e im age. W rit e th em d ow n in th e fo rm o f a lis t, a nd b e a s d escrip tiv e a s p ossib le . (In ste ad o f s a yin g sim ply “ J u lia R oberts ,” fo r in sta nce , d escrib e in d eta il w hat J u lia R oberts lo oks lik e — th e co lo r o f h er h air , th e c o lo r a nd s ty le o f h er c o stu m e, a nd s o o n.) D escrib e th e ro om o r th e la ndsca pe in te rm s o f it s c o lo rs . H ow w ell lit is th e ro om o r o utd oors s p ace ? Is it day, n ig ht, d usk, o r d aw n? W hat k in d o f fu rn it u re is in th e ro om , o r w hat la ndsca pe ele m ents a re in th e im age?

Is th e s h ot ta ke n a t e ye le ve l o r lo w a ngle ? Is it a c lo se -u p o r a lo ng s h ot? Is th ere anyth in g y o u n otic e a bout th e c o m posit io n?

Put a ll o f y o ur o bse rv a tio ns in to w ord s, a nd b e a s c le ar a s p ossib le .

Here is an e xa m ple , d ra w n fr o m Fig ht C lu b (D avid F in ch er, 1999— Chapte r 9, min ute 2 1:5 4):

Clo se -u p, e ye -le ve l Man, a bout 3 0 y e ars o ld , b la ndly h andso m e Dark h air Top o f g ra y s u it ja cke t Whit e c o lla r o f d re ss s h ir t Man is c e nte re d o n th e s cre en Top p art o f h ead c u t o ut o f im age Air p la ne in te rio r Blu e s e at w it h w hit e h eadre st Man in fo cu s; b ackg ro und o ut o f fo cu s Blu e c u rta in s c e nte r-le ft o f im age in b ackg ro und 40 Brig ht c u rv e d w in dow s o n r ig ht in b ackg ro und FIG URE 1 .1 5 T he u nnam ed n arra to r ( E dw ard N orto n) o f Fig ht C lu b ( 1 999) ( fr a m e enla rg em ent) .

Asp ect r a tio — wid e r e cta ngle Man in r o w b ehin d, o ut o f fo cu s— no o th er p eople Lig ht o n fo re head a nd n ose o f m an in c lo se -u p Eye s in s h adow Dark c ir c le s u nder e ye s He is s ta rin g s tr a ig ht a head WRIT IN G A BO UT T H E IM AG E The fir s t s te p in w rit in g a bout film is to tr a nsla te th e c o nte nt o f film im ages in to w ord s usin g th e n ew te ch nic a l v o ca bula ry y o u a re le arn in g. S o y o ur fir s t w rit in g a ssig nm ent is a s im ple o ne: ta ke th e d eta ile d d escrip tio n o f th e s h ot y o u c re ate d a bove a nd tu rn it in to a c o here nt p ara gra ph. D on’t w orry a bout fo rm in g a th esis s ta te m ent o r m akin g a ny s o rt of a rg um ent. F org et a bout a ssig nin g m eanin gs to w hat y o u s e e o nscre en o r d is cu ssin g th e s ym bolis m o f a nyth in g. C once ntr a te in ste ad o n c re atin g a s in gle p ara gra ph o f p ro se th at s u cce eds in tr a nsla tin g a n im age in to w ord s. S pell- c h eck y o ur w ork w hen y o u a re fin is h ed. If y o ur w ord -p ro ce ssin g a pplic a tio n’s d ic tio nary d oes n ot c o nta in s o m e o f th e te ch nic a l te rm s y o u h ave u se d, a dd th em (a fte r c o nsu lt in g th e g lo ssa ry a t th e b ack o f th is b ook to m ake s u re y o u h ave s p elle d th em c o rre ctly to b egin w it h ).

Here ’s a n e xa m ple u sin g th e a bove lis t o f c o m posit io nal e le m ents fr o m th e Fig ht Clu b im age:

The im age is a c lo se -u p o f a b la ndly h andso m e m an w ho a ppears to b e a bo ut th ir ty y e ars o ld . H e h as d ark h air w it h a c o nse rv a tiv e , b usin essm an-ty p e h air c u t.

We c a n s e e th e s h ould ers o f h is g ra y, c o nse rv a tiv e s u it ja cke t a nd th e w hit e co lla r o f h is d re ss s h ir t. T he m an is c e nte re d o n th e s cre en; th e v e ry to p p art o f his h ead is c u t o ut b y th e fr a m e. T he im age s h ow s th e in te rio r o f a n a ir p la ne.

41 The m an is s e ate d o n a b lu e s e at w it h h is fa ce fr a m ed b y a w hit e s tr ip o f mate ria l th at se rv e s as a headre st. The m an is in cris p fo cu s, but th e backg ro und is o ut o f fo cu s. S till, w e c a n c le arly s e e s o m e b lu e c u rta in s in th e ce nte r-le ft o f th e im age, w it h s o m e b rig ht c u rv e d a ir p la ne w in dow s o n th e fa r rig ht in th e b ackg ro und. T he c u rta in s m atc h th e b lu e o f th e s e at; th e w in dow s, appearin g w hit e , m atc h th e h eadre st. T he a sp ect ra tio is th at o f a fa ir ly w id e re cta ngle . T here is a noth er m an in th e im age— he is s e ate d in th e ro w b ehin d th e m an in c lo se -u p— but h e is th e o nly o th er p ers o n in th e im age. T he m an in clo se -u p h as a b rig ht lig ht s h in in g o n h is fo re head a nd n ose , b ut h is e ye s a re nota bly in s h adow , a lt h ough w e c a n c le arly s e e d ark c ir c le s u nder h is e ye s, in dic a tin g tir e dness a nd a la ck o f s le ep. T he m an is s ta rin g s tr a ig ht a head.

1 O ne e xce ptio n is th e IM AX D om e o r O M NIM AX s yste m , w hic h p ro je cts a ro unded (b ut n ot cir c u la r) im age o n a tilt e d d om e.

42 C HAPTE R 2 M IS E-E N -S C EN E: C AM ER A M OVEM EN T M OBIL E F R AM IN G M otio n p ic tu re s s h are a n um ber o f fo rm al e le m ents w it h o th er a rts .

T he s h ape o f a p artic u la r p ain tin g is e sse ntia lly it s a sp ect ra tio — th e r a tio o f w id th to h eig ht o f th e im age— and th e c o m posit io n a nd lig htin g e ffe cts cre ate d b y th e p ain te r p la y a ce ntr a l ro le in th at p ain tin g’s m eanin g, as does th e dis ta nce betw een th e artis t and his or her s u bje ct. ( A p ortr a it m ig ht b e th e e quiv a le nt o f a c lo se -u p; a la ndsca pe i s u su ally a lo ng s h ot o r a n e xtr e m e lo ng s h ot.) T he te rm mis e -e n- s ce ne is d eriv e d fr o m th e th eate r: th e a rra ngem ent a nd a ppeara nce o f a p la y’s s e ts a nd p ro ps, it s c h ara cte rs ’ g estu re s a nd d ia lo gue a nd c o stu m es, th e STO RY and PLO T —all co m e to geth er to w ard an e xp re ssiv e g oal, ju st a s in m otio n p ic tu re s. N ove ls , to o, h ave s to rie s a nd p lo ts th at c a n ( a nd s h ould ) b e a naly ze d fo r m eanin g.

Film o ffe rs s o m eth in g u niq ue:

MOBIL E F R AM IN G . In th e fir s t c h apte r o f F ilm S tu die s , w e m ade a n a ssu m ptio n th at tu rn s o ut to b e fa ls e : th at t h e ca m era is sta tic . A ll th e d efin it io ns a nd e xa m ple s im plie d th at c h ara cte rs a nd o bje cts m ove w it h in th e fr a m e, b ut th e fr a m in g s ta ys t h e s a m e w it h in e ach s h ot. In fa ct, th is is n ot th e c a se a t a ll. T he c a m era ca n m ove fr o m sid e to sid e, u p a nd d ow n, b ackw ard a nd f o rw ard , a ll o f th e a bove , a nd m ore . E dit in g fr o m s h ot to s h ot o r s ce ne t o s ce ne c h anges th e p osit io n o f th e s p ecta to r fr o m s h o t to s h ot o r s ce ne to s ce ne, b ut c a m era m ove m ent s h if ts th e s p ecta to r’s p osit io n w it h in th e s h ot.

No o th er a rt fo rm is a ble to a cco m plis h th is fe at. In p ain tin g, C ubis m p la ys w it h th e id ea o f e xp re ssin g m ult ip le p ers p ectiv e s o f a sin gle s u bje ct, but C ubis t pain tin gs in evit a bly and nece ssa rily have an i m mobile fr a m e ow in g to th e natu re of pain tin g as an art fo rm .

43 Sim ila rly , o ne c a n w alk a ro und a s cu lp tu re , b ut th e s cu lp tu re re m ain s on it s pedesta l. A partic u la rly dyn am ic scu lp tu re m ay su ggest move m ent, a nd in fa ct s o m e s cu lp tu re s h ave m oto rs th at m ake p arts of th em m ove , b ut th ey still re m ain e sse ntia lly in p la ce . A ro ta tin g sta ge m ay sh if t fr o m o ne sce ne to a noth er in th e th eate r, b ut th e audie nce d oes n ot it s e lf e xp erie nce th e s e nsa tio n o f m ove m ent.

Film and vid eo are dif fe re nt. Film s offe r sh if tin g posit io ns and pers p ectiv e s. S hots a re n’t lim it e d in te rm s o f s u bje ct- c a m era d is ta nce or a ngle o f v ie w . A s in gle s h ot m ay b egin fr o m a p osit io n s o h ig h o ff th e g ro und n o h um an b ein g c o uld a ch ie ve it u naid ed b y a m ach in e o r a s tr u ctu re a nd p ro ce ed to lo w er it s e lf to th e le ve l o f a p ers o n, tr a ve l on th e g ro und fo r a w hile , lo ok a ro und, fo llo w a ce rta in ch ara cte r, ch ange d ir e ctio n a nd fo llo w a noth er c h ara cte r fo r a w hile , o r m ayb e fo llo w no p artic u la r c h ara cte r a t a ll a nd g o o ut o n it s o w n, th ere by re ve alin g a s e nse o f s p atia l c o here nce a nd e xp re ssiv e flu id it y th at n o sta tic s h ot c o uld e ve r a ch ie ve . C am era m ove m ent is a n e sp ecia lly sig nif ic a nt a sp ect o f m is e -e n-s ce ne.

TY PES O F C AM ER A M OVEM EN T How d oes film s tu die s d escrib e v a rio us k in ds o f c a m era m ove m ents ?

Fir s t, w hen th e c a m era it s e lf is s ta tio nary b ut p iv o ts o n it s a xis fr o m sid e to s id e, it ’s c a lle d a PAN . If th e c a m era is s ta tio nary b ut tilt s u p a nd dow n, it ’s ca lle d a tilt (o r a VER TIC AL PAN ). B oth of th ese ca m era move m ents a re lik e m ovin g y o ur h ead b ut n ot y o ur b ody: y o u c a n ta ke in a w hole p anora m a w it h out ta kin g a s in gle s te p s im ply b y tu rn in g yo ur h ead fr o m s id e to s id e ( a p an) o r n oddin g u p a nd d ow n ( a tilt ) . B y pannin g and tilt in g, th e ca m era re ve als m ore sp ace w it h out it s e lf movin g fr o m it s fix e d p osit io n o n th e g ro und— whic h is to s a y o n a tr ip od o r o th er s u pportin g d evic e . Y ou c a n c re ate th e e ff e ct o f a p an and a tilt r ig ht n ow s im ply b y m ovin g y o ur h ead.

As y o u c a n s e e, y o u c a n ta ke in la rg e e xp anse s o f th e r o om y o u’r e in w it h out g ettin g u p fr o m y o ur s e at. B ut y o u’r e s till g ro unded; y o u’r e stu ck in th e s a m e p la ce . B ut ju st a s y o u c a n g et u p a nd w alk a ro und, th e c a m era it s e lf c a n m ove . C am era m ove m ent is o ne o f th e m ost 44 beautif u l a nd y e t u ndera ppre cia te d e ffe cts in a ny a rt fo rm . H ow eve r much w e ta ke it fo r g ra nte d, m ove m ent th ro ugh s p ace o n film c a n b e extr a ord in arily g ra ce fu l. A nd b y it s m ove m ent a lo ne, a c a m era r e ve als much m ore th an sim ply th e sp ace th ro ugh w hic h it m ove s. It ca n exp re ss e m otio ns.

The s im ple st w ay o f m ovin g a c a m era is to p la ce it o n a m ovin g obje ct, s u ch a s a c a r o r a tr a in o r a s h ip . T hat’s c a lle d a MOVIN G S H O T .

The c a m era c a n a ls o b e p la ce d o n it s o w n m obile d evic e . W hen th e ca m era m ove s p ara lle l to th e g ro und, it ’s c a lle d a TR AC KIN G S H O T o r a DO LLY . If it m ove s u p a nd d ow n th ro ugh s p ace it ’s c a lle d a CRAN E . F or a cra ne s h ot , th e c a m era is m ounte d o n a k in d o f c h erry -p ic ke r, w hic h enable s it to ris e v e ry h ig h u p in th e a ir — to a sce nd fr o m g ro und le ve l in to th e s ky o r d esce nd fr o m th e s ky to g ro und le ve l.

Wit h b oth o f th ese d evic e s, tr a ckin g s h ots a nd c ra nes, th e c a m era move s p hysic a lly th ro ugh s p ace . In c la ssic a l H olly w ood film makin g, cre w s u se d to m ount a ctu al tr a cks o n th e c e ilin g o r th e flo or, th us ensu rin g th at th e c a m era w ould m ove in a v e ry s m ooth a nd p re cis e fa sh io n ( h ence th e te rm tr a ckin g s h ot ). A cto rs b ein g film ed in tr a ck in g sh ots w ould th ere fo re s o m etim es h ave to p la y th eir s ce nes s q uare ly on th e tr a cks, a nd w hen th ey w alk e d th ey h ad to m ake s u re to lif t th eir le gs h ig h e nough to c le ar th e r a ilr o ad tie s th at h eld th e tr a cks in p la ce .

More ofte n, ca m era s w ere — and still are — mounte d on w heels , or dollie s, th us e nablin g th em to m ove fr e ely in a v a rie ty o f d ir e ctio ns:

fo rw ard a nd b ackw ard , s id ew ard , d ia gonally , o r a ro und in a c ir c le .

In th e 1 960s, te ch nolo gy d eve lo ped to th e p oin t a t w hic h th e s iz e and w eig ht o f a m otio n p ic tu re c a m era , w hic h h ad fo rm erly b een la rg e and c u m bers o m e, w as r e duce d s o m uch th at a c a m era o pera to r c o uld actu ally c a rry th e c a m era w hile film in g. T hese a re c a lle d han d-h eld cam era s , w hic h c re ate HAN D-H ELD S H O TS . In a ny n um ber o f ’6 0s (a nd la te r) film s, d ir e cto rs u se d h and-h eld s h ots a s a c o nve ntio n o f r e alis m —th e je rk in ess o f h and-h eld s h ots s e em ed to s u ggest a n u nm edia te d re alit y , a la ck o f in te rv e ntio n b etw een c a m era a nd s u bje ct. A udie nce s still te nd to re ad h and-h eld s h ots th at w ay: w it n ess The B la ir W it c h Pro je ct ( 1 999), w hic h d epends o n th e s h akin ess o f th e c a m era w ork to co nve y th e h om em ade q ualit y o f th e film make r-c h ara cte rs ’ a tte m pt to docu m ent th e s u pern atu ra l. In fa ct, o f c o urs e , a h and-h eld s h ot is n ’t 45 any m ore “re alis tic ” th an any oth er kin d of sh ot. It is a sty lis tic co nve ntio n— a vis u al sig n th at people still re ad as exp re ssin g heig hte ned r e alis m .

In a s till la te r d eve lo pm ent, c a m era s a re n ow a ble to b e m ounte d o n an a ppara tu s c a lle d a STE AD IC AM , w hic h fit s o nto a c a m era o pera to r’s body ( v ia a v e st) in s u ch a w ay th at w hen h e o r s h e w alk s, th e e ffe ct is th at o f v e ry s m ooth m ove m ent, a s o ppose d to a h and-h eld c a m era th at r e co rd s e ve ry b um p in e ve ry s te p.

Fin ally , th ere ’s a kin d of fa ke m ove m ent, an im pre ssio n of move m ent th at is n ’t re ally th e re su lt o f a m ovin g c a m era b ut ra th er o f a p artic u la r kin d o f le ns. T hat’s ca lle d a ZO OM . W it h a zo om , th e ca m era o pera to r c re ate s th e im pre ssio n o f m ove m ent b y s h if tin g th e fo ca l le ngth o f th e le ns fr o m w id e a ngle to te le photo o r fr o m te le photo to w id e a ngle , but th e c a m era it s e lf d oes n ot m ove . Z oom le nse s a re als o k n ow n a s va rif o ca l le nse s.

A z o om is th ere fo re a k in d o f a rtif ic ia l move m ent. There is no re al m ove m ent wit h a zo om , ju st an enla rg em ent o r m agnif ic a tio n o f th e im age a s th e le ns sh if ts fr o m wid e-a ngle to te le photo o r th e o pposit e , a d em agnif ic a tio n, a s it s h if ts fr o m te le photo to w id e-a ngle .

In o th er w ord s, a zo om h as tw o e xtr e m es— te le photo and w id e angle . T he te le photo ra nge te nds to m ake s p ace s e em fla tte r, w hile th e w id eangle r a nge ( lik e a ny WID E-A N G LE L E N S ) e nhance s th e s e nse o f depth .

Ple ase n ote : w hen y o u s a y o r w rit e “z o om ,” y o u s h ould s p ecif ic a lly mean “ zo om .

” B e c a re fu l n ot to d escrib e a s h ot b y s a yin g o r w rit in g “th e dir e cto r zo om s fo rw ard ” unle ss yo u are co nvin ce d th at th e dir e cto r actu ally use d a zo om le ns to ach ie ve th e im pre ssio n of ca m era m ove m ent. G ra nte d, it ca n be dif fic u lt fo r begin ners to appre cia te th e d if fe re nce in a ppeara nce b etw een a tr a ckin g s h ot a nd a z o om . O ne w ay o f d if fe re ntia tin g b etw een th e tw o is th at a fo rw ard tr a ckin g s h ot a ctu ally p enetr a te s s p ace w here as a z o om fo rw ard (o r zo om in ) h as a ce rta in fla tn ess to it — an in cre asin g la ck o f d epth ow in g to th e s h if t fr o m th e w id e-a ngle r a nge to th e te le photo r a nge.

One w ay o f u nders ta ndin g th e d if fe re nce in v is u al e ffe ct b etw een a tr a ckin g s h ot a nd a z o om is to r e aliz e th at film c re ate s th e illu sio n o f a th re e-d im ensio nal world — heig ht, wid th , and depth —on a 46 tw odim ensio nal scre en. W e’r e usu ally fo ole d in to perc e iv in g depth where th ere is n one. A fo rw ard tr a ckin g s h ot e nhance s th is illu sio n o f depth ; th e c a m era p asse s th ro ugh s p ace a s it m ove s fo rw ard , a nd th e re su lt in g im age r e -c re ate s th at s p atia l p enetr a tio n. A fo rw ard z o om , in co ntr a st, d oes n oth in g to a lle via te th e s cre en’s a ctu al fla tn ess. T he ca m era doesn ’t m ove w it h a fo rw ard zo om , so w e perc e iv e th e re su lt in g im age a s b ein g se em in gly fla tte r th an u su al. In fa ct, th e im age is alw ays fla t. F orw ard z o om s ju st d o n oth in g to m ake u s th in k it is n ’t . ( In a zo om o ut —a z o om th at b egin s in th e te le photo r a nge a nd ends in w id e-a ngle — th e fla tn ess o f th e te le photo g iv e s w ay to th e se nse o f d epth c re ate d b y th e w id e-a ngle .) Fin ally , film make rs and film sch ola rs alik e m ake a dis tin ctio n betw een MOTIV ATE D A N D U NM OTIV ATE D C AM ER A M OVEM EN TS . It’s th e film ’s ch ara cte rs w ho d ete rm in e w heth er th e m ove m ent is m otiv a te d o r n ot.

For e xa m ple , if a c h ara cte r b egin s to w alk to th e le ft a nd th e c a m era tr a cks w it h h er, th e c a m era m ove m ent is c o nsid ere d to b e motiv a te d .

If th e c h ara cte r s ta nds p erfe ctly s till b ut th e c a m era tr a cks fo rw ard to w ard h er, it ’s unm otiv a te d . T his is a u se fu l d is tin ctio n to th e e xte nt th at it d efin es th e c h ara cte rs ’ w orld a s b ein g s e para te a nd d is tin ct fr o m th e film make r’s co m menta ry o n th at w orld .

Motiv a te d ca m era move m ents a re th ose th at a re p ro m pte d b y th e c h ara cte rs a nd e ve nts in th e film ; unm otiv a te d c a m era m ove m ents a re th ose th at p erta in to th e film make r’s c o m menta ry o n c h ara cte rs a nd e ve nts . A t th e s a m e tim e, th e te rm unm otiv a te d is a p oor c h oic e o f w ord s to d escrib e a film make r’s e xp re ssiv e , a rtis tic c h oic e s. T here ’s a m otiv e th ere , a fte r all. It’s ju st th at o f th e d ir e cto r, n ot th at o f a c h ara cte r.

ED IT IN G W IT H IN T H E S H O T No m atte r w heth er a g iv e n c a m era m ove m ent is c a lle d m otiv a te d o r unm otiv a te d, a ll ca m era m ove m ent, lik e a ll e dit in g, is a m atte r o f hum an d ecis io n-m akin g. In fa ct, a n e xte nded c a m era m ove m ent m ay fu nctio n in m uch th e s a m e w ay a s e dit in g. T hey a re e ach a w ay o f se le ctin g, arra ngin g, and pre se ntin g in fo rm atio n in a se quentia l manner to th e a udie nce .

47 Im agin e a film th at b egin s w it h a c ra ne s h ot o f a m ovie m arq uee th at c o nta in s th e n am e o f th e film ’s lo ca tio n. L et’s s a y it ’s th e R ese da Theate r in R ese da, C alif o rn ia . W it h out c u ttin g, th e c a m era p ans le ft and cra nes d ow n to str e et le ve l ju st a s a la rg e ca r p ulls u p a t a nig htc lu b a cro ss th e s tr e et; u sin g a S te adic a m , th e c a m era o pera to r co ntin ues th e s h ot b y fo llo w in g th e d riv e r o f th e c a r a nd h is g ir lf r ie nd as th ey g et o ut o f th e c a r a nd a re g re ete d b y th e n ig htc lu b m anager, who fo llo w s th em in sid e th e n ig htc lu b, w here — still in th e s a m e s h ot— th e m an a nd w om an a re le d to a b ooth , w here th ey s it a nd p la ce a n ord er fo r drin ks. T he sh ot co ntin ues eve n fu rth er as th e ca m era opera to r fo llo w s th e n ig htc lu b m anager a s h e s a ys h ello to a c lu b-g oer wearin g a n o ut- o f- s ty le w este rn s h ir t, th en r e tu rn s to th e c o uple a t th e booth ju st a s a w om an o n r o lle r s ka te s a ppears a nd e ngages th em in a b rie f c o nve rs a tio n. T his le ngth y c a m era m ove m ent is n eit h er s o le ly unm otiv a te d n or s o le ly m otiv a te d; it c o nta in s e le m ents o f b oth .

Film b uffs w ill re co gniz e th is a s th e o penin g s h ot o f P aul T hom as Anders o n’s Boogie N ig hts (1 997). B ut e ve n if y o u h ave n ot s e en th e film , y o u c a n a ppre cia te th e d egre e o f p la nnin g a nd s kill re quir e d in cre atin g a s h ot o f th is e xtr a ord in ary d ura tio n. A s in gle a cto r flu bbin g a lin e o r s n eezin g w ould h ave ru in ed th e ta ke , a s w ould a n EXTR A —an acto r w ho h as n o lin es in a c ro w d s ce ne— bum pin g in to th e S te adic a m opera to r. N otic e a ls o th e a m ount o f se le ctio n in vo lv e d in e xe cu tin g th e sh ot. F ir s t w e s e e th e m arq uee; th en w e s e e th e c a r; th en w e s e e th e co uple in th e c a r; th en w e s e e th e n ig htc lu b m anager . . . It’s a k in d o f edit in g w it h in th e s h ot —an a rra ngem ent a nd s e quentia l p re se nta tio n of d is cre te p ie ce s o f in fo rm atio n w it h in a s in gle s h ot.

The fir s t sh ot o f Boogie N ig hts —and a ny su ch sh ot— is ca lle d a LO NG TA KE , m eanin g th at th e sh ot co ntin ues w it h out a cu t fo r an unusu ally lo ng tim e. T he d ir e cto r o f Boogie N ig hts c o uld e asily h ave ca rv e d up his openin g se quence in to in div id ual sh ots — of th e marq uee, th e c a r, th e d riv e r, h is g ir lf r ie nd, th e n ig htc lu b m anager, a nd so o n— but h e c h ose to u nif y b oth s p ace a nd tim e b y film in g it in o ne co ntin uous ta ke — a lo ng ta ke . ( If y o u h ave s e en th e film , o r w hen y o u se e th e film , a sk yo urs e lf w hat A nders o n’s lo ng ta ke e xp re sse s in te rm s o f th e o ve ra ll th em e o f h is m ovie .) T his p artic u la r lo ng ta ke la sts fo r a lm ost th re e m in ute s. A noth er fa m ous lo ng ta ke , th e o penin g s h ot 48 of O rs o n W elle s’s Touch o f E vil (1 958), la sts fo r a bout fo ur m in ute s.

But it ’s im porta nt to note th at lo ng ta ke s are lik e su bje ct- c a m era dis ta nce s in th at th ey a re d efin ed re la tiv e ly , s o in a n o th erw is e h ig hly cu t m ovie a s h ot la stin g th ir ty o r fo rty s e co nds c o uld b e c o nsid ere d a lo ng ta ke in th e c o nte xt o f th at p artic u la r film .

A sin gle sh ot m ay se rv e , so m ew hat para doxic a lly , as it s ow n se quence o r s ce ne; th e te rm fo r th is is a s e quence s h ot. T he o penin g of H aw ks’s Sca rfa ce (1 932) is a c la ssic e xa m ple o f a s e quence s h ot; th e s h ot c h ro nic le s th e la st m in ute s in th e lif e o f a m obste r. H aw ks begin s w it h a lo w -a ngle s h ot o f a s tr e etla m p a to p a s tr e et s ig n; th e nam es o f th e s tr e ets a re s e t p erp endic u la r to e ach o th er to fo rm th e fir s t o f th e m any X s h apes th at a ppear th ro ughout th e film w heneve r anyb ody is a bout to g et ru bbed o ut. T he c a m era tr a cks b ack a s th e lig ht d im s a nd g oes o ut, tilt s d ow n, a nd p ans r ig ht p ast a m ilk d eliv e ry man to re ve al a m an w it h a n a pro n co m in g o ut o f a p riv a te clu b doorw ay a nd y a w nin g a nd s tr e tc h in g. T he c a m era th en tr a cks la te ra lly rig ht— se em in gly th ro ugh th e e xte rio r w all o f th e clu b— th ro ugh th e lo bby, a nd in to th e b allr o om , w here th e a pro ned m an b egin s to c le an up a fte r w hat h as e vid ently b een a w ild p arty . H e re m ove s s tr e am ers fr o m th e m any p otte d p alm s th at d efin e th e fo re gro und a s th e c a m era co ntin ues to tr a ck and pan rig ht. T he m an sto ps sw eepin g fo r a mom ent, a nd a s th e c a m era tr a cks fo rw ard , h e re ach es d ow n a nd pulls a w hit e b ra ssie re o ut o f th e p ile o f s tr e am ers th at lit te rs th e flo or.

(It c e rta in ly was a w ild p arty .) A s th e m an e xa m in es th e b ra , H aw ks co ntin ues to tr a ck rig ht a nd fo rw ard to re ve al th re e m en s e ate d a t a ta ble se t a m id str e am ers h angin g fr o m th e ra fte rs ; th e m an in th e mid dle , a p ortly fe llo w ca lle d B ig L ouie , is w earin g a p aper p arty cro w n. T he c a m era re m ain s s ta tio nary a s th e th re e m en c o nve rs e fo r a fe w m om ents , a fte r w hic h th e m en g et u p fr o m th e ta ble ; H aw ks tr a cks le ft w it h th em a s th ey m ove in th at d ir e ctio n. A fte r th e tw o o th er men d epart o ffs cre en le ft, th e ca m era re m ain s o n B ig L ouie , w ho walk s to w ard th e rig ht; th e ca m era tr a cks w it h him as he m ove s th ro ugh th e b allr o om a nd in to a te le phone b ooth . H e b egin s to p la ce his c a ll, a nd th e c a m era s ta ys m otio nle ss fo r a fe w s e co nds b efo re tr a ckin g fo rw ard a nd th en to th e r ig ht to r e ve al th e o m in ous s ilh ouette of a m an, w ho s tr o lls in th e d ir e ctio n o f B ig L ouie ; th e c a m era tr a cks 49 le ft w it h h im a s h e w alk s; h e is c a lm ly w his tlin g a n o pera a ria . T he ca m era s to ps o n a fr o ste d g la ss p artit io n; th e s h adow o f th e m an is fr a m ed b y th e p artit io n a s th e m an re ach es in to h is p ocke t a nd p ulls out a g un. “H ello , L ouie ,” th e m an re m ark s b efo re fir in g th re e tim es.

Still in s h adow , h e w ip es th e g un o ff w it h a h andke rc h ie f a nd th ro w s it on th e flo or. T he m an tu rn s a nd le ave s a s H aw ks tr a cks a nd p ans le ft to re ve al th e b ody o f B ig L ouie o n th e flo or. T he s h ot is s till n ot o ve r:

th e a pro ned m an fr o m th e b egin nin g o f th e s e quence s h ot e nte rs th e im age fr o m th e le ft. H e sta re s a t L ouie ’s d ead b ody, re m ove s h is apro n, th ro w s it in a c lo se t, d ons h is h at a nd ja cke t, a nd ru ns le ft to w ard th e d oor a s H aw ks c o m ple te s th e s h ot b y tr a ckin g a nd p annin g le ft a nd slig htly fo rw ard b efo re e ndin g w it h a DIS SO LV E to th e n ext sce ne. T he s h ot is th re e a nd a h alf m in ute s lo ng.

What m ake s th is a s e quence s h ot is th at th e s in gle s h ot c o m pris e s th e e ntir e s ce ne. T he n ext s h ot ta ke s p la ce in a n e ntir e ly d if fe re nt se ttin g— th at o f a n ew sp aper o ffic e , w here e dit o rs d ebate th e c o nte nt of th e h eadlin e a nnouncin g th e k illin g. T he le ngth y o penin g s h ot o f Boogie N ig hts , in c o ntr a st, d oes n ot c o nta in th e e ntir e s ce ne, w hic h co ntin ues w it h m ore s h ots o f th e n ig htc lu b in te rio r.

SPA CE A ND M OVEM EN T We a re a ccu sto m ed to th in kin g o nly a bout th e c o nte nt o f e ach film im age w e s e e— th e m ate ria l a ctu ally o nscre en. B ut if m is e -e n-s ce ne, edit in g, a nd c a m era m ove m ent a re a ll m atte rs o f d ecis io n-m akin g, o f se le ctio n, th en it sta nds to re aso n th at th e in fo rm atio n a dir e cto r le ave s o ut o f th e im age is w orth c o nsid erin g a s w ell.

The film th eoris t N oël B urc h h as d efin ed s ix z o nes o f offs cre en sp ace :

1.

offs cre en r ig ht 2.

offs cre en le ft 3.

offs cre en to p 4.

offs cre en b otto m 5.

behin d th e s e t 50 6.

behin d th e c a m era Im agin e a m ediu m s h ot o f a w om an, a n a gin g a ctr e ss, s e ate d a t a banquet ta ble . W e s e e h er fa ce a nd u pper b ody; w e s e e p art o f th e ta ble in fr o nt o f h er; w e s e e a n e m pty g la ss o n th e ta ble . S he r e ach es fo r s o m eth in g o ffs cre en r ig ht, a nd w hen s h e b rin gs h er h and b ack in to th e im age s h e is g ra sp in g a liq uor b ottle . S he p ours a fe w s lu gs o f booze in to th e e m pty g la ss. T hen, a h and e nte rs th e im age ( a ls o fr o m offs cre en rig ht) ; in th e h and is a b ottle o f w ate r. T he a ctr e ss b ats th e hand aw ay befo re th e oth erw is e unse en ta ble m ate gets th e opportu nit y to pour any w ate r in to th e actr e ss’s liq uor gla ss. T he actr e ss is ca su ally but cle arly re fu sin g to have her drin k w ate re d dow n, a nd th is a ctio n— to geth er w it h th e s u btle s m ir k o n th e a ctr e ss’s fa ce — esta blis h es h er c h ara cte r w it h g re at e xp re ssiv e e ffic ie ncy.

This sh ot— whic h in tr o duce s B ette D avis ’s ch ara cte r in Jo se ph Mankie w ic z’s All A bout E ve (1 950)— em phasiz e s th e fir s t o f B urc h ’s offs cre en s p ace s:

offs cre en r ig ht . A lt h ough th e d ir e cto r h as fr a m ed th e film ’s s ta r in s u ch a w ay a s to e m phasiz e h er p re se nce ( h e m ig ht h ave ch ose n in ste ad to b egin w it h a lo ng s h ot o f D avis s e ate d a t th e s a m e ta ble s u rro unded b y m any o th er p eople a nd th ere fo re n ot fe atu re d onscre en a s a n in div id ual) , h e n eve rth ele ss in dic a te s th at s o m eone els e is s it tin g n ext to h er. W e n atu ra lly u nders ta nd th at th e h and is n ’t dis e m bodie d. W e assu m e th at th e sp ace of th e actio n co ntin ues beyo nd th e fr a m e— th at th ere is a w hole p ers o n th ere .

Audie nce s m ake s im ila r a ssu m ptio ns a bout th e o th er th re e s p ace s th at b ord er th e im age— offs cre en le ft , offs cre en to p , a nd offs cre en botto m . T he dir e cto r does not need to sh ow th ese sp ace s to us dir e ctly fo r u s to a ssu m e th at th ey e xis t. A nd th ese fo ur o ffs cre en sp ace s a re in evit a bly die getic ; in o th er w ord s, th ey p erta in to th e w orld of th e film ’s s to ry . (S ee ch apte r 6 fo r a m ore c o m ple te d is cu ssio n o f th e c o nce pt o f die gesis .) The o th er tw o o ffs cre en s p ace s a re im porta nt to c o nsid er, if o nly brie fly , fo r th e th eore tic a l q uestio ns th ey ra is e . It’s ra re in n arra tiv e cin em a fo r a d ir e cto r to m ove h is o r h er c a m era b ehin d th e s e t, b ut it ’s co nce iv a ble . S uch a s h ot w ould re ve al th at th e s e t, w hic h w e h ave ta ke n to be re al, is in fa ct artif ic ia l— we m ig ht se e th e w ooden 51 su pports h old in g u p th e w alls , th e lig htin g s ta nds a nd a lo t o f e le ctr ic a l co rd s, th e o ute r w alls o f th e s o undsta ge, a nd s o o n— and a s s u ch th e sh ot w ould c a ll a tte ntio n to th e fic tio nal n atu re o f w hat w e’v e b een se ein g until th at poin t in th e film . T hat re co gnit io n is , of co urs e , so m eth in g th at cla ssic a l H olly w ood cin em a a vo id s. A nd b eca use it does n ot h ave to d o w it h th e w orld o f th e film ’s s to ry , th e s p ace b ehin d th e s e t is nondie getic .

The s ix th z o ne o f o ffs cre en s p ace e xis ts o nly in th e im agin atio n. W e kn ow th at th ere is re al s p ace b ehin d th e c a m era , b ut th e c a m era c a n neve r re co rd it . J u st a s w e d on’t h ave e ye s in th e b ack o f o ur h eads, so th e c a m era c a n n eve r h ave a s e para te le ns th at r e co rd s th e s p ace behin d it s e lf . O nly a s e co nd c a m era re co rd in g th e fir s t c a m era c o uld re co rd th at sp ace , b ut th e sp ace b ehin d th e se co nd ca m era — th e offs cre en s p ace B urc h d efin es a s b ein g behin d th e c a m era —would b e equally im possib le fo r th e se co nd ca m era to re co rd . C le arly , th is im possib le -to -re co rd s p ace is nondie getic . It d oesn ’t h ave to d o w it h th e film ’s fic tio nal s to ry b ut in ste ad e xis ts o nly in th e w orld o f th e re al people w ho a re m akin g th e m ovie .

In div id ual sh ots co uld re co rd th e fir s t fiv e of B urc h ’s offs cre en sp ace s. Usin g th e All About Eve exa m ple , th e dir e cto r co uld co nce iv a bly h ave c u t fr o m B ette D avis ’s c h ara cte r, th e a ctr e ss M arg o Channin g, to a s h ot o f h er ta ble m ate to th e le ft, h er ta ble m ate to th e rig ht, h er le gs u nder th e ta ble , th e s p ace a bove h er h ead, a nd a fin al sh ot o f th e s p ace b ehin d th e b anquet ro om s e t. B ut b y movin g th e ca m era , a d ir e cto r c a n a ctu ally r e ve al a ll fiv e o f th e p ossib le -to -re co rd sp ace s in a sin gle sh ot. B y p annin g le ft a nd rig ht, h e co uld h ave sh ow n u s th e s p ace s o n e it h er s id e o f th e c h ara cte r. B y tilt in g u p a nd dow n, h e w ould h ave sh ow n u s th e flo or a nd th e ce ilin g (o r la ck th ere of— most s e ts h ave n o c e ilin g s o a s to a cco m modate o ve rh ead lig htin g e quip m ent) . A nd b y tr a ckin g la te ra lly , th en fo rw ard a nd a ro und th e w alls o f th e b anquet h all, h e c o uld h ave r e ve ale d th e s p ace b ehin d th e s e t. ( A dm it te dly , fo llo w in g th e lo gic o f th e im possib le s p ace b ehin d th e c a m era , n one o f th e o ffs cre en s p ace s c a n e ve r b e re co rd ed as lo ng a s th ey a re tr u ly offs cre en s p ace s , b ut th at’s a s u bje ct fo r a n upper-le ve l film th eory c o urs e to p urs u e.) In s h ort, m obile fr a m in g e nable s a d ir e cto r to u nif y d iv e rs e s p ace s 52 wit h in a n in div id ual s h ot. E ve n th e tin ie st, m ost m in ute re adju stm ent, or REFR AM IN G , re ve als a nd m ain ta in s s p atia l c o ntin uit y fr o m im age to im age w it h out c u ttin g. A t th e e nd o f Cit y L ig hts , w hic h is a naly ze d in more d eta il in ch apte r 4 , th e d ir e cto r, C harle s C haplin , b egin s o ne sh ot by ce nte rin g on th e tw o ch ara cte rs ’ in te rtw in ed hands, th en re fr a m es th e im age to c e nte r o n th e T ra m p’s fa ce a nd th e flo w er h e hold s. W hat is k e y in th is c a se , a nd in m ost c a se s o f r e fr a m in g, is th e onscre en g estu re o r lo ok o r fa cia l e xp re ssio n th at th e d ir e cto r w is h es to e m phasiz e . If a c h ara cte r m ove s h er h ead s lig htly to th e rig ht in a clo se -u p, fo r in sta nce , it ’s lik e ly th at th e d ir e cto r w ill re fr a m e th e s h ot by m ovin g th e c a m era s lig htly to th e rig ht s o th at p art o f h er fa ce w ill not b e c u t o ff b y th e o rig in al fr a m in g.

Ult im ate ly , ca m era m ove m ent— lik e any oth er film te ch niq ue— is about e xp re ssiv it y . T here is n o rig ht o r w ro ng w ay to film a nyth in g.

Som e d ir e cto rs , lik e S erg ei E is e nste in , te nd to c a rv e th e w orld u p in to in div id ual s ta tic s h ots a nd e dit it b ack to geth er a gain , th ough e ve n th e fa m ous “O dessa S te ps” s e quence fr o m Battle sh ip P ote m kin c o nta in s se ve ra l c a m era m ove m ents . O th er d ir e cto rs , lik e F . W . M urn au a nd Max O phüls a re k n ow n fo r th eir e le gant m ovin g-c a m era w ork . T heir film s ce rta in ly co nta in sta tic sh ots th at a re e dit e d to geth er, b ut a s dir e cto rs th eir s ty le h ig hlig hts c a m era m ove m ents ra th er th an e dit in g effe cts . S till o th ers — th e m ajo rit y o f c o nte m pora ry film make rs , in fa ct— lik e P aul T hom as A nders o n, M artin S co rs e se , S pik e L ee, a nd o th ers —ch oose to film ce rta in sce nes in th e fo rm of lo ng ta ke s w it h ela bora te ca m era m ove m ents w hile oth ers ta ke th e fo rm of m ore ra pid ly c u t s e quence s.

STU DY G UID E:

A N ALY ZIN G C AM ER A M OVEM EN T To le arn h ow to a naly ze c a m era m ove m ent, o ne m ust fir s t b e aw are o f c a m era move m ent. S o g et a D VD c o py o f y o ur fa vo rit e m ovie , fin d a s ce ne y o u k n ow a lr e ady, and w atc h it c lo se ly , th is tim e p ayin g p artic u la r a tte ntio n to th e c a m era m ove m ents it co nta in s.

1.

P ause th e D VD a fte r e ve ry ca m era m ove m ent yo u n otic e . If yo u a re fe elin g partic u la rly a m bit io us, w rit e d ow n e ach m ove m ent a s y o u n otic e it .

2.

A sk y o urs e lf th e fo llo w in g q uestio ns a fte r e ve ry p ause :

(A ) W hat ty p e o f c a m era m ove m ent ju st o ccu rre d? W as it a s in gle k in d o f move m ent ( fo r e xa m ple : a p an r ig ht, o r a tilt d ow n), o r w as it a c o m bin atio n 53 of d if fe re nt ty p es ( a s im ult a neous c ra ne d ow n a nd p an le ft) ?

(B ) W hat w as th e a ppare nt m otiv a tio n b ehin d th e m ove m ent? D id th e c a m era move a lo ng w it h a c h ara cte r? D id it m ove a w ay fr o m a c h ara cte r? O r d id it move s e em in gly o n it s o w n, w it h out r e gard to a p artic u la r c h ara cte r?

(C ) T o w hat d oes th e m ove m ent d ra w y o ur a tte ntio n?

(D ) W hat id eas o r e m otio ns m ig ht it e xp re ss b y m ain ta in in g s p atia l u nit y ?

(E ) A s an asid e, co nsid er th e offs cre en sp ace s of each im age and th e assu m ptio ns y o u m ake a bout th em .

3.

N otic e h ow o fte n y o u a re p ausin g th e film — how o fte n th e c a m era m ove s. Is th ere a p atte rn o f c a m era m ove m ents w it h in th e s ce ne? F or e xa m ple , is th ere a s e rie s o f tr a ckin g s h ots , o r a s e rie s o f p ans? Is th ere a ny rh yth m c re ate d b y th e w ay th e ca m era m ove s?

4.

B ase d s o le ly o n th is p artic u la r s ce ne ( a nd b ear in m in d th at th e s ce ne y o u c h oose may n ot b e r e pre se nta tiv e o f th e w hole film ), w ould y o u s a y th at th e d ir e cto r fa vo rs ca m era m ove m ents o ve r c u ttin g? C an y o u b egin to p erc e iv e th e d ir e cto r’s o ve ra ll sty le in th is in div id ual s ce ne, o r is it to o s o on to m ake s u ch a g enera liz a tio n?

WRIT IN G A BO UT C AM ER A M OVEM EN T Giv e n a ll th ese d if fe re nt te rm s a nd th eore tic a l n otio ns, h ow d o yo u d escrib e o n a pra ctic a l le ve l th e c a m era m ove m ents y o u s e e o nscre en? It’s n ot d if fic u lt ; it ju st ta ke s pra ctic e . T he m ore fa m ilia r y o u b eco m e w it h th e te rm in olo gy, th e e asie r it w ill b e to describ e a nd a naly ze w hat y o u n otic e .

“T he c a m era tr a cks fo rw ard ,” “ th e c a m era tr a cks b ack,” “ th e c a m era tr a cks la te ra lly ,” and s o o n: ju st d escrib e w hat y o u s e e u sin g th e te ch nic a l te rm s a t y o ur c o m mand. “ T he ca m era c ra nes u p.” “T he c a m era c ra nes d ow n.” “T he c a m era c ra nes u p, p ans to th e le ft, tilt s d ow n, c ra nes d ow n, a nd tr a cks fo rw ard . . .” a nd o n a nd o n. H ow eve r th e ca m era m ove s, th at’s h ow y o u d escrib e it . It m ake s fo r m ore p re cis e a naly tic a l w rit in g to w rit e , “T he c a m era tr a cks fo rw ard ” o r “th e c a m era p ans le ft,” ra th er th an fu m blin g aro und w it h “ w e g o a head” o r “ w e g o b ackw ard s” o r “ w e tu rn a nd s e e . . .” Be a w are th at c a m era s tr a ck wit h o r aw ay fr o m c h ara cte rs . H ere ’s a n e xa m ple fr o m a W arn er B ro s. a nim ate d c a rto on: “T he c a m era tr a cks to th e rig ht wit h E lm er F udd a s Elm er tr a cks h is p re y, th e ‘w asca lly w abbit .’” ( Y es, th ere a re tr a ckin g s h ots in a nim ate d ca rto ons. E ve n th ough th e c a m era th at re co rd s e ach a nim atio n c e l d oes n ot lit e ra lly move , a nim ato rs cre ate th e e ffe ct o f a ll th e d if fe re nt kin ds o f ca m era m ove m ents describ ed in th is c h apte r.) What fo llo w s is a re aso nably d eta ile d d escrip tio n o f th e o penin g s h ot o f Boogie Nig hts . B ear in m in d th at th is d escrip tio n c o nce ntr a te s o n c a m era m ove m ents . A fu ll analy sis o f th e s h ot w ould in clu de m any m ore d eta ils a bout m is e -e n-s ce ne e le m ents su ch a s lig htin g, se t d esig n, co lo r, co stu m es, m ake up, a nd fig ure b ehavio r, n ot to mentio n d ia lo gue, m usic , a nd o th er s o und e ffe cts , n ot to m entio n w hat it a ll a dds u p to in te rm s o f m eanin g:

The fir s t sh ot o f Boogie N ig hts b egin s a s a lo ng sh ot o f a m ovie m arq uee announcin g th at th e film pla yin g in th e th eate r is tit le d Boogie N ig hts ; th e 54 marq uee fills th e h oriz o nta l im age, it s sh ape e ch oin g th e film ’s w id escre en asp ect r a tio o f 2 .4 0:1 . T he c a m era c ra nes s lig htly fo rw ard , p ans s lig htly le ft, a nd ro ta te s c lo ckw is e to re ve al in a n o bliq ue a ngle th e n am e o f th e th eate r— th e Rese da. J u st a s th e n am e “R ese da” fills th e im age h oriz o nta lly , th e c a m era re ve rs e s th e d ir e ctio n o f it s m ove m ent: it n ow ro ta te s co unte rc lo ckw is e a nd cra nes d ow n to re ve al s o m e p eople e xit in g th e th eate r a nd w alk in g u nder th e marq uee. T he c a m era c o ntin ues it s m ove m ent b y c ra nin g d ow n a nd p ann in g ra th er ra pid ly to th e le ft ju st a s a c a r m ove s fo rw ard o n th e s tr e et n ext to th e th eate r. T he c a m era c o ntin ues to p an le ft a nd c ra ne d ow n— at o ne m om ent, th e ca r, n ow tr a ve lin g fr o m r ig ht to le ft a cro ss th e im age, fills th e s cre en— until it is a t gro und le ve l.

Owin g to th e c a m era h avin g p anned, th e c a r is n ow fa cin g a w ay fr o m th e c a m era .

As a s u btit le a ppea rs — “S an F ern ando V alle y 1 977”— th e c a r m ake s a le ft tu rn a nd pulls u p in fr o nt o f a n ig htc lu b w it h a g audy n eon s ig n th at re ads: “H ot T ra xx.” T he ca m era tr a cks fo rw ard o n th e s tr e et to w ard th e c a r; th e c a m era o pera to r is e vid ently usin g a S te adic a m , b eca use th e m ove m ent is v e ry s m ooth .

A c ro w d h as g ath ere d in fr o nt o f th e e ntr a nce to th e c lu b. T he d riv e r g ets o ut o f th e c a r a nd ra is e s h is a rm in a g re etin g g estu re b ut is m om enta rily c u t o ut o f th e im age b eca use th e c a m era is m ovin g r a pid ly fo rw ard to w ard th e c lu b’s e ntr a nce . T he ca m era c o ntin ues to tr a ck fo rw ard u ntil it s in gle s o ut th e n ig htc lu b m anager, w ho ru sh es fo rw ard a nd to th e le ft o f th e im age w it h h is a rm s o uts tr e tc h ed.

In a v e ry ra pid m ove m ent, th e c a m era c ir c le s a ro und th e n ig htc lu b m anager a nd pans le ft to re ve al th e m om ent a t w hic h th e m anager re ach es th e d riv e r a nd h is gir lf r ie nd, w ho h as a ls o g otte n o ut o f th e c a r ( a n a ctio n w e o nly a ssu m e h as o ccu rre d, beca use w e h ave n ot a ctu ally s e en it ) .

The c a m era th en tr a cks b ackw ard , a nd th e th re e c h ara cte rs fo llo w th e c a m era a s it b acks in to th e d oorw ay o f th e n ig htc lu b, th ro ugh th e s m all e ntr a nce h all, a nd in to th e c lu b, a t w hic h p oin t th e c a m era m ake s a le ft tu rn ; th is a llo w s th e c h ara cte rs to pass th e c a m era , a nd a s th ey c o ntin ue to w alk th ey m ake a le ft tu rn a s th ey h ead aw ay fr o m it . T he c a m era o pera to r re fr a m es th e im age w it h a s lig ht p an le ft a s th e ch ara cte rs m ake a s im ila r a dju stm ent in th eir d ir e ctio n. F or a fe w s e co nds, th e im age is a th re e-s h ot o f th e c h ara cte rs w alk in g a w ay fr o m th e c a m era in s ilh ouette .

The c h ara cte rs th en tu rn rig ht a nd h ead to w ard a n a s-y e t- u nse en b ooth ; th eir destin atio n is re ve ale d in d ia lo gue. T he d riv e r a nd h is g ir lf r ie nd c o ntin ue w alk in g aw ay, b ut th e m anager s to ps, a nd th e c a m era s to ps w it h h im ; a s h e w alk s b ack in th e dir e ctio n fr o m w hic h h e c a m e, th e c a m era r e ve rs e s it s d ir e ctio n a nd tr a cks b ackw ard .

When h e tu rn s to w ard th e le ft o f th e im age, th e c a m era p ans le ft a nd tr a cks fo rw ard , fo llo w in g h im . H e g estu re s to w ard th e le ft s id e o f th e im age, a nd th e c a m era q uic kly pans le ft to r e ve al a w ait e r d re sse d in a s tr ip ed w hit e s h ir t a nd tu rn in g a w ay fr o m th e ca m era . T he w ait e r b egin s to w alk to w ard th e b ack o f th e clu b, b ut th e ca m era quic kly p ans rig ht a w ay fr o m h im a nd re tu rn s to th e m anager, w ho is n ow w alk in g to w ard th e c a m era w hile th e c a m era tr a cks b ackw ard .

The m anager tu rn s to w ard h is le ft a s h e w alk s, a nd th e c a m era p ause s to a llo w him to p ass it ; h e th en w alk s a w ay fr o m th e c a m era , a nd th e c a m era fo llo w s h im th ro ugh a c ro w d o f p eople . H e ju m ps u p o n th e d ance flo or a nd g re ets a m an w ho is dancin g th ere .

The c a m era fo llo w s th e m anager o nto th e d ance flo or a nd th en b egin s to c ir c le th e g ro up o f p eople to w hom th e m anager is s p eakin g: th e d ancin g m an, w ho is 55 whit e ; a w om an; a nd a b la ck m an w earin g a w este rn s h ir t. T he c a m era tr a ve ls in tw o fu ll 3 60-d egre e tu rn s b efo re p annin g a nd tr a ckin g le ft, fo llo w in g th e w ait e r in th e w hit e sh ir t, w ho is w alk in g le ft in th e d is ta nce a nd c a rry in g a tr a y o f d rin ks.

The c a m era tr a cks r a pid ly le ft a nd th en s lig htly fo rw ard a ro und s o m e ta ble s fu ll o f people a nd s lo w s d ow n w hen it n ears th e d riv e r a nd h is g ir lf r ie nd, n ow s e ate d a t th eir booth ; th e d riv e r is o n th e le ft, h is g ir lf r ie nd is r o ughly in th e c e nte r o f th e im age, a nd th e w ait e r is s lig htly to th e r ig ht. T he c o uple s a ys s o m eth in g to th e w ait e r, w ho tu rn s and b egin s to w alk a w ay. T he c a m era fo llo w s h im fo r a m om ent o r tw o, c u ttin g th e co uple b rie fly o ut o f th e im age, b ut th en a y o ung b lo nde w om an o n ro lle r s ka te s ente rs th e im age fr o m th e backg ro und. A s sh e passe s th e w ait e r, th e ca m era ch anges d ir e ctio n a nd b egin s to tr a ck b ackw ard u ntil it is m ore o r le ss a t th e s a m e posit io n it to ok d urin g th e e xch ange w it h th e w ait e r. T he w om an o n s ka te s s to ps a t th e ta ble a nd b egin s a c o nve rs a tio n w it h th e d riv e r a nd h is g ir lf r ie nd. B ut th e c a m era is re stle ss a nd b egin s to tr a ck fo rw ard a nd a ro und th e w om an o n s ka te s. A t o ne mom ent, th e d riv e r’s g ir lf r ie nd is a lo ne in th e im age in m ediu m s h ot fa cin g a t a th re e- quarte r a ngle to th e le ft.

The c a m era th en tr a cks b ackw ard a nd p ans to th e le ft to fo rm w hat is e sse ntia lly th e re ve rs e a ngle to th e o ne th at fir s t c a ptu re d th e w ait e r a nd th e c o uple a nd w as re peate d w it h th e w om an o n ska te s a nd th e co uple : n ow th e w om an o n ska te s sta nds ju st to th e le ft o f c e nte r, th e d riv e r s it s in th e c e nte r, a nd h is g ir lf r ie nd s it s o n th e r ig ht.

1 The w om an o n s ka te s m ake s a h oppin g g estu re a nd tu rn s a nd s ka te s a w ay fr o m th e c a m era , b ut th e c a m era q uic kly fo llo w s h er. S he tu rn s le ft; th e c a m era p ans le ft wit h h er. T he c a m era tr a cks le ft a s s h e s ka te s in th at d ir e ctio n, a fte r w hic h s h e tu rn s and s ka te s to w ard th e b ackg ro und. T he c a m era tr a cks fo rw ard , fo llo w in g h er, u ntil sh e d is a ppears in to th e c ro w d in th e c e nte r o f th e im age. B ut th e c a m era c o ntin ues to tr a ck fo rw ard a nd p an to th e le ft to re ve al a y o ung m an w earin g a w hit e s h ir t. T he ca m era fin ally s to ps m ovin g a s th e y o ung m an, s e en in m ediu m c lo se -u p, g aze s to w ard th e le ft.

C ut! T he fir s t s h ot o f Boogie N ig hts te rm in ate s h ere .

1.

F or a d efin it io n o f th e te rm re ve rs e a ngle , s e e SH O T/R EVER SE-S H O T P ATTE R N in th e glo ssa ry .

56 C HAPTE R 3 M IS E-E N -S C EN E: C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y M OTIO N P IC TU RE P H O TO GRAPH Y C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y —photo gra phy fo r m otio n pic tu re s— is th e genera l t e rm th at b rin gs to geth er a ll th e s tr ic tly p hoto gra phic e le m ents th at p ro duce th e im ages w e s e e p ro je cte d o n th e s cre en.

Lig htin g d evic e s a nd th eir e ffe cts ; film s to cks a nd th e c o lo rs o r to nes th ey p ro duce ; th e l e nse s u se d to re co rd im ages o n c e llu lo id ; th e s h ape o f th e im age, h ow it is c re ate d, a nd w hat it m eans —th ese a ll c o nstit u te th e a rt o f c in em ato gra phy. T his , to o, is a n a sp ect o f m is e -e n-s ce ne.

The w ord cin em ato gra phy c o m es fr o m tw o G re ek r o ots :

kin esis ( th e r o ot o f cin em a ), m eanin g m ove m ent, a nd gra pho , w hic h m eans to w rit e o r r e co rd . ( Photo gra phy is d eriv e d fr o m phos , m eanin g lig ht, a nd g ra pho .) Writ in g w it h m ove m ent a nd lig ht —it ’s a g re at w ay to b egin to t h in k a bout th e c in em ato gra phic c o nte nt o f m otio n p ic tu re s.

A SPEC T R ATIO : F R O M 1:3 3 T O W ID ESC REEN A SPEC T R ATIO is th e r e la tio n o f th e w id th o f th e r e cta ngula r im age to it s h eig ht. A s y o u m ay re m em ber fr o m th e fir s t c h apte r, s ile nt p ic tu re s h ad a n a sp ect ra tio o f 1 .3 3:1 , a re cta ngle a th ir d a gain a s w id e a s it w as ta ll. A nd w hile th e s o -c a lle d AC AD EM Y R ATIO , s ta ndard iz e d b y th e A ca dem y o f M otio n P ic tu re A rts a nd S cie nce s in 1 932, is u su ally r e fe rre d to a s b ein g 1 .3 3:1 , in p oin t o f fa ct th e A ca dem y r a tio is 1 .3 7:1 — a v e ry s lig htly w id er r e cta ngle th an th at o f s ile nt film s.

Afte r 1 932, a ll H olly w ood film s w ere m ade in th e A ca dem y ra tio o f 1 .3 7:1 until th e adve nt of te le vis io n in th e 1950s. Alt h ough TV p ro vid ed a n ew m ark e t fo r o ld m ovie s, it a ls o g ave a udie nce s th e 57 opportu nit y to e njo y a udio vis u al e nte rta in m ent w it h out le avin g th eir hom es. S o a s a w ay o f o ffe rin g p eople s o m eth in g th ey c o uld n ot g et fo r fr e e in th eir liv in g ro om s, H olly w ood e m phasiz e d th e e norm it y o f motio n p ic tu re s cre ens b y d eve lo pin g te ch nolo gie s th at w id ened th e im age fa r b eyo nd th e 1 .3 7:1 A ca dem y r a tio .

CIN EM ASC O PE , in tr o duce d b y 2 0th C entu ry -F ox fo r th e b ib lic a l d ra m a The R obe (1 953), u se d w hat is ca lle d a n AN AM ORPH IC LE N S o n th e ca m era to sq ueeze a ve ry wid e im age onto each fr a m e of sta ndard siz e d film s to ck a nd a noth er a nam orp hic le ns o n th e p ro je cto r to s p re ad it b ack o ut a gain . C in em aS co pe’s a sp ect ra tio u se d to b e 2.3 5:1 ; it w as la te r a dju ste d to 2 .4 0:1 .

PAN AVIS IO N , a noth er s yste m w it h a 2 .4 0:1 r a tio , is th e m ost c o m monly u se d a nam orp hic p ro ce ss to day.

There w ere s till o th er WID ESC REEN p ro ce sse s in th e 1 950s, in clu din g CIN ER AM A a nd VIS TA VIS IO N . C in era m a u se d th re e in te rlo cke d c a m era s to re co rd th re e se para te im ages whic h , when pro je cte d acro ss a sp ecia lly cu rv e d scre en, yie ld ed a sin gle co ntin uous w id escre en im age w it h an asp ect ra tio of 2.7 7:1 . The fir s t film re le ase d in Cin era m a w as a dis p la y of th e pro ce ss ca lle d This Is C in era m a (1 952). It w as an enorm ous box offic e su cce ss, but th e pro ce ss pro ve d to o cu m bers o m e, not only fo r film make rs but als o fo r exh ib it o rs , w ho h ad to fit th e h uge c u rv e d s cre en in to th eir th eate rs in ord er to sh ow Cin era m a film s, whic h were m ostly tr a ve lo gues.

More ove r, eve ry th eate r had to be outfit te d w it h th re e se para te pro je ctio n b ooth s, e ach s ta ffe d b y tw o p eople . C in era m a, in s h ort, w as an e xp ensiv e p ro posit io n fo r e xh ib it o rs . O nly tw o n arra tiv e film s w ere made in th re e-s tr ip C in era m a:

The W onderfu l W orld o f th e B ro th ers Grim m a nd How th e W est W as W on ( b oth 1 962).

1 Vis ta V is io n, d eve lo ped b y P ara m ount P ic tu re s, w as fir s t u se d fo r th e 1 954 film Whit e C hris tm as . In ste ad o f th e film fr a m es ru nnin g ve rtic a lly on th e ce llu lo id , w it h th e sp ro cke t hole s on th e sid es, Vis ta V is io n’s fr a m es ra n h oriz o nta lly ; th e s p ro cke t h ole s w ere o n th e to p a nd b otto m o f e ach fr a m e. T his s yste m y ie ld ed a n a sp ect ra tio o f 1.5 :1 , th ough m ost Vis ta V is io n film s use d MATTE S or MASKIN G to pro duce ra tio s fr o m 1 .6 6:1 a nd 1 .8 5:1 to 2 :1 . S till a noth er w id escre en pro ce ss w as Todd-A O (n am ed fo r th e p ro duce r M ik e T odd a nd th e 58 Am eric a n O ptic a l C om pany), w it h a n a sp ect ra tio o f 2 .2 0:1 ; T odd-A O was a n e arly 7 0m m p ro ce ss, w here as th e o th ers u se d 3 5m m film .

FIG URE 3 .1 A n a nam orp hic fr a m e a s it lo oks to th e n ake d e ye — Sca ry M ovie 3 ( 2 003).

(P hoto fe st) FIG URE 3 .2 T he s a m e a nam orp hic fr a m e a s it lo oks p ro je cte d o nto th e s cre en— Agent Thom pso n ( J a R ule ) a nd P re sid ent H arris ( L eslie N ie ls e n). ( P hoto fe st) FIG URE 3 .3 C in era m a w it h a n a sp ect r a tio o f 2 .7 7:1 .

59 FIG URE 3 .4 V is ta V is io n w it h a n a sp ect r a tio o f 1 .8 5:1 .

FIG URE 3 .5 T he fu ll fr a m e a t th e A ca dem y r a tio , 1 .3 7:1 . K now in g th at th e to p a nd b otto m portio ns o f th e im age w ill b e m aske d w hen th e film is p ro je cte d, th e d ir e cto r d oesn ’t c a re th at th e b oom is v is ib le a t th e to p o f th e im age a nd e le ctr ic a l c o rd s c a n b e s e en a t th e b otto m .

FIG URE 3 .6 T he s a m e fr a m e m aske d a t 1 .8 5:1 ; th e h atc h m ark s in dic a te th e p arts o f th e im age th at w ere p hoto gra phed d urin g s h ootin g b ut a re m aske d w hen p ro je cte d o nto th e scre en. N ow th at th e im age h as b een p ro perly m aske d, th e c o m posit io n m ake s v is u al s e nse ; 60 th e film makin g e quip m ent s till e xis ts o n th e c e llu lo id , b ut it c a n’t b e s e en o n th e s cre en.

Sim ply m askin g th e im age w as— and c o ntin ues to b e— th e e asie st way to p ro duce a w id escre en e ffe ct. M askin g m eans c o ve rin g th e to p and b otto m o f th e im age w it h a n apertu re p la te in th e p ro je cto r in ord er to p ro duce a ny o f a n um ber o f w id escre en a sp ect r a tio s.

ASPEC T R ATIO : F O RM A ND M EA NIN G Unle ss y o u a re a n a sp ir in g film d ir e cto r o r CIN EM ATO GRAPH ER , y o u m ay fin d yo urs e lf a skin g w hat th e p oin t o f a ll th ese a sp ect ra tio s is . If le arn in g a bout th e v a rie ty o f c in em atic a sp ect r a tio s w ere ju st a m atte r of m em oriz in g te ch nic a l sp ecif ic a tio ns, th e le sso n w ould b e a ll b ut use le ss. But th e sh ape of eve ry film is basic to it s exp re ssiv e meanin g. E ach a sp ect ra tio y ie ld s a d if fe re nt w ay o f lo okin g a t th e world . It is m eanin g, r a th er th an ju st n um bers , th at’s im porta nt.

If y o u w atc h film s o n D VD , y o u m ay h ave c o m e a cro ss th e te rm s LE TTE R BO X and LE TTE R BO XIN G . Lette rb oxin g m eans pre se rv in g th e orig in al a sp ect ra tio o f a w id escre en film w hen tr a nsfe rrin g th e film to DVD o r b ro adca stin g it o n te le vis io n. L ette rb oxe d film s h ave b la nk are as above and belo w th e im age, m akin g th e im age’s sh ape re se m ble a b usin ess e nve lo pe, o r le tte r. D esp it e th e ris e in s a le s o f wid escre en, fla ts cre en te le vis io ns, m any T V s s till m ain ta in a n a sp ect ra tio o f 1 .3 3:1 , a nd b ro adca ste rs a s w ell a s v id eo d is tr ib uto rs o fte n sim ply c h op o ff th e s id es o f w id escre en film s in o rd er to fit th e im age to th e a lm ost- s q uare s cre en. R ath er lik e s la sh in g o ff th e e dges o f a pain tin g s o it fit s a p re exis tin g fr a m e, th is c ru de p ra ctic e r u in s m ovie s.

When y o u w atc h film s m ade a fte r 1 954 o n D VD , y o u s h ould a lw ays make s u re th at th ey a re le tte rb oxe d.

To s e e w hy, c o nsid er th e d if fe re nce s b etw een fig ure s 3 .7 a nd 3.8 :

In fig ure 3 .7 , a w om an is s e en in c lo se -u p. W e c a n re ad h er fa cia l exp re ssio n cle arly : sh e is fr ig hte ned at w hat sh e is se ein g. B ut beca use th e a sp ect ra tio is 1 .3 7:1 , th ere is n o ro om in th e im age to main ta in b oth a c lo se p ro xim it y to h er fa ce a nd, a t th e s a m e tim e, to se e w hat s h e is lo okin g a t. T o re ve al th at in fo rm atio n, th e d ir e cto r 61 would h ave e it h er to m ove th e c a m era o r c u t to a noth er s h ot.

Fig ure 3.8 , w it h a n a sp ect ra tio o f 2 .4 0:1 , n ot o nly p ro vid es th e e m otio nal in te nsit y o f th e w om an’s c lo se up b ut a ls o re ve als w hat s h e is s e ein g in th e s a m e im age . P le ase n ote : n eit h er im age is s u perio r. T here is n o sin gle , co rre ct w ay o f fr a m in g a nd film in g th is s h ot, o r any s h ot. O ne dir e cto r m ay p re fe r to s h oot in th e n arro w er a sp ect ra tio o f 1 .3 7:1 , while a noth er m ay c h oose th e w id er, m ore e xp ansiv e 2 .4 0:1 . It’s a matte r o f p ers o nal s ty le . T here is , h ow eve r, a s in gle a nd c o rre ct w ay of sh ow in g a g iv e n film : if it w as film ed w it h a n a sp ect r a tio o f 2 .4 0:1 , it sh ould b e s h ow n a nd s e en o nly in 2 .4 0:1 .

FIG URE 3 .7 A n on-le tte rb oxe d v id eo im age, c h opped o ff s o it c o nfo rm s to th e s h ape o f a te le vis io n s cre en.

FIG URE 3 .8 P ro perly le tte rb oxe d o n v id eo a nd r e sto re d to it s o rig in al c in em atic a sp ect r a tio , th e s a m e s h ot m ake s n arra tiv e a s w ell a s v is u al s e nse o nce m ore .

62 The p oin t is th is : e ach a sp ect ra tio b rin gs w it h it a s e t o f a esth etic , exp re ssiv e co nse quence s. A s a ke y fa ce t o f m is e -e n-s ce ne, e ach film ’s asp ect ra tio pre se nts a kin d of cre ativ e lim it a tio n to th e film make rs — ra th er lik e th e way in whic h th e 14-lin e, ia m bic penta m ete r fo rm o f a s o nnet o ffe rs a p oet a s tr ic t fr a m ew ork in w hic h to w rit e . If, fo r e xa m ple , a d ir e cto r ch oose s to film in P anavis io n’s 2.4 0:1 a sp ect ra tio b ut w ants to c re ate th e im pre ssio n o f c ra m ped sp ace s, s h e m ust fo llo w th ro ugh b y s o m ehow c o unte rb ala ncin g th e exp ansiv e n atu re o f th e e xtr a -w id escre en p ro ce ss— cro w din g h er s e ts wit h obje cts , sa y, and blo ckin g her acto rs to m ove clo se r to one anoth er. ( Blo ckin g is a te rm d eriv e d fr o m th eate r a nd s im ply m eans pla nnin g w here a nd w hen a cto rs m ove a ro und th e s ta ge o r film s e t.) It’s a ll a q uestio n o f co m posit io n —th e a rra ngem ent o f p eople a nd th in gs w it h in th e re cta ngula r fr a m e. C onve rs e ly , a dir e cto r m ay ch oose to film in 1.3 7:1 , th e A ca dem y ra tio , and ye t cre ate th e im pre ssio n o f s p atia l e m ptin ess b y c o nsis te ntly fr a m in g h is c h ara cte rs at a dis ta nce fr o m one anoth er, ke epin g th e se t desig n re la tiv e ly sp are , a nd re fr a in in g fr o m im age-fillin g d evic e s su ch a s clo se -u ps.

Once a gain , it ’s a m atte r o f c re atin g e xp re ssiv e c o m posit io ns th at a re co here nt a nd m eanin gfu l th ro ughout th e film .

As y o u b egin to n otic e th e a sp ect ra tio o f th e film s y o u s e e, a sk yo urs e lf w hat re la tio n th e sh ape o f th e im age h as to w hat yo u’r e fe elin g a nd w hat th e film is s u btly e xp re ssin g s im ply b y w ay o f it s sh ape.

LIG HTIN G Consid er h ow fu tile it w ould b e to film a s ce ne s e t in a p it c h b la ck ro om . T here c a n b e n o c in em ato gra phy— or s till p hoto gra phy, fo r th at matte r— wit h out lig ht. T he lig ht s o urc e m ay b e o nly a fla m in g m atc h , so m e s p ark s, th e tip o f a c ig are tte , o r a b it o f lig ht s h in in g in th ro ugh th e gap betw een a door and th e flo or, but w it h out so m e fo rm of lig htin g n oth in g c a n b e r e gis te re d o n film .

Film s tu die s, a t le ast o n th e in tr o ducto ry le ve l, is le ss c o nce rn ed 63 wit h th e te ch nic a l m eans b y w hic h lig htin g e ffe cts a re c re ate d th an wit h th eir e xp re ssiv e re su lt s . Y our g oal a t th is p oin t is n ot to tr y to dete rm in e h ow a g iv e n e ffe ct w as c re ate d b y a c in em ato gra pher b ut ra th er to begin to appre cia te th e w ay in w hic h th at effe ct bears meanin g . Im agin e film in g a s ce ne s e t in a c o urtr o om , w here a w om an sta nds a ccu se d o f m urd erin g h er h usb and. Y ou c o uld lig ht th e s ce ne any num ber of w ays, dependin g on th e partic u la r sto ry yo u w ere te llin g a nd th e m ood y o u w ante d to c re ate . Y ou m ig ht s u ggest th at ju stic e w as b ein g s e rv e d, fo r in sta nce , b y lig htin g th e ro om b rig htly and w arm ly , w it h s u n s tr e am in g in th ro ugh u nblin ded w in dow s. O n th e oth er hand, yo u m ig ht w ant to genera te so m e vis u al te nsio n to su ggest th at th e d efe ndant h as b een u nju stly c h arg ed w it h th e c rim e, in w hic h c a se y o u c o uld lig ht th e ro om v e ry u neve nly ; a s o rt o f g ra y lig ht c o uld s h in e th ro ugh h alf - c lo se d V enetia n b lin ds in th e w in dow s, and a fe w b lu is h flu ore sce nt lig hts o ve rh ead c o uld s h in e d ow n o n th e co urtr o om to cre ate a ro om fu ll o f sh adow s. O ne th in g yo u w ould pro bably not w ant to d o is s im ply u se th e lig hts th at a re a va ila ble in a re al c o urtr o om a nd n oth in g m ore . W hy n ot? B eca use th e e xp re ssiv e re su lt s w ould b e le ft e ntir e ly to c h ance . Y ou m ig ht fin d, w hen y o u g et th e film b ack fr o m th e p ro ce ssin g la b, th at w hat lo oke d g re at in a r e al co urtr o om d oesn ’t lo ok n early a s g ood o n film : s h adow s th at w ere n’t notic e able in th e r e al r o om m ay a ppear in th e film ed s ce ne, a nd th ere mig ht b e a re as o f o ve re xp osu re a s w ell. E ve n m ore im porta nt, th e ava ila ble lig htin g in a re al co urtr o om m ig ht n ot e xp re ss a rtis tic a lly what y o u w ant to s a y.

TH REE-P O IN T L IG HTIN G The fir s t m otio n p ic tu re s w ere lit b y th e m ost p ow erfu l lig ht s o urc e in th e s o la r s yste m — th e s u n. N ot o nly w ere m any o f th ese m ovie s s e t outd oors , b ut e ve n in te rio r s e ts , to o, w ere c o nstr u cte d in th e o pen a ir sim ply so th at th ere w ould be str o ng enough lig htin g to re gis te r im ages c le arly o n film . T he d eve lo pm ent o f m ore lig ht- s e nsit iv e film sto cks, to geth er w it h m ore p ow erfu l e le ctr ic lig hts , e nable d film make rs to b e m uch le ss d ependent o n d ir e ct s u nlig ht a s th eir c h ie f s o urc e o f 64 illu m in atio n.

The m ost b asic lig htin g s e tu p is k n ow n a s th re e-p oin t lig htin g, w hic h co nsis ts o f a key lig ht , a fill lig ht , a nd a backlig ht . T he ke y lig ht ( A in fig . 3 .9 ) a im s d ir e ctly a t th e s u bje ct— most lik e ly th e m ain c h ara cte r o r obje ct in th e s h ot— and is th e b rig hte st lig ht s o urc e fo r th e s h ot. T he fill lig ht (B ) is a s o fte r lig ht, a nd is u su ally p la ce d o pposit e th e k e y lig ht; th e fill lig ht c u ts d ow n o n s h adow s c re ate d b y th e b rig ht k e y lig ht. A nd th e backlig ht (C ) s h in es b ehin d th e s u bje ct o r o bje ct, s e para tin g h im , her, o r it fr o m th e b ackg ro und— in o th er w ord s, e nhancin g th e s e nse of d epth in th e sh ot. B ackli g htin g so m etim es cre ate s a h alo e ffe ct aro und a c h ara cte r’s h ead, p artic u la rly a t th e e dges o f th e h air .

The te rm ke y lig ht is th e s o urc e o f tw o c o m monly u se d a dje ctiv e s:

lo w k e y a nd hig h k e y . T o c a ll s o m eth in g hig h k e y is to s a y th at it ’s in te nse , where as lo w ke y m eans su bdued. The ove rly ch eerfu l atm osp here o f a te le vis io n g am e s h ow w ould b e d escrib ed a s hig h ke y , w here as th e s m oky m ood o f a ja zz c lu b w ould b e c a lle d lo w k e y.

These exp re ssio ns co m e fr o m cin em ato gra phy. When cin em ato gra phers , a ls o k n ow n a s d ir e cto rs o f p hoto gra phy (D Ps) u se a h ig h p ro portio n o f fill lig ht to k e y lig ht, it ’s c a lle d h ig h-k e y lig htin g; th e effe ct is both brig hte r and m ore eve n th an w hen th ey use a lo w pro portio n o f fill lig ht to k e y li g ht, w hic h is c a lle d lo w -k e y lig htin g. T he lo w er ke y th e lig ht, th e m ore sh adow y th e effe ct. T he dis to rtin g, sp ooky n atu re o f e xtr e m ely lo w -k e y lig htin g is p erfe ctly illu str a te d b y a tr ic k a lm ost e ve ry c h ild h as p la ye d: in th e d ark , y o u s h in e a fla sh lig ht up a t y o ur fa ce fr o m b elo w y o ur c h in . T hat fla sh lig ht w as y o ur k e y lig ht, a nd s in ce th ere w as n o fill lig ht a t a ll, th e p ro portio n o f fill to k e y was a s lo w a s y o u c o uld g et.

To h am mer th e p oin t h om e: th e o bje ct is n ot to d ete rm in e w here th e ke y lig ht w as o n th e s e t, o r w hat th e re al p ro portio n o f fill lig ht to k e y lig ht w as, or w heth er th ere w as so m e to p lig htin g (lig htin g fr o m ove rh ead). In ste ad, y o ur g oals a re to n otic e th e effe cts o f th e lig htin g in a g iv e n s ce ne, to d escrib e th ese e ffe cts a ccu ra te ly , a nd to v e ntu re analy tic a lly s o m e id eas a bout w hat th e e ffe cts m ean. S ee th e S tu dy Guid e, b elo w , fo r tip s o n h ow to r e ach th ese g oals .

65 FIG URE 3 .9 T hre e-p oin t lig htin g: k e y lig ht ( A ), fill lig ht ( B ), b acklig ht ( C ).

Brig ht, eve n hig h-k e y lig htin g is ofte n use d in co m edie s and music a ls to e nhance a s e nse o f liv e lin ess a nd h ig h e nerg y ( fig . 3 .1 0 ).

2 Conve rs e ly , th e s h adow s c re ate d b y lo w -k e y lig htin g ( fig . 3 .1 1 ) w ork so w ell in m yste rie s a nd h orro r film s th at th ey h ave lo ng b een a n im porta nt c o nve ntio n o f th ose GEN RES . A nd o f c o urs e m any film s u se a co m bin atio n o f h ig h-k e y a nd lo w -k e y s e tu ps, d ependin g o n th e n atu re of th e in div id ual sce ne. Im agin e a w este rn outla w , fo r in sta nce , walk in g fr o m a b rillia ntly lit , h ig h-k e y e xte rio r in to a d ark e r, m ore lo w - ke y s a lo on. T he d ir e cto r m ig ht b e c o ntr a stin g th e e xte rn al w orld o f brig ht n atu re w it h th e c o nfin in g, d ark e r, in te rio r w orld o f c iv iliz a tio n.

66 FIG URES 3 .1 0 H ig h-k e y lig htin g a nd lo w -k e y lig htin g: In th e p ublic it y s till fr o m E rn st Lubit s ch ’s m usic a l- c o m edy The M erry W id ow ( 1 934) ( fig . 3 .1 0), th e im age is a bla ze in brillia nt, e ve n lig ht s h in in g n ot o nly o n th e c h ara cte r ( J e anette M cD onald ) b ut a ls o o n h er su rro undin gs— th e c a rp et, th e w alls , a nd th e r id ic u lo us b ed. T he fa ct th at th e s e t is a lm ost co m ple te ly w hit e o nly a dds to th e im age’s lu m in ous q ualit y ; h ad th e fill lig htin g b een le ss in te nse , th e e ffe ct o f a ll th at w hit e ness w ould h ave b een g re atly d im in is h ed b y s h adow s.

It’s im porta nt to u nders ta nd th at th e h ig h-k e y e xte rio r— in th is c a se , th e o uts id e o f th e s a lo on— was p ro bably film ed u sin g a rtif ic ia l lig htin g as w ell a s a ctu al s u nlig ht; a udie nce s n eve r s e e th e m any REFLE C TO RS and LA M PS th at th e film make rs h ave a im ed a t th e o utla w c h ara cte r a s he w alk s to w ard th e s a lo on’s s w in gin g w ooden d oors s o a s to e ve n out th e s h adow s th at w ould h ave re su lt e d if th e b rig ht m id day s u n ove rh ead h ad b een th e o nly lig ht s o urc e .

67 FIG URES 3 .1 1 T he s till fr o m J o hn F ord ’s d ow nbeat d ra m a The F ugit iv e ( 1 947)(fig . 3 .1 1) dem onstr a te s th e o pposit e e ffe ct o f lo w -k e y lig htin g. H ere , th e k e y lig ht s h in es o nto o nly h alf th e fa ce o f th e c e ntr a l c h ara cte r ( H enry F onda), le avin g th e o th er h alf in d ark n ess. T he sh adow o f th e p ris o n b ar c o uld h ave b een r e duce d o r e ve n e lim in ate d h ad F ord w ante d th e ch ara cte r’s fa ce to b e b rig htly a nd e ve nly lit , b ut th at w as c le arly n ot h is e xp re ssiv e in te nt. A nd th ere is lit tle if a ny b acklig htin g, s o th e to p o f th e c h ara cte r’s h ead a ll b ut b le nds in w it h th e co m ple te ly u nlit b ack w all.

FIL M S TO CKS: S U PER 8 T O 7 0M M T O V ID EO DPs a re in c h arg e o f s e le ctin g th e ty p e o f FIL M S TO CK —ra w , u nexp ose d fo ota ge— th at is u se d to m ake a g iv e n film . F ilm s to ck is c a te goriz e d in se ve ra l w ays: ( 1 ) b y gau ge ; ( 2 ) b y ty p e ; (a nd 3 ) b y exp osu re in dex .

The film ’s gauge is sim ply it s w id th , w hic h ra nges in sta ndard iz e d in cre m ents fr o m 7 0m m, th e w id est, th ro ugh 6 5m m, 3 5m m, a nd 1 6m m, to th e n arro w est— Super 8 m m a nd 8 m m. ( In p oin t o f fa ct, 7 0m m film s are a ctu ally s h ot in 6 5m m; th e a dded fiv e m illim ete rs c o m es fr o m th e so undtr a ck.) T he g auge fo r m ost th eatr ic a l film re le ase s is 3 5m m. In genera l, th e w id er th e g auge, th e b ette r th e p ic tu re q ualit y . M otio n pic tu re film c o nta in s a fle xib le base —it h as to b e fle xib le s o it c a n r u n th ro ugh c a m era s a nd p ro je cto rs — th e s u rfa ce o f w hic h is c o ve re d w it h 68 an em uls io n . S o w hen th e film is sh ot, a w id er g auge h as m ore su rfa ce a re a, a nd th ere fo re m ore e m uls io n o n w hic h to r e co rd th e lig ht patte rn s th at fo rm th e im age. S eco nd, w hen th e film is p ro je cte d, a wid er gauge has m ore su rfa ce are a th ro ugh w hic h to sh in e th e pro je cto r’s lig ht b eam , th ere by y ie ld in g a c le are r, le ss g ra in y im age th an a n arro w g auge film p ro je cte d o n th e s a m e la rg e s cre en. A s w it h sn apsh ots , th e m ore y o u a tte m pt to b lo w u p a s m all im age to g re ate r and g re ate r p ro portio ns, th e g ra in ie r th e r e su lt w ill b e.

There a re fiv e ty p es o f film s to ck:

bla ck-a n d-w hit e n eg ativ e, c o lo r neg ativ e, in te rm ed ia te sto ck, bla ck-a n d-w hit e prin t , and co lo r prin t .

Negativ e film is film th at is ru n th ro ugh a c a m era a nd e xp ose d to lig ht fr a m e b y fr a m e. T he im ages c o nta in ed o n it a re in ve rte d in tw o ways: th ey a re u psid e d ow n, a nd th eir to nes a re r e ve rs e d. B la ck-a nd- whit e n egativ e h as d ark a re as in p la ce o f lig ht a re as, a nd v ic e v e rs a , and c o lo r n egativ e h as m agenta in p la ce o f g re en, y e llo w in p la ce o f blu e, a nd c ya n ( b lu egre en) in p la ce o f r e d. P ro ce ssin g th is film c re ate s a posit iv e p rin t , w hic h r e ve rs e s th e to nes b ack to n orm al. In te rm edia te sto cks— in te rn egativ e and in te rp osit iv e —are use d durin g postp ro ductio n.

Exp osu re in dex r e fe rs to th e film ’s s e nsit iv it y to lig ht. It’s a ls o c a lle d film sp eed . S o-c a lle d slo w film re quir e s lo nger exp osu re to lig ht, where as fa st film n eeds a m uch b rie fe r e xp osu re . A k e y c o nse quence of th e d ecis io n to u se a fa ste r o r s lo w er s to ck is th e d egre e o f co ntr a st one d esir e s. F aste r s to ck y ie ld s h ig her c o ntr a st— brig ht a re as a re v e ry brig ht a nd d ark a re as a re ve ry d ark — where as slo w er sto ck yie ld s lo w er c o ntr a st.

BLA CK, W HIT E , G RAY, A ND C O LO R Alm ost a ll n arra tiv e film s p ro duce d to day a re s h ot in c o lo r. T oday’s audie nce s are so use d to se ein g co lo r cin em ato gra phy th at th ey so m etim es fa il to a ppre cia te th e b eauty a nd ra nge o f b la ck-a nd-w hit e film makin g.

It m ay s u rp ris e y o u to le arn th at m any s ile nt film s w ere re le ase d in co lo r, th ough n ot th e k in d o f c o lo r y o u a re u se d to s e ein g. T hro ugh th e 69 re la te d p ro ce sse s o f tin tin g a nd to nin g , c in em ato gra phers tu rn ed th e gra ys in to e qually m onoch ro m atic b lu es o r s e pia s (lig ht b ro w ns) o r re ds.

Tin tin g m eans d ye in g th e film ’s b ase ; to nin g m eans d ye in g o ne co m ponent in th e em uls io n. In te rio rs and la ndsca pes would so m etim es b e tin te d s e pia . N ig ht s ce nes w ere o fte n tin te d o r to ned blu e, a nd in fa ct th is c o nve ntio n b eca m e s o s ta ndard th at s u ch s ce nes were o fte n film ed in b ro ad d aylig ht w it h th e e xp ecta tio n th at th ey would b e tin te d la te r.

Colo r c in em ato gra phy b egan, in a w ay, in 1 903, w hen a F re nch film co m pany, P ath é, b egan h and-s te ncilin g co lo rs o nto e ach fr a m e o f film . C olo r film s to ck, h ow eve r, w as n ot c o m monly u se d in c o m merc ia l film makin g u ntil th e 1 930s a nd 1 940s, w hen a fa m ous c o m pany c a lle d Tech nic o lo r b egan to p ut it s th re e-c o lo r p ro ce ssin g s yste m to w id e use . T ech nic o lo r, w hic h w as a ctu ally fo unded in 1 915, u se d fir s t a tw o-c o lo r a nd la te r, m uch m ore e xte nsiv e ly , a th re e-s tr ip s yste m to re nder s u pers a tu ra te d c o lo rs o n m otio n p ic tu re film . L ig ht e nte re d th e ca m era ’s le ns, but in ste ad of re gis te rin g an im age m ore or le ss dir e ctly onto film sto ck, it passe d in ste ad th ro ugh a pris m th at se para te d it in to re d, g re en, a nd b lu e va lu es, e ach o f w hic h w as re gis te re d on it s ow n sto ck; la te r, th ese str ip s w ere dye d and pro ce sse d o nto a s in gle s tr ip o f c o lo r s to ck. (In p oin t o f fa ct, c a llin g Tech nic o lo r film “ c o lo r s to ck” is in accu ra te ; th e p ro ce ss o rig in ally u se d bla ck-a nd-w hit e s to ck w it h filt e rs fo r e ach o f th re e c o lo rs , a nd re le ase prin ts w ere m ade o n b la nk, b la ck-a nd-w hit e s to ck o n w hic h c o lo r d ye s were s ta m ped. C olo r n egativ e w as n ot u se d u ntil th e la te 1 940s a nd 1950s.) Bla ck-a nd-w hit e c in em ato gra phy is in accu ra te ly n am ed. In fa ct, it ’s monoch ro m atic , m eanin g th at it is co m pris e d o f a sin gle co lo r— usu ally gra y— in a va rie ty of sh ades. F ro m th e la te 1930s to th e 1960s, film make rs sa w th e d if fe re nce b etw een b la ck a nd w hit e o r co lo r c in em ato gra phy a s a m atte r o f c h oic e , th e d ecis io n b ein g b ase d on eco nom ic as well as aesth etic fa cto rs . Tech nic o lo r was an exp ensiv e p ro ce ss, a ddin g a bout 2 5 p erc e nt m ore to th e c o st o f a n ave ra ge film p ro ductio n. A t th e sa m e tim e, co st w as n ot th e o nly is su e, sin ce ce rta in genre s— most nota bly th e grit ty , urb an genre kn ow n as film noir — work e d partic u la rly w ell in bla ck and w hit e , 70 where as o th ers — la vis h m usic a ls a nd c o stu m e d ra m as, fo r in sta nce — were b ette r su it e d to co lo r. T he d eve lo pm ent o f E astm an C olo r, a sim ple r a nd le ss e xp ensiv e c o lo r s yste m , in 1 952 le d to m ore a nd more film s b ein g m ade in c o lo r, a nd e ve ntu ally a rtis tic c h oic e g ave way to a udie nce e xp ecta tio n. A t th is p oin t in th e tw enty -fir s t c e ntu ry , bla ck-a ndw hit e cin em ato gra phy is ra re ly em plo ye d in co m merc ia l film makin g.

A W ORD O R T W O A BO UT L E N SES Beca use m ost if n ot a ll o f th e m ovie s y o u h ave s e en in y o ur lif e h ave not b een fu ll o f d is to rte d v is u als — th ey d on’t re fle ct th e w orld th e w ay a fu nhouse m ir ro r w ould — yo u m ay a ssu m e th at th ere is s u ch a th in g as a norm al le ns, a nd th at m ost film s a re s h ot w it h it . B ut th is is n ot th e c a se . In fa ct, m ost film make rs u se a w id e v a rie ty o f le nse s d urin g th e c o urs e o f s h ootin g a n in div id ual film . W hile m ost o f th ese le nse s yie ld im ages th at re se m ble “n orm al” h um an v is io n, th e w ord norm al means s o m eth in g e xtr e m ely v a rie d in th is c o nte xt; th e h um an e ye is re m ark a bly fle xib le a nd c re ate s a n e norm ous v a rie ty o f e ffe cts w it h out our b ein g a w are o f th e m in ute p hysic a l c h anges th e e ye p erfo rm s.

Lense s are not nearly as adapta ble . They are hard pie ce s of unbendable g la ss, a nd th ey n eed to b e c h anged fr e quently to c re ate th e im pre ssio n o f a ppare ntly s im ple , s o ca lle d “ n orm al” v is io n.

Look a t th e b ook y o u a re r e adin g. F ocu s o n th e p rin t o f th is word in th is se nte nce . N otic e th at e ve n th e o th er w ord s su rro undin g it a re so m ew hat o ut o f fo cu s, le t a lo ne th e e dges o f th e b ook, th e d esk a t whic h yo u a re sit tin g, a nd th e su rro undin g ro om . T here is n oth in g abnorm al a bout th is p artic u la r v ie w o f th e w orld , is th ere ? It’s s p ecif ic , but it ’s n ot a t a ll u nusu al.

Now fo cu s o n a w hole p ara gra ph. T he p rin t is in fo cu s (m ore o r le ss), but in div id ual w ord s are so m ehow not. This vie w is als o partic u la r b ut n ot s tr a nge lo okin g. L ook a t th e p age a s a w hole w it h th is co nce pt in m in d. L ook u p fr o m th e b ook, fo cu s o n a n o bje ct nearb y, a nd n otic e th at w hile y o u c a n s e e th e re st o f th e ro om , th e obje ct yo u have se le cte d se em s cle are r th an th in gs in th e 71 backg ro und. L ook o ut a w in dow ( if y o u c a n) a t s o m eth in g o r s o m eone in th e d is ta nce , a nd lit e ra lly se e th e w ay y o ur e ye s a uto m atic a lly b rin g th at o bje ct o r p ers o n in to c le ar fo cu s w hile th e o bje cts in th e ro om beco m e fu zzie r, le ss dis tin ct. A ll of th ese vis u als are yo ur eye s’ su cce ssfu l a tte m pts to s e le ct o bje cts fo r y o ur a tte ntio n. N one o f th em is d is to rte d in a ny w ay, b ut e ach o f th em is d if fe re nt.

In ord er to guid e yo ur eye s to partic u la r people and th in gs onscre en, film make rs m ust u se in div id ual le nse s th at a re s u it e d to ce rta in a pplic a tio ns. T here is n o n eed fo r y o u to le arn th e te ch nic a l te rm s fo r m ost o f th e le nse s u se d in m otio n p ic tu re p ro ductio n, b ut a fe w o f th e b asic c o nce pts a re w orth k n ow in g.

Ju st a s y o ur e ye s k e ep o bje cts a t a c e rta in d is ta nce in fo cu s w hile th e r e st o f th e r o om s e em s to b lu r, s o e ve ry le ns h as w hat is k n ow n a s a s p ecif ic dep th o f fie ld —th e a re a o f th e im age b etw een fo re gro und and b ackg ro und th at re m ain s in fo cu s. If, fo r e xa m ple , a film make r wants to d ir e ct y o ur a tte ntio n to a p artic u la r ro w o f s p ecta to rs in a cro w ded fo otb all s ta diu m , s h e a nd h er D P m ig ht c h oose a le ns w it h th at p artic u la r d epth o f fie ld ; e ve ry o ne b ehin d th at ro w a nd in fr o nt o f th at r o w w ould b e s lig htly o ut o f fo cu s.

In s o m e in sta nce s, film make rs c h oose to s h oot in w hat is c a lle d deep fo cu s, w hic h m eans th at o bje cts n ear th e c a m era , m id w ay, a nd fa r fr o m th e c a m era a re a ll in s h arp fo cu s. In a d eep fo cu s s h ot, w e ca n s e e o bje cts a nd/o r c h ara cte rs in a ll th re e p la nes in e qually c le ar fo cu s. A n um ber o f s h ots in Cit iz e n K ane a re in d eep fo cu s; Cit iz e n Kane ’s c in em ato gra pher, G re gg T ola nd, p io neere d th e te ch niq ue.

Lense s ru n in a s p ectr u m fr o m WID E-A N G LE T O T E LE PH O TO . A wid e- angle le ns h as a w id e d epth o f fie ld , w hic h m eans th at o bje cts in th e fo re gro und, m id dle gro und, and backg ro und are all in fo cu s. A te le photo le ns , o n th e o th er h and, h as a n arro w d epth o f fie ld , a s it appears to brin g dis ta nt obje cts clo se r. A le ns th at is ca pable of sh if tin g fr o m w id e-a ngle to te le photo a nd b ack is c a lle d a ZO OM L E N S .

Unlik e fo rw ard a nd re ve rs e tr a ckin g s h ots , z o om s h ots d o n ot in vo lv e movin g th e c a m era th ro ugh s p ace . A nd fin ally , a ra ck fo cu s s h ot (s o m etim es c a lle d a fo cu s p ull ) c h anges th e p la ne o f fo cu s w it h in th e sh ot b y w ay o f a c h ange in fo cu s, ra th er th an b y w ay o f a z o om . F or in sta nce , a c h ara cte r in th e fo re gro und is in s h arp fo cu s; h e h ears a 72 nois e a nd tu rn s to lo ok a t th e fa r b ackg ro und; th e fo cu s th en s h if ts — th e m an beco m es blu rry w hile a ca r exp lo din g in th e dis ta nce beco m es cle ar. N otic e th e d if fe re nce b etw een a zo om a nd a ra ck fo cu s: in a z o om , a ll th e d epth p la nes re m ain in fo cu s, w here as in a ra ck fo cu s o nly o ne p la ne a t a tim e is c le ar a nd s h arp .

FIG URE 3 .1 2 D eep fo cu s in Cit iz e n K ane ( 1 941): a ll p la nes o f d epth a re in fo cu s— th e w om an in th e fo re gro und, th e m an s ta ndin g in th e n ear-m id dle g ro und, th e w in dow fr a m e a nd w all in th e b ackg ro und, a nd e ve n th e b oy p la yin g o uts id e in th e s n ow in th e fa r b ackg ro und ( fr a m e enla rg em ent) .

STU DY G UID E:

A N ALY ZIN G C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y To b egin to a naly ze th e v a rio us c o m ponents o f c in em ato gra phy, g et a film o n D VD , ra ndom ly se le ct a sce ne, and fr e eze fr a m e any im age th at str ik e s yo u as w orth purs u in g in d eta il.

Fir s t, n otic e th e a sp ect ra tio . C an y o u te ll w hat a sp ect ra tio it is b y s ig ht? P ro bably not, th ough yo u ca n ce rta in ly dis tin guis h a w id escre en film fr o m one sh ot in th e Aca dem y r a tio .

Alt h ough th e u se o f fr e eze fr a m in g h as it s d ra w backs— what, a fte r a ll, is a m otio n pic tu re w it h out m otio n?— yo u c a n te ll a lo t a bout a s h ot fr o m a n in div id ual fr a m e. In te rm s o f c o m posit io n, h ow d o th e p eople a nd o bje cts in th e im age re la te to th e film ’s asp ect ra tio ? A re th ey c e nte re d, o r c lu ste re d o n o ne s id e, o r s p re ad o ut a cro ss th e 73 exp anse o f th e s cre en? (If it ’s a w id escre en film , im agin e w hat it w ould lo ok lik e if it hadn’t b een le tte rb oxe d. W hat w ould h ave b een c u t o ut? ) What a bout th e lig htin g? W ould y o u d escrib e it a s h ig h k e y o r lo w k e y? If th ere a re sh adow s, w here d o th ey fa ll? Is th e lig htin g n atu ra lis tic o r n ot? In o th er w ord s, d oes it lo ok lik e th e w orld y o u liv e in , o r h ave th e film make rs ju ic e d it u p w it h lig htin g e ffe cts ?

Writ e y o ur r e sp onse s to th ese a nd o th er is su es in a n ote book, b eca use y o u m ay n eed th em fo r r e fe re nce in th e w rit in g e xe rc is e th at fo llo w s.

Now e xa m in e th e im age w it h a n e ye to w ard th e e ffe cts c re ate d b y th e c a m era ’s le ns. Is th e e ntir e im age in th e s a m e s h arp fo cu s, o r is o ne d epth p la ne c le are r th an th e oth ers ? C an y o u e ve n d is tin guis h th e fo re gro und fr o m th e b ackg ro und, o r is th e s h ot one th at c o nta in s o nly o ne p la ne? (If th e s h ot is a c lo se -u p, fo r in sta nce , th ere c a n b e only o ne p la ne b eca use th e im age c o nta in s o nly o ne o bje ct o r fa ce .) WRIT IN G A BO UT C IN EM ATO GRAPH Y Giv e n th e fa ct th at th is c h apte r is th e m ost te ch nic a lly o rie nte d o ne s o fa r, w hat w it h it s arra y o f c in em ato gra phic fa cts a nd fig ure s, y o u m ay b e o ve rw helm ed b y th e id ea o f writ in g about th is asp ect of film makin g. In fa ct, th e ch alle nge of w rit in g about cin em ato gra phy is th e s a m e a s w rit in g c rit ic a lly a bout m ovie s a s a w hole : y o u m ust fin d a w ay not only to describ e w hat yo u se e cle arly but als o to fig ure out w hat th e film make rs a re e xp re ssin g in te rm s o f m eanin g.

One o f th e p ro ble m s b egin nin g film s tu dents fa ce is h ow to m ove b eyo nd s im ple descrip tio n to m eanin gfu l a naly sis . J u st a s it ’s n ot e nough to p ro vid e a s u m mary o f th e film ’s s to ry a nd p ass it o ff a s c rit ic is m , a s im ple d escrip tio n o f a s ce ne’s c in em ato gra phy won’t c u t it e it h er. Y ou m ust le arn h ow to fin d m eanin g o nscre en— in th is c a se , th ro ugh cin em ato gra phy.

Don’t b e a fr a id to s ta te th e o bvio us. O r, b ette r, b egin w it h th e o bvio us— what d oes th e film lo ok lik e ?— and u se re aso n to e xp lo re th e im plic a tio ns o f th ose v is u als . T ake th e e xa m ple o f th e w este rn o utla w e nte rin g th e s a lo on, a bove , a nd b re ak d ow n th e obse rv a tio ns m ade a bout it in to b asic lo gic a l s te ps th at le ad to a c o nclu sio n a bout w hat th e s ce ne is a ctu ally a bout:

1.

T he c h ara cte r m ove s fr o m o ne ty p e o f lig htin g (b rig ht, h ig h k e y) to a noth er (d im , lo w k e y).

2.

T he c h ara cte r is a n o utla w — a p ers o n w ho o pera te s outs id e th e la w s o f s o cie ty .

3.

T he c h ara cte r m ove s fr o m outs id e to in sid e .

4.

Outs id e is fu ll o f lig ht a nd s p ace ; in sid e is s h adow y a nd c o nfin in g.

5.

C onclu sio n: by w ay o f th is sh if t in cin em ato gra phy, th e film make r is a ctu ally co ntr a stin g th e o penness a nd fr e edom o f n atu re w it h th e c o nstr a in ts o f s o cie ty .

In th is c a se , th e c o nclu sio n is n ot p artic u la rly p ro fo und, n or is it u nexp ecte d. A s th ey sa y, it is n ’t ro cke t s cie nce . B ut it g ets th e jo b d one, w hic h is to s a y th at it m ove s fr o m sim ple , s u rfa ce v is u al d escrip tio n to d eeper a naly tic a l th in kin g. It id entif ie s a nd a scrib es th em atic m eanin g to fo rm al a rtis tic d ecis io ns. In s h ort, it ’s a s ta rt.

Go o ve r y o ur n ote s fr o m th e s tu dy g uid es a nd w rit in g e xe rc is e s in th e p re vio us tw o 74 ch apte rs . N ote w heth er yo u in clu ded a ny d escrip tio ns o f c in em ato gra phic e le m ents alo ng w it h y o ur o bse rv a tio ns a bout m is e -e n-s ce ne a nd c a m era m ove m ent. W hat v is u al in fo rm atio n a bout lig htin g d id y o u fa il, h ow eve r in adve rte ntly , to n otic e a nd s p ecif y in yo ur n ote s? If y o u h ave th e tim e a nd in clin atio n, c o m pare y o ur p re vio us n ote s w it h th e note s y o u to ok fo r th is c h apte r. S ee w hat y o u h ave le arn ed to s e e.

Most im porta nt o f a ll: a sk yo urs e lf h ow yo u ca n u se th e ra w m ate ria l o f yo ur descrip tio ns to d ra w in fe re nce s a nd im plic a tio ns a bout w hat th e film s a re a bout. B ase d on w hat yo u kn ow so fa r, a nd u sin g re aso n to g uid e yo u, w hat ca n yo u lo gic a lly co nclu de a bout w hat e ach u niq ue c o m bin atio n o f m is e -e n-s ce ne, c a m era m ove m ent, and c in em ato gra phy means ?

1.

C in era m a c o ntin ued a s a tr a de n am e u se d fo r s in gle -s tr ip w id escre en film s s u ch a s S ta nle y Kubric k’s 2001: A S pace O dysse y .

2.

G ra m mar n ote : D o th e te rm s hig h k e y a nd lo w k e y re quir e h yp hens? T he a nsw er is : y e s and n o. It d epends w here th e te rm is p la ce d in a s e nte nce . If it is u se d b efo re a n oun, s u ch a s hig h-k e y lig htin g , th e a nsw er is y e s; if it is u se d a fte r a n oun, s u ch a s th e lig htin g is lo w k e y , th e a nsw er is n o.

75 C HAPTE R 4 E D IT IN G : F R O M S H O T T O S H O T T R ANSIT IO NS W it h a ll b ut a v e ry fe w e xce ptio ns, film s— esp ecia lly n arra tiv e fe atu re f ilm s— are m ade u p o f a se rie s o f in div id ual sh ots th at film make rs c o nnect in a fo rm al, syste m atic , and exp re ssiv e w ay. There are p ra ctic a l a s w ell a s a rtis tic re aso ns fo r d ir e cto rs to a sse m ble m ovie s f r o m m any h undre ds if n ot th ousa nds o f s h ots . F or o ne th in g, film c a m era s a re a ble to h old o nly a lim it e d a m ount o f c e llu lo id film — not e nough fo r a fe atu re le ngth m otio n p ic tu re . (D ig it a l c a m era s, h ow eve r, c a n c a ptu re m ult ip le h ours .) M ore im porta nt, n arra tiv e film s g enera lly c o m pre ss tim e co nsid era bly b y le avin g o ut th e b orin g p arts o f th e s to rie s th ey te ll. Im agin e h ow d ull it w ould b e to w atc h e ve n th e m ost i n tr ig uin g c h ara cte rs g o th ro ugh th e h um dru m m otio ns o f e ve ry d ay lif e — doin g th e la undry , b ru sh in g th eir te eth , s p endin g a n h our s tu ck in t r a ffic — sim ply b eca use th e film make r h ad n o w ay o f e lim in atin g th ese n ece ssa ry b ut ir re le va nt a ctiv it ie s. E ve n th ose ra re film s th at tr y to d uplic a te re al tim e— th e s to ry o f tw o h ours in a w om an’s lif e c o uld c o nce iv a bly ta ke e xa ctly tw o h ours to te ll o n film — genera lly re quir e t h e film make r to ca rv e up th e actio n in to dis cre te sh ots and r e asse m ble th em co here ntly , if only to hold th e audie nce ’s vis u al i n te re st, le t a lo ne to m ake e xp re ssiv e p oin ts b y w ay o f c lo se -u ps, lo ng s h ots , h ig h- a nd lo w -a ngle s h ots , a nd s o o n.

76 FIG URE 4 .1 E dit o rs w ork m anually a t a n e dit in g ta ble in th is u ndate d p hoto gra ph. N ow , m ost edit in g ta ke s p la ce o n c o m pute rs . ( P hoto fe st) Alf r e d H it c h co ck’s 1 948 film , Rope , is a n a tte m pt to film a n e ntir e fe atu re -le ngth n arra tiv e in a s in gle s h ot. T he fa ct th at film magazin es (lig htp ro of c o nta in ers th at h old , fe ed, a nd ta ke u p film in th e c a m era ) of th at era co uld only hold about te n m in ute s of film w as a big co nstr a in t, b ut H it c h co ck u se s tw o d evic e s to m ask th e te ch nic a lly nece ssa ry e dit s : h e m ake s s tr a ig ht c u ts a t c e rta in re el c h angeove rs and tr a cks fo rw ard in to th e b acks o f m en w earin g d ark s u it s in o rd er to bla ck o ut th e im age b efo re c u ttin g a t c e rta in o th ers . S till, b y m ovin g th e ca m era a nd re fr a m in g th e im age w it h in th ese 5 - to 1 0-m in ute sh ots , H it c h co ck e ffe ctiv e ly c a rv e s e ach s h ot in to d is cre te u nit s fo r exp re ssiv e p urp ose s.

This ch apte r describ es th e m eth ods by w hic h film make rs lin k 77 in div id ual s h ots to o ne a noth er in a p ro ce ss c a lle d ED IT IN G , o r CUTTIN G .

These lin ks a re b ro adly c a lle d TR AN SIT IO NS .

The s im ple st tr a nsit io n is th e CUT . A d ir e cto r film s a s h ot, th e b asic unit o f film makin g, a nd h as it d eve lo ped. S he film s a noth er s h ot a nd has it d eve lo ped a s w ell. S he tr im s e ach s h ot d ow n to th e le ngth s h e wants , a nd s h e a tta ch es th e tw o s tr ip s o f film to geth er w it h a p ie ce o f ta pe. T hat’s it : s h e h as cu t fr o m o ne s h ot to a noth er. In th is e xa m ple , th e film make r is usin g ce llu lo id . S he ca n cre ate th e sa m e effe ct ele ctr o nic a lly w it h tw o s h ots ta ke n in v id eo, th ough in th at c a se , o f co urs e , s h e h as n o n eed fo r ta pe.

Bear in m in d th at e dit in g is a h um an a ctiv it y . U nlik e th e c a m era ’s mech anic a l re co rd in g o f im ages, e dit in g is q uit e s p ecif ic a lly a m atte r of a ctiv e d ecis io n-m akin g— th e p ro duct o f h um an ch oic e . S o w hen describ in g e dit in g, it m ake s n o se nse to sa y o r w rit e “th e ca m era cu ts .” C am era s c a n o nly r e co rd ; d ir e cto rs a nd e dit o rs c u t.

Oth er im porta nt tr a nsit io ns in clu de th e FA D E-IN a nd FA D E-O UT ; th e IR IS - IN a nd IR IS -O UT ; th e DIS SO LV E , a nd th e WIP E , b ut b eca use th ese e ffe cts are u se d m ostly a s tr a nsit io ns fr o m s ce ne to s ce ne— in o th er w ord s, fr o m th e fin al s h ot o f o ne s ce ne to th e fir s t s h ot o f th e n ext s ce ne— and th is c h apte r c o nce rn s tr a nsit io ns fr o m s h ot to s h ot wit h in a s ce ne, le t’s p ostp one d escrib in g th em u ntil ch apte r 6 .

MONTA G E One o f th e ke y te rm s in fil m stu die s is MONTA G E . T ake n fr o m th e Fre nch v e rb monte r , m eanin g to a sse m ble , m onta ge d escrib es th e va rio us w ays in w hic h film make rs s tr in g in div id ual s h ots to geth er to fo rm a s e rie s.

The te rm monta ge h as th re e d if fe re nt b ut re la te d d efin it io ns. T he fir s t d efin it io n is th e e asie st. In F ra nce , th e w ord monta ge sim ply means e dit in g— any k in d o f e dit in g . A s d escrib ed in th e e xa m ple o f a sim ple c u t, a bove , th e film make r ta ke s tw o p ie ce s o f e xp ose d a nd pro ce sse d ce llu lo id , tr im s th em dow n to th e le ngth sh e w ants — decis io ns m ade o n th e b asis o f th e e xp re ssiv e a nd/o r g ra phic c o nte nt of th e im age, o r th e d ia lo gue, o r a c o m bin atio n o f b oth — and lit e ra lly 78 ta pes th em to geth er. In F ra nce , w hat sh e has done is kn ow n as monta ge.

In th e U nit e d S ta te s, th e te rm monta ge re fe rs m ore s p ecif ic a lly to a film s e quence th at re lie s o n e dit in g to c o ndense o r e xp and a ctio n, sp ace , or tim e . The effe ct is ofte n th at of a ra pid -fir e se rie s of in te rre la te d im ages. Im agin e th at a d ir e cto r is te llin g th e s to ry o f a r o ck band th at fo rm s in O m aha, a nd h e n eeds to m ove th em q uic kly to Holly w ood, w here th ey w ill p erfo rm liv e o n a te le vis io n s h ow . S in ce th ere is n eit h er th e n eed n or th e tim e to w atc h th e g ro up d riv e th e entir e w ay fr o m e aste rn N ebra ska to s o uth ern C alif o rn ia , o ur d ir e cto r begin s b y film in g a s h ot o f th e b and m em bers p ackin g u p th eir v a n in Om aha; h e c u ts q uic kly fr o m th is s h ot to a s h ot o f th e v a n o n th e in te rs ta te m akin g it s w ay a cro ss th e G re at P la in s. F ro m th is h e c u ts to a s h ot o f o il d erric ks n ext to th e h ig hw ay, th en to a s h ot o f c a ttle in a fie ld , a nd th en to a s h ot o f th e v a n h eadin g to w ard th e s n ow ca pped Rockie s. C ut to a s h ot o f th e b and m em bers in th e v a n; c u t to a s h ot of th e v a n d riv in g d ow n th e L as V egas S tr ip a t n ig ht. A n im age o f Death V alle y fo llo w s. F ro m th e d ese rt th e d ir e cto r c u ts to a s h ot o f a sig n re adin g “L os A ngele s— 30 m ile s” a nd th en to a s h ot o f th e v a n pullin g u p a t a n o ffic e b uild in g o n S unse t B oule va rd .

In th is A m eric a n-s ty le m onta ge s e quence , th e b and h as m ove d a ll th e w ay fr o m th e M id w est to L .A . in le ss th an a m in ute . T his m onta ge co ndense s tim e a nd s p ace — a 1 ,7 00-m ile tr ip th at w ould ta ke s e ve ra l days in r e al tim e s h rin ks d ow n in s cre en tim e to a bout 4 5 s e co nds.

Here ’s a n e xa m ple o f th e w ay in w hic h a n A m eric a n-s ty le m onta ge ca n exp and tim e a nd s p ace : Im agin e a p it c h er o n th e m ound o f a base ball fie ld p re parin g to fir e a fa stb all to th e c a tc h er. B ut in ste ad o f pre se ntin g th e p it c h in o ne s in gle s h ot ta ke n fr o m h ig h in th e s ta nds, th e d ir e cto r a sse m ble s a n A m eric a n-s ty le m onta ge s e quence in o rd er to e nhance th e g am e’s s u sp ense : a fu ll s h ot o f th e p it c h er w in din g u p; a lo ng sh ot o f th e cro w d in th e b le ach ers ; a m ediu m sh ot o f th e manager lo okin g te nse in th e d ugout; a noth er s h ot o f th e p it c h er, th is one a c lo se -u p, a m om ent la te r in h is w in dup; a s h ot o f a m id dle -a ged guy w atc h in g th e g am e o n te le vis io n in h is d en; a lo ng s h ot o f a g ro up of fa ns b egin nin g to s ta nd u p; a m ediu m s h ot o f th e b atte r lo okin g defia nt; a c lo se -u p o f th e b all le avin g th e p it c h er’s fis t; a fu ll s h ot o f th e 79 batte r b egin nin g to s w in g; a s h ot o f th e b all h urtlin g a cro ss th e s cre en . . . N one o f th ese s h ots n eeds to b e in s lo w m otio n fo r r e al tim e to b e str e tc h ed o ut in re el tim e b y vir tu e o f m onta ge. B y a sse m blin g a n Am eric a n-s ty le m onta ge in th is m anner, th e film make r h as e xp anded an a ctio n th at w ould ta ke o nly a fe w s e co nds in re al tim e in to a 6 0- se co nd m onta ge.

There ’s a th ir d d efin it io n o f m onta ge, a nd it is th e m ost c o m plic a te d to d escrib e a nd c o m pre hend. In th e S ovie t c in em a o f th e im media te post- R evo lu tio nary p erio d— whic h is to s a y th e tw entie th c e ntu ry ’s la te ’t e ens and ’2 0s— film make rs co nducte d a fie rc e debate about th e natu re a nd e ffe cts o f m onta ge. S ovie t film make rs w ere e xcit e d b y th e 1917 M arx is t re vo lu tio n th at s o ught to tr a nsfo rm th eir c o untr y fr o m a fe udal s ta te to a m odern in dustr ia l e m pir e o ve rn ig ht, a nd th ey w ante d to fin d w ays of exp re ssin g th is polit ic a l energ y on film . T he ke y film make rs in vo lv e d in th is b le nd o f p ole m ic a l d ebate a nd c in em atic pra ctic e w ere Serg ei E is en ste in , V sevo lo d P udovkin , a nd Dzig a Verto v . P udovkin belie ve d th at sh ots w ere lik e bric ks th at w ere ca re fu lly p la ce d, o ne b y o ne, to fo rm a k in d o f c in em atic w all, a nd th at monta ge w as effe ctiv e ly th e ce m ent th at held th em to geth er; th e re su lt in g film , lik e a w all, w as m ore m eanin gfu l th an th e s im ple s u m o f it s b ric klik e p arts beca use m onta ge a dded m eanin g to th e in div id ual sh ots ’ co nte nt . V erto v, b ein g e sse ntia lly a d ocu m enta ria n, w as n ot in te re ste d in th e n arra tiv e c o hesio n m onta ge c o uld p ro duce ; h is m ost fa m ous film , Man w it h a M ovie C am era (1 929), is a ka le id osco pic asse m bla ge o f s h ots p ut to geth er w it h th e a ttit u de o f a s ym phonic music ia n r a th er th an a s to ry te lle r.

For E is e nste in , m onta ge m eant a k in d o f dyn am ic e dit in g u se d b oth to e xp ose a nd e xp lo re th e d ia le ctic s, o r o pposit io nal c o nflic ts , o f a giv e n s it u atio n, a nd to c re ate in th e m in d o f th e v ie w er a r e vo lu tio nary syn th esis . T he m ost fa m ous e xa m ple o f S ovie t- s ty le m onta ge in film his to ry , in fa ct, is th e “O dessa S te ps” se quence fr o m E is e nste in ’s Battle sh ip P ote m kin (1 925). The sit u atio n E is e nste in depic ts is a fic tio nal re -c re atio n o f th e 1 905 u pris in g o f s a ilo rs o n th e e ponym ous battle sh ip ; th ey m utin ie d a gain st th e h ars h cza ris t g ove rn m ent a nd re ce iv e d a str o ng m easu re o f p opula r su pport fr o m th e p eople o f Odessa , w ho in th e s e quence in q uestio n h ave g ath ere d o n th e c it y 80 ste ps to vo ic e th eir so lid arit y w it h th e sa ilo rs . T he cza r’s so ld ie rs marc h dow n th e flig ht of ste ps and begin fir in g th eir guns at th e cit iz e ns. N ot o nly d oes E is e nste in e dit th is s e quence o f s h ots v e ry ra pid ly in o rd er to in te nsif y th e s e nse o f c o nflic t b etw een th e m onarc h y and th e p eople , b ut th e c o m posit io ns w it h in e ach s h ot a re th em se lv e s fu ll o f c o nflic t— str o ng c o ntr a sts o f lig hts a nd d ark s, lo ts o f d ia gonal ve cto rs , a nd s o o n. T here is n oth in g s ta tic a bout th is s e quence — not in it s edit in g, not in it s in div id ual sh ots . It is th e cla ssic S ovie t- s ty le monta ge.

For E is e nste in , s h ots w ere m eant to co llid e ; h is s ty le o f m onta ge was th e o pposit e o f s m ooth , a ppare ntly s e am le ss c o ntin uit y e dit in g (w hic h is d efin ed b elo w ). A nd h is g oal w as to c re ate in th e m in ds o f his audie nce a re vo lu tio nary syn th esis of all th ese co nflic ts — to enco ura ge th e v ie w er, th ro ugh m onta ge, to th in k a nd se e in a n ew and, he hoped, ra dic a l w ay. B y edit in g th ese co nflic t- fille d sh ots to geth er in a w ay th at in te nsif ie s c o nflic t r a th er th an s m ooth in g it o ve r, Eis e nste in h oped to in sp ir e in h is a udie nce s a k in d o f re vo lu tio nary th in kin g. F or h im , th e c re ativ e a ct w as n ot o nly th at o f th e film make r who sh oots and asse m ble s th e film . An equally cre ativ e act is perfo rm ed b y th ose o f u s w ho s e e th e film ; w e ta ke in a ll o f th ese im ages b y w ay o f m onta ge a nd c o nse quently p ut th e p ie ce s to geth er in o ur o w n m in ds in o ur o w n w ays.

81 FIG URE 4 .2 F our im ages fr o m th e “ O dessa S te ps” s e quence , Battle sh ip P ote m kin ( 1 925) (fr a m e e nla rg em ents ).

What lin ks a ll o f th ese d efin it io ns o f monta ge is n ot o nly th e s p lic in g to geth er o f in div id ual s h ots . W hat m ake s monta ge w orth y o f s tu dy in any o f it s th re e fo rm s a nd d efin it io ns is th at it is a fu ndam enta lly cre ativ e a ct— th e p ro duct o f a rtis tic d ecis io n-m akin g. A s th e F re nch film th eoris t A ndré B azin o nce w ro te , m onta ge y ie ld s “ th e c re atio n o f a se nse o r m eanin g n ot p ro per to th e im ages th em se lv e s b ut d eriv e d exclu siv e ly fr o m th eir ju xta posit io n.” A s th e re st o f th e ch apte r w ill make cle ar, edit in g co m pounds in fo rm atio n and cre ate s evo ca tiv e asso cia tio ns th at fo rm a c o rn ers to ne o f a ny film ’s e xp re ssiv e m eanin g.

TH E K ULE SH O V E XPER IM EN T Film s tu die s illu str a te s e dit in g ’s a bilit y to c re ate n ew a sso cia tio ns a nd id eas in th e v ie w er’s m in d w it h a noth er e xa m ple fr o m S ovie t c in em a— an a polit ic a l e xa m ple , b ut o ne th at s till n eatly d escrib es th e w ay S ovie t film make rs v ie w ed m onta ge a s im agin ativ e a nd d yn am ic . B y s p lic in g to geth er sn ip pets of photo gra phed re alit y , th ese film make rs 82 unders to od th at s o m eth in g n ew w as b ein g c re ate d— so m eth in g th at did n’t e xis t o n a b ru te m ate ria l p la ne b ut did e xis t in th e m in ds o f a movie audie nce — and only in th ose m in ds. The film dir e cto r and th eoris t Lev K ule sh ov is sa id to have co nducte d an exp erim ent in vo lv in g th e effe cts of m onta ge on an audie nce ’s perc e ptio n of em otio n. H e film ed th e g re at R ussia n a cto r Iv an M ozh ukin in m ediu m clo se -u p, w it h a s in ce re -lo okin g b ut n eutr a l e xp re ssio n o n h is fa ce .

Kule sh ov th en film ed a s h ot o f a b ow l o f s o up, a s h ot o f a c o ffin , a nd a sh ot o f a lit tle g ir l p la yin g.

Fig ure 4 .3 s h ow s h ow K ule sh ov e dit e d th e se quence .

Audie nce s are sa id to have marv e le d at th e gre at acto r’s extr a ord in ary ra nge a nd su btle te ch niq ue. M ozh ukin co uld e xp re ss gre at h unger! M ozh ukin c o uld e xp re ss e xtr a ord in ary g rie f! M ozh ukin co uld e xp re ss e xa ctly th e k in d o f p rid e a nd jo y a p are nt fe els w hen watc h in g h is c h ild a t p la y!

What a g re at a cto r!

In fa ct, o f c o urs e , it w as th e s a m e s h ot o f M ozh ukin , a nd h e w asn ’t exp re ssin g anyth in g oth er th an neutr a lit y . It was th e audie nce mem bers w ho p ro vid ed th e e m otio nal c o nte nt o f th e s e quence s im ply by m akin g a sso cia tio ns in th eir o w n m in ds fr o m o ne s h ot to th e n ext.

One o f th e u ndera ppre cia te d a sp ects o f K ule sh ov’s e xp erim ent is th at K ule sh ov d id n’t ju st c re ate e m otio nal c o nte nt b y w ay o f e dit in g.

He a ls o d efin ed a nd c o nstr u cte d th re e c o ntin uous b ut d is tin ct sp ace s :

Mozh ukin a nd th e b ow l o f s o up in o ne, M ozh ukin a nd th e c o ffin in th e se co nd, M ozh ukin a nd th e c h ild in th e th ir d . T he a cto r w as s e en a s bein g in th e s a m e p la ce a s th e s o up b ow l; th e s a m e p la ce a s th e co ffin ; a nd th e s a m e p la ce a s th e lit tle g ir l— sp ace s c re ate d s o le ly b y way o f e dit in g.

The d ir ty lit tle s e cre t o f th e K ule sh ov e xp erim ent is th e fa ct th at nobody is o n r e co rd a s e ve r h avin g s e en th e film it s e lf . In p oin t o f fa ct, Kule sh ov m ay n eve r h ave s cre ened o r e ve n film ed th e s e quence . B ut th en h e d id n’t h ave to . H e k n ew it w ould w ork .

CO NTIN UIT Y E D IT IN G Cla ssic al H olly w ood s ty le , w hic h film s tu die s d efin es a s th e s e t o f 83 pre dom in ant fo rm al te ch niq ues use d by m ost A m eric a n narra tiv e film make rs th ro ugh th e tw entie th c e ntu ry a nd to th e p re se nt d ay, r e lie s on se ve ra l edit in g prin cip le s to ach ie ve it s ce ntr a l goal: to ke ep audie nce m em bers so w ra pped up in th e fic tio nal w orld cre ate d onscre en th at th ey c e ase to b e c o nscio us o f w atc h in g a m ovie a nd, in ste ad, b elie ve th at th ey a re w it n essin g s o m eth in g re al. W heth er it ’s a ro m ance b etw een tw o b elie va ble c h ara cte rs o r a n a ctio n film w it h a la rg er-th an-lif e h ero o r a h orro r film fe atu rin g a p re poste ro us m onste r, cla ssic a l H olly w ood film s w ant u s to b elie ve th at w e a re w atc h in g re alit y , if o nly fo r th e d ura tio n o f th e p ic tu re .

84 FIG URE 4 .3 T he K ule sh ov e xp erim ent c re ate d th re e d is tin ct s cre en sp ace s a s w ell a s narra tiv e r e la tio nsh ip s.

For e xa m ple , h ave y o u e ve r n otic e d th at film c h ara cte rs ra re ly tu rn and lo ok p re cis e ly a t th e ca m era a nd sp eak d ir e ctly to yo u in th e audie nce ? A lt h ough d ir e ct a ddre sse s fr o m ch ara cte rs to a udie nce s 85 have h appened fr o m tim e to tim e— Annie H all (1 977) a nd Wayn e ’ s World (1 992) co nta in nota ble exa m ple s of th is vio la tio n of fo rm al co nve ntio n— it ’s s ta rtlin g w hen it o ccu rs p re cis e ly b eca use it o ccu rs s o ra re ly . T he e ffe ct o f su ch d ir e ct a ddre sse s is to jo lt u s o ut o f o ur dre am lik e im mers io n in th e film ’s s to ry in to a s u dden a w are ness o f th e film ’s a rtif ic ia lit y : w e k n ow w e w ere n’t th ere w hen th e m ovie w as b ein g film ed, a nd w e k n ow th at th e c h ara cte r is n ’t re ally ta lk in g to us a t a ll.

This jo lt m ake s u s a w are th at w e’r e w atc h in g a m ovie .

Cla ssic a l H olly w ood s ty le str iv e s to a vo id c a llin g a tte ntio n to th e means and fo rm s of it s ow n co nstr u ctio n. T hro ugh str ic tly fo rm al te ch niq ues, H olly w ood film s a tte m pt to s m ooth o ve r th e m any c u ts th at o ccu r. T hey tr y to m ain ta in a s e nse o f s p atia l u nit y w it h in e ach in div id ual s e quence . T hey a tte m pt, to u se lo ftie r c rit ic a l d is co urs e , to effa ce th em se lv e s —to re nder th em se lv e s u nnotic e able . T he o ve ra ll te rm th at describ es th is fo rm al syste m is CO NTIN UIT Y ED IT IN G , als o kn ow n as IN VIS IB LE ED IT IN G . C ontin uit y edit in g is a se t of edit in g pra ctic e s th at esta blis h sp atia l and/o r te m pora l co ntin uit y betw een sh ots —in o th er w ord s, a ny o f th e v a rio us te ch niq ues th at film make rs em plo y to k e ep th eir n arra tiv e s m ovin g fo rw ard lo gic a lly a nd s m ooth ly , wit h out ja rrin g d is ru ptio ns in s p ace o r tim e, a nd w it h out m akin g th e audie nce a w are th at th ey a re in fa ct w atc h in g a w ork o f a rt. C ontin uit y edit in g str iv e s not only to ke ep dis ru ptio ns to a m in im um but to activ e ly pro m ote a se nse of narra tiv e and sp atia l co here nce and sta bilit y in th e fa ce o f h undre ds o r e ve n th ousa nds o f th e d is cre te b it s of c e llu lo id c a lle d s h ots . W hat a re th ese te ch niq ues?

The fir s t se t of co ntin uit y edit in g te ch niq ues in vo lv e w ays to dow npla y th e ja rrin g effe ct of cu ttin g. They are ca lle d ed it in g matc h es . T here a re th re e e sse ntia l w ays o f m atc h in g o ne sh ot to anoth er, a nd th ey a re d efin ed a cco rd in g to h ow th e m atc h is m ade.

1. M atc h in g o n a ctio n 2. E ye -lin e m atc h in g 3. G ra phic m atc h in g MATC HIN G O N A C TIO N o ccu rs w hen a p ie ce o f p hysic a l a ctio n in th e fir s t s h ot c o ntin ues in th e s e co nd s h ot. H ere ’s a s im ple e xa m ple : In 86 th e fir s t s h ot, a c h ara cte r o pens a d oor; in th e s e co nd s h ot, s h e g oes th ro ugh th e doorw ay. H er m ove m ent pro vid es th e co ntin uit y th at matc h es th e tw o s h ots . If th e s h ots a re s e t u p w ell a nd th e e dit o r kn ow s h is s tu ff, th e a udie nce w ill s lid e v is u ally fr o m th e fir s t s h ot to th e se co nd, th anks to th e s e em in gly c o ntin uous, a ppare ntly u nin te rru pte d move m ent o f th e c h ara cte r th ro ugh th e d oorw ay.

Let’s u se a noth er b ase ball g am e a s a m ore c o m plic a te d e xa m ple .

The p it c h er th ro w s a p it c h in S hot 1 : w e s e e h im h url th e b all fr o m th e rig ht s id e o f th e s cre en to th e le ft. In S hot 2 , th e b all flie s in to th e im age fr o m . . . w hic h s id e? Y es, fr o m th e rig ht s id e o f th e s cre en to th e le ft. T his m ake s it a ppear th at it ’s th e s a m e b all p it c h ed b y th e sa m e p it c h er a t th e s a m e tim e. H ow o dd a nd d is ru ptiv e it w ould b e if th e b all fle w fr o m th e p it c h er’s m ound to h om e p la te in o ne d ir e ctio n in th e fir s t sh ot and ente re d th e su cce edin g sh ot fr o m th e opposit e dir e ctio n. It w ould m ake n o s e nse v is u ally . A n e xp erim enta l film make r may ch oose to cre ate su ch a d is ru ptiv e e ffe ct, b ut m ost n arra tiv e film make rs s e ek to a vo id th at k in d o f v is u al illo gic .

Now th e b atte r ta ke s a s w in g a nd c o nnects : it ’s a lin e d riv e , a nd th e ball g oes fly in g o ut o f th e im age o n th e . . . rig ht. W hen th e b all re ente rs th e im age in th e n ext s h ot— th e s e co nd b ase m an is w ait in g fo r it — where does it ente r th e im age and in w hic h dir e ctio n is it tr a ve lin g?

1 EYE-L IN E M ATC HIN G w ork s o n a s im ila r p rin cip le , b ut in ste ad o f u sin g th e d ir e ctio n o f a p hysic a l a ctio n to d ete rm in e th e w ay th at s h ots a re se t u p, film ed, a nd e dit e d to geth er, it ’s th e d ir e ctio n o f ch ara cte rs ’ gaze s th at d ete rm in es w here th e c a m era is p la ce d, in w hic h d ir e ctio n th e a cto rs a re lo okin g w hen th ey’r e film ed, a nd h ow th e tw o ( o r m ore ) re su lt in g s h ots a re e dit e d to geth er. B efo re o ur p it c h er th ro w s th e b all to th e b atte r, h e ta ke s a lo ng lo ok a t th e c a tc h er, w ho u se s s o m e h and sig nals to c o m munic a te w it h h im . H e th en tu rn s to th e fir s t b ase m an to ch eck o n w heth er th e r u nner th ere w as p re parin g to s te al s e co nd. T he dir e cto r film s th e s e quence in fo ur s h ots , a nd w hen h e e dit s th em a ll to geth er, th ese fo ur s h ots m ake s e nse sp atia lly b eca use o f e ye -lin e matc h in g:

SH O T 1 :

Full, e ye -le ve l s h ot o f P IT C HER o n m ound lo okin g o ffs cre en le ft.

87 SH O T 2 :

Full, e ye -le ve l s h ot o f C ATC HER c ro uch in g a nd fo rm in g h and s ig nals b ehin d batte r; th e c a tc h er is lo okin g o ffs cre en rig ht.

T he im pre ssio n c re ate d is th at th e p it c h er a nd th e c a tc h er a re lo okin g a t e ach o th er, e ve n th ough th ey a re not in th e s a m e s h ot.

SH O T 3 :

Full, e ye -le ve l s h ot o f P IT C HER tu rn in g o n h is h eels a nd lo okin g o ffs cre en rig ht .

SH O T 4 :

Full, e ye -le ve l s h ot o f F IR ST B ASEM AN g uard in g O PPO SIN G P LA YER a nd lo okin g o ffs cre en . . .

2 When a udie nce s s e e th is s e quence p ro je cte d a s p art o f a n a ctio n se quence in a b ase ball m ovie , th ey w ill u nders ta nd th at th e p la ye rs are lo okin g at one anoth er. W hy? B eca use th e ru le s of eye -lin e matc h in g h ave b een re sp ecte d. Im agin e th e s p atia l d is o rie nta tio n th e audie nce w ould e xp erie nce if th e p it c h er w as film ed lo okin g in th e “w ro ng” d ir e ctio n; th e s e quence w ould m ake lit tle s p atia l s e nse a nd would be m uch m ore ch alle ngin g to fo llo w . M any people in th e audie nce w ould b e b ew ild ere d. C onfu sio n m ay b e a le git im ate a rtis tic goal, a nd a tr u ly ra dic a l film make r m ay c h oose to b affle p eople to make a p oin t. B ut th at film make r w ould fin d it d if fic u lt to s u cce ed w it h most co m merc ia l m ovie goers — a le git im ate artis tic goal in it s e lf , perh aps, b ut w hoeve r fin ance d th e p ic tu re w ould p ro bably n ot s e e it th at w ay.

The te rm eye -lin e m atc h c a n a ls o b e u se d to d escrib e a n e dit th at occu rs b etw een a s h ot o f a p ers o n a nd a fo llo w in g s h ot o f a n o bje ct th ough th ere is a ls o a p artic u la r te rm th at d escrib es it , to o— GLA N CE- OBJE C T M ATC H . S ay in th e fir s t s h ot w e s e e a h ungry -lo okin g lit tle g ir l in pro file s ta rin g to w ard th e le ft o f th e im age; w e w ould n ot b e ja rre d o r jo lt e d in th e s lig hte st to fin d th at th e s e co nd s h ot in th e s e quence co nta in ed th e im age o f a la rg e d is h o f ic e cre am , a nd w e w ould assu m e— giv e n th e fa ct th at th e d ir e cto r h as s e t u p th e s h ots a nd matc h ed th em w ell— th at th e lit tle g ir l is lo okin g a t th e ic e c re am . T he fa ct th at th e lit tle g ir l w as film ed o n a F rid ay a fte rn oon a nd th e ic e cre am w as film ed s e para te ly th e fo llo w in g M onday w ould n ot m atte r in th e s lig hte st: th e g la nce -o bje ct m atc h w ould b rin g th e lit tle g ir l a nd th e ic e cre am to geth er sp atia lly and te m pora lly in a m eanin gfu l and co here nt w ay.

The te rm eye -lin e m atc h m ay s e em o dd to d escrib e th is tw o-s h ot 88 se quence b eca use a lt h ough th e g ir l’s e ye s a re d ir e cte d o ffs cre en le ft, th e d is h o f ic e c re am c a n’t lo ok b ack a t h er. B ut e ye -lin e m atc h in g is not lim it e d to tw o o r m ore s e ts o f e ye s. E ve n w it h tw o c h ara cte rs , o nly one s e t o f e ye s n eeds to lo ok in a c e rta in d ir e ctio n fo r a n e ye -lin e matc h to b e m ade.

Of th e th re e ty p es o f m atc h es, g ra phic m atc h in g m ay b e th e m ost dif fic u lt to d escrib e. It re fe rs to m atc h in g m ade o n th e b asis o f a co m posit io nal e le m ent— a d oor o r w in dow fr a m e, fo r e xa m ple , o r a ny pro m in ent s h ape. G ra phic m atc h es a re m ade b y c u ttin g ( o r d is so lv in g, fa din g, o r w ip in g) fr o m o ne s h ape in th e fir s t s h ot to a s im ila r s h ape— in th e sa m e re la tiv e p osit io n in th e fr a m e— in th e se co nd sh ot. If in ste ad of th e easily ca tc h able lin e driv e str a ig ht in to th e se co nd base m an’s m it t in th e e xa m ple a bove , th e b atte r h ad h it a h ig h b ut lo ng fly b all th at a ppeare d to b e h eadin g o ut o f th e p ark , th e d ir e cto r co uld h ave m ade a p oin t a bout th e b atte r’s q uic k d em is e b y m atc h in g a s h ot o f th e c a tc h er’s e m pty ro unded g lo ve w it h th e s im ila rly s iz e d and s h aped fie ld er’s g lo ve th at r e ce iv e s th e b atte r’s b all w it h a th w ack.

89 FIG URE 4 .4 A g ra phic m atc h in 2001: A S pace O dysse y ( 1 968): fr o m th e p re his to ric to th e fu tu ris tic ( fr a m e e nla rg em ents ).

If th e b atte r h ad b een su cce ssfu l, o n th e o th er h and, a g ra phic matc h c o uld h ave e xp re sse d th e p oin t b y c o m parin g th e s h ape o f th e fly in g b all to a r o und c o m et h urtlin g th ro ugh th e s ky le avin g a fie ry tr a il in it s w ake . T here is a fa m ous g ra phic m atc h in S ta nle y K ubric k’s 2001: A S pace O dysse y (1 968) in w hic h a p re his to ric a pe to sse s a bone in th e air in one sh ot. A fte r it begin s to fa ll to earth in a su bse quent sh ot, K ubric k m atc h es it w it h a re cta ngula r sp ace sh ip , th ere by s ig nalin g n ot o nly th e p assa ge o f m illio ns o f y e ars b ut a ls o equatin g a p rim it iv e w eapon w it h a fu tu ris tic m eans o f s p ace tr a ve l.

Usu ally , g ra phic m atc h es a re n ot s o c le arly d esig ned to a dd a ddit io nal meanin g to th e s e quence ; g ra phic m atc h es, lik e e ye -lin e m atc h es a nd matc h es o n a ctio n, a re g enera lly e m plo ye d to s m ooth o ve r c u ts r a th er th an c a ll a tte ntio n to th em .

90 TH E 180° S YSTE M In addit io n to th ese th re e ty p es of m atc h es, cla ssic a l H olly w ood cin em a d eve lo ped a s o -c a lle d ru le in o rd er to m ain ta in a s e nse o f co here nt s p ace w it h in a g iv e n film s e quence : th e 1 80° r u le . B eca use it is a r u le th at is o fte n b ro ke n, film s tu die s te nds m ore a nd m ore to c a ll it th e 1 80° SYSTE M . T erm in olo gy a sid e, th e 1 80° s yste m p ro vid es a sim ple b ut c ru cia l w ay fo r film make rs to p re se rv e s p atia l c o here nce wit h in a g iv e n s ce ne.

Im agin e a s ce ne ta kin g p la ce in a liv in g ro om ; th ere a re tw o c h air s se t a t th re e-q uarte r a ngle s to o ne a noth er, a nd in th ese c h air s s it tw o wom en.

The 180° syste m su ggests th at th e best w ay fo r a dir e cto r to esta blis h a nd m ain ta in s p atia l c o here nce in th is s ce ne (o r a ny s ce ne) is to d ra w a n im agin ary lin e a cro ss th e a xis o f th e a ctio n ( th e m id dle o f th e s e t) , d iv id in g it in tw o. In fig ure 4 .5 , th e 1 80° a xis is r e pre se nte d b y a d otte d lin e.

If th e d ir e cto r k e eps th e c a m era o n o ne s id e o f th e d otte d lin e fo r th e d ura tio n o f th e s e quence — and s h e w ould p ro bably c h oose th e sid e th at in clu des th e c h ara cte rs ’ fa ce s— when th e film is e dit e d a nd pro je cte d o nto a s cre en, th e w om an o n th e le ft in th e illu str a tio n w ill alw ays b e o n th e r ig ht. T his s e em s s im ple .

FIG URE 4 .5 T he 1 80° s yste m : th e c a m era s g enera lly s ta y o n o ne s id e o f th e d otte d lin e. S ee fig ure 4 .6 fo r th e c o rre sp ondin g im ages s h ot b y e ach c a m era .

But w hat h appens if s h e s h oots a s h ot o r tw o fr o m th e o th er s id e o f 91 th e im agin ary lin e?

3 Ple ase n ote : th e d ir e cto r c a n move th e c a m era a cro ss th e lin e w hile film in g w it h out dis ru ptin g sp atia l co here nce beca use th e ca m era move m ent w ould m ake it c le ar th at th e s p ace is w hole a nd u nif ie d. It is o nly w hen cu ttin g a cro ss th e im agin ary lin e th at s p atia l c o nfu sio n may o ccu r.

SH O T/R EVER SE-S H O T P A TTE R N One of th e m ost co m mon, effic ie nt, and effe ctiv e edit in g patte rn s deve lo ped b y cla ssic a l H olly w ood cin em a is th e SH O T/R EVER SE-S H O T PATTE R N . T o d efin e th is te ch niq ue, le t’s u se th e a bove e xa m ple o f th e liv in g ro om s ce ne illu str a te d im media te ly a bove . T he tw o w om en a re se ate d in liv in g ro om c h air s s e t a t a th re e-q uarte r a ngle to w ard e ach oth er, and th ey are havin g a co nve rs a tio n. Esta blis h in g and main ta in in g th e 1 80° s yste m , th e d ir e cto r c h oose s h er fir s t s h ot to b e ta ke n fr o m p osit io n 1 (s e e fig . 4 .6 ). T he re su lt in g im age o nscre en is th at o f th e w om an in m ediu m s h ot fa cin g a t a th re e-q uarte r a ngle to th e le ft o f th e im age. S in ce o ur d ir e cto r h as c h ose n to film a nd e dit th is se quence u sin g a sh ot/r e ve rs e sh ot p atte rn , sh e th en p osit io ns th e ca m era to film th e s o -c a lle d “re ve rs e a ngle ,” n am ely fr o m p osit io n 2 :

now th e c a m era fa ce s th e o th er w om an, w ho is s e en o nscre en in mediu m s h ot, a ls o a t th re e-q uarte r a ngle , lo okin g to w ard th e rig ht o f th e s cre en.

The w ord “re ve rs e ” in th is in sta nce does not re ally m ean an abso lu te re ve rs a l o f th e c a m era ’s p la ce ; th e c a m era d oes n ot c ro ss ove r to it s tr u ly o pposit e p osit io n b eca use th at w ould m ean v io la tin g th e 1 80° a xis s yste m . In ste ad, sh ot/r e ve rs e -s h ot m eans th at th e s h ots alt e rn ate n ot b etw een th e tw o c h ara cte rs b ut b etw een th e tw o ca m era posit io ns , o ne p oin tin g rig ht, th e o th er p oin tin g le ft. T he s h ot/r e ve rs e - sh ot p atte rn c a n b e u se d to r e ve al b oth c h ara cte rs in b oth s h ots — th e ca m era p oin tin g o ve r th e s h ould er o f o ne to th e fa ce a nd u pper b ody of th e o th er— or w e c a n s e e th em a s in div id uals a ppearin g to lo ok a t each oth er by vir tu e of eye -lin e m atc h in g. O r th e sh ots ca n be im bala nce d: in s h ot 1 w e m ig ht s e e o ve r th e s h ould er o f o ne c h ara cte r 92 to th e fa ce a nd s h ould ers o f a noth er c h ara cte r, w hile th e s o -c a lle d re ve rs e s h ot m ig ht o nly b e a n a ngle d c lo se -u p o f th e fir s t c h ara cte r.

The p oin t is th at th e d ir e cto r s h oots a n appare nt re ve rs e a ngle w hile main ta in in g th e 1 80° a xis s yste m , th ere by s h ow in g b oth c h ara cte rs fr o m m ore o r le ss e qual b ut a ppro pria te ly r e ve rs e a ngle s.

FIG URE 4 .6 T he s h ot/r e ve rs e -s h ot p atte rn : If th e fir s t s h ot o f a s h ot/r e ve rs e -s h ot p atte rn is 2A , th e s e co nd s h ot— th e r e ve rs e s h ot— would b e 1 A . If th e d ir e cto r th en c u ts to a c lo se -u p o f th e w om an o n th e le ft ( 1 C ), th e r e ve rs e s h ot w ould b e 2 C . N ow im agin e e dit in g a s ce ne betw een th ese tw o c h ara cte rs , u sin g th e fr a m in gs in dic a te d.

STU DY G UID E:

A N ALY ZIN G S H O T-T O -S H O T E D IT IN G To le arn to analy ze edit in g, yo u are goin g to begin w it h an exe rc is e of yo ur im agin atio n. Y ou a re a b egin nin g film make r, a nd y o ur a ssig nm ent is to film — in e xa ctly th re e s h ots — a c h ara cte r w hom y o u w ill r e ve al, m ostly b y w ay o f e dit in g, to b e m enta lly dis tu rb ed.

Oth er film make rs m ig ht ta ke th e e asy w ay o ut a nd u se m is e -e n-s ce ne e le m ents lik e make up (d ark e ned, h ollo w -lo okin g e ye s, fo r in sta nce , o r a lo t o f s ta ge b lo od s m eare d acro ss th e fa ce ) o r a p ie ce o f o utr a geous p hysic a l a ctio n o r d ia lo gue (th e c h ara cte r fa llin g d ow n o n th e g ro und a nd ro llin g a ro und s w earin g in co here ntly , a nd s o o n). S till anoth er la zy d ir e cto r c o uld te le gra ph th e c h ara cte r’s in sa nit y a t th e b egin nin g o f th e se quence b y s ta rtin g o ff w it h a c lo se -u p o f a s ig n th at re ads “P it ts b urg h H om e fo r th e Crim in ally In sa ne.” Not yo u. Y ou w ill co nve y th is ch ara cte r’s in sa nit y b y w ay o f e dit in g. Y ou h ave pre cis e ly th re e s h ots to d o it w it h , to o; n ot o ne, n ot tw o, n ot fo ur, b ut th re e . Y es, th e co nte nt o f e ach o f th ese th re e s h ots w ill c o nve y in fo rm atio n. B ut y o ur p rim ary ta sk is to co nsid er th e s h ots ’ c o nte nts in r e la tio n to o ne a noth er .

Giv e y o urs e lf s o m e tim e to c o nsid er th e p ossib ilit ie s.

Once y o u h ave th ought a bout th e p ro ble m fo r a fe w m in ute s, b egin to c o nstr u ct th e th re e-s h ot s e quence in y o ur m in d a t th e v e ry le ast a nd, if y o u h ave e ve n th e m ost ru dim enta ry d ra w in g s kills , o n p aper.

What is y o ur fir s t s h ot? If y o u m ust c o nve y a c h ara cte r’s c ra zin ess c h ie fly b y w ay o f edit in g, h ow d o y o u b egin th e s e quence ?

Here a re s o m e p ote ntia l o penin g s h ots :

93 1.

A n e xtr e m e c lo se -u p o f a s in gle e ye s ta rin g b la nkly o ut fr o m th e s cre en.

2.

A v e ry h ig h a ngle s h ot o f a y o ung m an s ta ndin g in a n e m pty r o om a nd lo okin g o ut th e w in dow .

3.

A c lo se -u p o f a y o ung w om an’s h and n erv o usly tw is tin g a p encil a ro und, s e em in gly unable to s to p.

Bear in m in d th at th e s e co nd s h ot o f th e s e quence w ill n eed to re la te in s o m e w ay to th e fir s t s h ot, a nd th at s o m e fo rm o f tr a nsit io n m ust b e e m plo ye d.

Let’s c o nce ntr a te o n e xa m ple 2 , a bove , a nd d ecid e o n a s e co nd s h ot w it h w hic h to fo llo w it . H ere a re s o m e p ote ntia l s e co nd s h ots :

2A .

A n e ve n h ig her-a ngle e xtr e m e lo ng s h ot o f th e y o ung m an ta ke n fr o m o uts id e th e b uild in g. T here is n o o ne e ls e in th e s h ot: n obody o n th e s id ew alk o uts id e th e b uild in g, a nd n obody in a ny o f th e o th er w in dow s.

2B .

A c lo se -u p o f h is fo ot ta ppin g a nxio usly a nd c o ntin ually o n th e flo or.

2C .

L in ke d b y a n e ye -lin e m atc h , a n e xtr e m e c lo se -u p o f a p ig eon o n th e s id ew alk fa r b elo w .

Notic e th at n ot m uch is h appenin g in o ur s e quence . E xce pt fo r th e fo ot- ta ppin g a nd pencil- tw is tin g, th ere is v e ry lit tle p hysic a l a ctio n. B ut a s th e s e quence b egin s to ta ke sh ape, th e r e la tio n o f s h ot to s h ot b egin s ( o r s h ould b egin , a nyw ay) to c o nve y a c e rta in uneasin ess— a se nse of anxie ty th at is enhance d if not entir e ly cre ate d by th e re la tio nsh ip o f o ne s h ot to a noth er. It’s tr u e th at th e c h ara cte r’s e xtr e m e s o lit u de is exp re sse d b y th e c o nte nt o f th e s h ots o f h im lo okin g o ut th e w in dow , b ut th at e ffe ct is str o ngly enhance d by th e re la tio nsh ip betw een th e tw o sh ots . A nd th e pig eon is dis tu rb in g n ot b eca use it is a p ig eon— we m ig ht b e film in g a b enig n s e quence in a c it y park in ste ad o f a th re e-s h ot in dic a tio n o f a c h ara cte r’s m adness— but b eca use it is s e en in re la tio n to th e fir s t sh ot o f th e yo ung m an, a nd th e b ir d ’s re la tio nsh ip to h im is unexp la in ed a nd th ere fo re tr o ublin g.

Let’s fin is h u p b y fo llo w in g th ro ugh w it h 2 A , a bove — th e e xtr e m e lo ng s h ot ta ke n fr o m outs id e th e build in g. W hat kin d of sh ot w ould driv e hom e th e poin t of th e se quence ? It’s y o ur d ecis io n.

WRIT IN G A BO UT E D IT IN G As y o u le arn ed in ch apte r 1 , th ere a re s e em in gly in num era ble m is e -e n-s ce ne e le m ents wit h in a s in gle s h ot if y o u lo ok a t it c lo se ly a nd c a re fu lly e nough. R apid ly c u t s e quence s only c o m pound th e e xtr a ord in ary a m ount o f v is u al in fo rm atio n a va ila ble fo r a naly sis . S o to b egin to le arn h ow to w rit e a bout s h ot- to -s h ot e dit in g, ta ke a D VD o f th e film o f y o ur ch oic e a nd c h oose a s im ple a nd fa ir ly s h ort s e quence to w ork o n— sa y fiv e to te n s h ots in a se quence la stin g betw een 30 se co nds and 1 m in ute . B e su re to ch oose an in div id ual se quence o r p art o f a n in div id ual se quence ra th er th an th e e nd o f o ne se quence a nd th e b egin nin g o f a noth er; th at’s th e s u bje ct o f ch apte r 6 . A seq uen ce is 94 sim ply a s e rie s o f in te rre la te d s h ots th at fo rm a c o here nt u nit o f d ra m atic a ctio n.) Describ e th e c o nte nt o f e ach im age th oro ughly , b ut c o nce ntr a te o n th e m eth ods b y whic h th e d ir e cto r e ffe cts tr a nsit io ns fr o m s h ot to s h ot. W hat ty p e o f m atc h in g d oes h e or s h e e m plo y, if a ny? D oes th e s e quence u se a s h ot/r e ve rs e -s h ot p atte rn ?

Here ’s a n e xa m ple d ra w n fr o m th e e nd o f C harle s C haplin ’s Cit y L ig hts (1 931). It’s lo nger th an te n s h ots , b ut it is o ne o f th e m ost fa m ous s e quence s in w orld film h is to ry ; not o nly is it e xce ptio nally e m otio nally s a tis fy in g, b ut it c o nta in s a fa scin atin g la pse in co ntin uit y :

SH O T 1 :

A tw o-s h ot o f th e T ra m p a nd th e G ir l; th e G ir l is sta ndin g in th e doorw ay o f th e flo w er s h op o n th e rig ht s id e o f th e s cre en, a nd th e Tra m p is s ta ndin g o n th e s id ew alk o n th e le ft s id e o f th e s cre en. T he Gir l re ach es o ut w it h h er rig ht h and a nd o ffe rs th e T ra m p a flo w er sh e is h old in g. T he T ra m p tu rn s a nd re ach es o ut to ta ke th e flo w er wit h h is le ft h and. T he flo w er is in th e c e nte r o f th e s cre en a s h e ta ke s it . A s th e T ra m p p ulls h is le ft h and b ack w it h th e flo w er, th e G ir l ste ps to w ard h im a s h e p uts th e flo w er in h is rig ht h and a nd q uic kly pulls h im b y th e le ft h and to w ard h er. C haplin c u ts o n th is a ctio n to :

SH O T 2 :

A c lo se r tw o-s h ot ta ke n fr o m th e re ve rs e a ngle . T his s h ot is ta ke n ove r th e T ra m p’s rig ht s h ould er. T he G ir l is s e en a t a th re e-q uarte r angle ; b oth c h ara cte rs a re in m ediu m s h ot. T he G ir l, n ow h old in g th e Tra m p’s le ft h and in h ers , lo oks th e T ra m p in th e e ye a nd s m ile s, b ut as s h e b egin s to p at th e T ra m p’s le ft h and w it h h er rig ht h and (th e Tra m p is s till h old in g th e flo w er in h is o th er h and), h er e xp re ssio n ch anges to one of new fo und unders ta ndin g: sh e re co gniz e s th e to uch o f h er p re vio usly u nse en b enefa cto r’s h and a nd re aliz e s th at th is rid ic u lo us h om ele ss m an h as e nable d h er v is io n to b e re sto re d.

She n ow a ppears to b e lo okin g n ot o nly a t h im b ut in to h im ; h er g aze is p enetr a tin g. C haplin cu ts o n th e a ctio n o f th e G ir l p attin g th e Tra m p’s h and to :

SH O T 3 :

A r e ve rs e -a ngle s h ot, ta ke n a t a c lo se r d is ta nce ( b ut n ot a c lo se -u p) of th e tw o p eople ’s h ands c la sp ed in th e c e nte r o f th e im age. T he Tra m p’s r ig ht h and is r a is e d to h is fa ce . T he c a m era tilt s u p a nd p ans slig htly le ft to re ve al a clo se r m ediu m sh ot o f th e T ra m p, w ho is hold in g th e flo w er in fr o nt o f th e rig ht sid e o f h is fa ce , h is h and co ve rin g h is m outh . T he s id e o f th e G ir l’s h ead is v is ib le o n th e r ig ht sid e o f th e im age; h er le ft h and is n ow to uch in g th e la pel o f th e Tra m p’s w orn ja cke t. S he begin s to w it h dra w her le ft hand as Chaplin c u ts o n th e a ctio n to :

SH O T 4 :

A re ve rs e a ngle tw o-s h ot (th e s a m e a s S hot 2 ). S he n ow p ulls h er rig ht h and b ack a nd to uch es h er o w n fa ce in a g estu re th at in dic a te s co m pre hensio n; th e w eig ht of her re co gnit io n gro w s. O ddly , th e flo w er th e T ra m p h old s is n o lo nger a t th e le ve l o f h is fa ce b ut is n ow in fr o nt o f h is c h est. T he G ir l m outh s th e w ord s, “It’s y o u?” b efo re Chaplin c u ts to :

SH O T 5 :

A TIT LE C AR D th at r e ads, “ Y ou?” C ut to :

More o r le ss th e s a m e s h ot a s S hot 3 , o nly a b it c lo se r; n ow o nly th e bare st s liv e r o f th e G ir l’s h ead is v is ib le a t th e v e ry e dge o f th e r ig ht- 95 SH O T 6 :

hand s id e o f th e im age. T he T ra m p n ods in re sp onse to th e G ir l’s questio n. T he flo w er is b ack u p a t th e T ra m p’s fa ce , a nd h is in dex fin ger a ppears to b e to uch in g h is lip s. C haplin cu ts o n h is slig ht noddin g a ctio n to :

SH O T 7 :

The s a m e a s S hot 4 . T he flo w er is a gain a t c h est le ve l. C haplin c u ts ra th er q uic kly to :

SH O T 8 :

The s a m e a s S hot 6 ; th e flo w er is a gain a t th e T ra m p’s fa ce . H e poin ts to h is o w n rig ht e ye a nd m outh s th e w ord s, “Y ou c a n s e e now ?” C ut to :

SH O T 9 :

A tit le c a rd th at r e ads, “ Y ou c a n s e e n ow ?” C ut to :

SH O T 1 0:

The s a m e a s S hot 8 . T he T ra m p s m ile s. C ut to :

SH O T 1 1:

The s a m e a s S hot 7 . T he flo w er is o nce a gain a t c h est le ve l a s th e Gir l n ods a nd m outh s th e w ord , “Y es.” S he s w allo w s, in dic a tin g th e depth o f h er e m otio n, a nd m outh s th e w ord s, “ I c a n s e e n ow .” C ut to :

SH O T 1 2:

A tit le c a rd th at r e ads, “ Y es, I c a n s e e n ow .” C ut to :

SH O T 1 3:

The s a m e a s S hot 1 1. T he G ir l a ppears to m outh th e w ord “y e s” tw ic e a s s h e g aze s a t th e T ra m p. C haplin c u ts to :

SH O T 1 4:

More o r le ss th e s a m e a s S hot 1 0: N ot q uit e c lo se e nough to b e a clo se up o f th e T ra m p, b eca use n ot o nly is h is fa ce v is ib le b ut a ls o h is sh ould ers , b ut c lo se e nough to re gis te r th e d epth o f e m otio n in h is fa ce a s h e b egin s to g ig gle w it h p le asu re a t th e G ir l’s re co gnit io n o f him . T he flo w er is o nce a gain a t th e le ve l o f h is fa ce , a nd h is h and partia lly c o ve rs h is m outh . F ade o ut.

What d o y o u n otic e a bout th e s e quence ? F ilm s ch ola rs h ave p uzzle d o ve r th e e ndin g o f Cit y L ig hts s in ce th e film ’s r e le ase in 1 931; th e s e quence is o ne o f th e m ost e m otio nally sa tis fy in g e ndin gs e ve r film ed, a nd y e t th e d ir e cto r, C haplin , v io la te s o ne o f th e c a rd in al ru le s o f c o ntin uit y e dit in g b y n ot m atc h in g th e p osit io n o f th e flo w er fr o m s h ot to s h ot. Is th is s im ply a n e rro r— an e dit in g g lit c h ? O r is th ere a n e xp re ssiv e p urp ose b ehin d it ?

Could it b e a g lit c h and s till h ave e xp re ssiv e m eanin g?

T hese q uestio ns c o uld fo rm th e basis o f a g re at fin al p aper fo r y o ur c o urs e .

1.

If th e b all flie s o ut o f th e rig ht s id e o f th e im age a fte r th e b atte r h it s it , it m ust e nte r th e im age a gain o n th e le ft fo r th e r u le s o f c o ntin uit y e dit in g to b e o bse rv e d.

2.

If th e p it c h er is lo okin g o ffs cre en r ig ht, th e fir s t b ase m an m ust lo ok o ffs cre en le ft if w e a re to belie ve th at th e tw o m en a re lo okin g a t e ach o th er.

3.

B y c u ttin g a cro ss th e a xis a nd s h ootin g fr o m th e o th er s id e o f th e lin e, th e c h ara cte rs w hen pro je cte d w ould a ppear to flip fr o m th eir re gula r s id e o f th e s cre en to th e o pposit e s id e. F or most a udie nce s, th is w ould b e ja rrin g a nd d is ru ptiv e .

96 C HAPTE R 5 S O UND A V ER Y S H O RT H IS TO RY O F F IL M S O UND W e ca ll th em sile nt m ovie s , th ose e arly film s th at d id n ot h ave a s o undtr a ck. B ut th ey w ere n’t a ctu ally s ile nt. M ost m otio n p ic tu re s o f t h at e ra w ere s cre ened w it h s o m e fo rm o f liv e m usic . In la rg e, u rb an t h eate rs , e xh ib it o rs w ould o fte n h ir e a fu ll o rc h estr a to a cco m pany th e m ovie s th ey s h ow ed, w hile in s m all v e nues th ere w ould s im ply b e a p ia nis t. O rg ans, to o, w ere co m monly use d to acco m pany film s in t h ose ye ars . N ot o nly co uld a sin gle p ip e o rg an o r e le ctr ic o rg an s im ula te a v a rie ty o f in str u m ents fr o m c la rin ets to v io lin s, b ut it c o uld a ls o p ro vid e a v a rie ty o f s o und e ffe cts s u ch a s b ells a nd k n ocks.

It ca nnot e ve n b e sa id th at sile nt film s la cke d sp oke n d ia lo gue.

C hara cte rs s p oke to e ach o th er a ll th e tim e. B ut in ste ad o f h earin g t h eir w ord s, a udie nce s re ad th em o nscre en in th e fo rm o f TIT LE C AR DS — so m e o f th ose w ord s, a nyw ay, s in ce n ot e ve ry lin e o f d ia lo gue w as p rin te d in fu ll. T it le c a rd s a ls o c o nve ye d in fo rm atio n a bout c h ara cte rs , w hen a nd w here s ce nes w ere s e t, a nd s o o n.

Exp erim ents w it h s yn ch ro niz in g th e im age w it h a udib le , re co rd ed d ia lo gue, m usic , a nd s o und e ffe cts b egan in H olly w ood in th e 1 910s.

B y th e e arly 1 920s, th ere w ere tw o c o m petin g s yste m s— SO UND O N F IL M a nd SO UND O N D IS C . T he la tte r s yste m r e co rd ed s o unds o n p honogra ph d is cs (o th erw is e k n ow n a s re co rd s), w hic h th en h ad to b e c u ed to b egin p la yin g a t p re cis e ly th e c o rre ct in sta nt in o rd er to m atc h th e i m ages th at w ere pro je cte d onscre en. The so und-o n-film syste m , w hic h p ro ve d le ss cu m bers o m e a nd w hic h u lt im ate ly w as a dopte d a ro und th e w orld , re co rd s s o und o nto p hoto gra phic film in th e fo rm o f l ig ht w ave s, w hic h are th en re ad optic a lly by th e pro je cto r and c o nve rte d b ack in to s o und.

97 In O cto ber 1 927, W arn er B ro s. re le ase d The J a zz S in ger , th e fir s t fe atu re film w it h syn ch ro niz e d dia lo gue and so ngs. Sta rrin g th e popula r so ng-a nd-d ance m an A l Jo ls o n, it ’s th e sto ry of a yo ung Orth odox J e w w ho d efie s h is fa th er b y b eco m in g a ja zz s in ger in ste ad of a ca nto r (a vo ca lis t w ho sin gs p ra ye rs d urin g Je w is h se rv ic e s).

Ja kie R abin ow it z le ave s h om e, A m eric a niz e s h is n am e to J a ck R obin , and tu rn s up te n ye ars la te r at a ca bare t, where he sin gs a syn ch ro niz e d so ng and th en addre sse s not only th e audie nce onscre en b ut th e m ovie a udie nce a s w ell: “W ait a m in ute ! W ait a min ute ! Y ou a in ’t h eard n oth in ’ y e t!” The J a zz S in ger w as a s u cce ssfu l moneym ake r fo r W arn er B ro s., a nd a lt h ough it to ok se ve ra l m ore ye ars fo r s yn ch ro niz e d s o un d to b eco m e s ta ndard in w orld c in em a, th e film e ffe ctiv e ly s ig nale d th e e nd o f th e s o -c a lle d s ile nt e ra a nd th e begin nin g o f fe atu re -le ngth TA LK IE S , a n e ra th at c o ntin ues to day.

Perh aps needle ss to sa y, th ere have been m any te ch nolo gic a l deve lo pm ents sin ce The Ja zz S in ger —adva nce s in m ic ro phones, so und re co rd ers , and sp eake rs — but th e deta ils of th ese im pro ve m ents a re b est le ft to u pper-le ve l film makin g a nd film h is to ry co urs e s. O ne c o m mon te rm th at y o u m ig ht b e c u rio us to k n ow a b it about, th ough, is DO LB Y , s in ce m any if n ot m ost c o m merc ia l film s c a rry th at p artic u la r c re dit a nd lo go. D olb y L abora to rie s s p ecia liz e s in th e nois e re ductio n s yste m in ve nte d b y R ay D olb y in 1 965 fo r u se fir s t in th e re co rd in g in dustr y a nd, a fe w y e ars la te r, in th e c in em a. (T he fir s t film th at u se d D olb y te ch nolo gy w as S ta nle y K ubric k’s A C lo ckw ork Ora nge , 1 971.) T he D olb y s yste m g re atly r e duce s b ackg ro und n ois e s, enhance s th e c la rit y o f v o ic e s, s o und e ffe cts , a nd m usic , a nd c u rre ntly offe rs a to ta l o f s ix s e para te c h annels th at p la y s o und fr o m s p eake rs pla ce d b ehin d th e s cre en o n th e le ft, c e nte r, a nd rig ht, a s u bw oofe r, and s u rro und-s o und s p eake rs o n th e le ft a nd rig ht in th e a udit o riu m .

The dig it a l in fo rm atio n fo r each of th ese ch annels is pla ce d, in genio usly , b etw een th e s p ro cke t h ole s o f th e film .

98 FIG URE 5 .1 S oundtr a cks ( le ft to r ig ht ): ( A ) th e S ony D yn am ic D ig it a l S ound ( S D DS) tr a ck; ( B ) sp ro cke t h ole s; ( C ) th e D olb y D ig it a l tr a ck; ( D ) th e a nalo g s o undtr a ck.

REC O RDIN G , R ER EC O RDIN G , E D IT IN G , A ND M IX IN G The p ro ce ss o f cre atin g, m anip ula tin g, a nd p la yin g b ack cin em atic so und is ty p ic a lly lo ng, e xp ensiv e , a nd in cre asin gly c o m ple x fr o m a te ch nic a l and pers o nnel sta ndpoin t, and sin ce th e sp ecif ic te ch nolo gie s in vo lv e d in film makin g are , here as els e w here , le ss im porta nt to film s tu die s th an th e meanin gs g enera te d b y th e fin is h ed film s, th ere is n o p oin t in a n in tr o ducto ry c la ss to o ve rw helm y o u w it h te ch nic a l d eta ils . S till, y o u s h ould b e a w are o f th e e norm ous a m ount of tim e, e ffo rt, a nd s kill th at g o in to e ve ry fe atu re film s o undtr a ck y o u hear.

Ju st a s th e c re atio n o f th e im age tr a ck b egin s w it h lig ht e nte rin g th e ca m era ’s le ns, th e s o undtr a ck’s g enesis is th e s o und th at e nte rs a mic ro phone. A sce ne ca n b e m ik e d b y w ay o f a BO OM , a g lo rif ie d bro om h andle o nto w hic h a m ic ro phone is a tta ch ed b efo re b ein g h eld out o ve r th e a cto rs ’ h eads ju st o ut o f c a m era ra nge, o r b y w ay o f mik e s atta ch ed to th e acto rs ’ bodie s, heads, or clo th in g.

RAD IO MIC RO PH O NES have th e vir tu e of bein g sm all and wir e le ss— and th ere fo re e asy to h id e. In a ddit io n, th ere a re SH O TG UN M IC RO PH O NES 99 th at p ic k u p s o unds a t s o m e d is ta nce b ut m ust p oin t e xa ctly in th e dir e ctio n o f th e s o und b ein g m ik e d— usu ally a n a cto r’s s p eech .

It’s not only dia lo gue th at re quir e s one or m ore m ik e s. S ound effe cts , to o, m ust b e p ic ke d u p b y a m ik e b efo re th ey c a n b e r e co rd ed, as d oes m usic . T his is n ot o nly fo r a m plif ic a tio n. M ic ro phone filt e rs re duce if n ot e ntir e ly e lim in ate u nw ante d o r u nnece ssa ry fr e quencie s, th ere by r e nderin g th e r e co rd ed s o und e ve n c le are r th an th e o rig in al.

Sound is r e co rd ed a nd e dit e d in e it h er an alo g o r dig it a l fo rm . In a n analo g s yste m , s o unds a re r e co rd ed o nto m agnetic ta pe th at is e dit e d in m uch th e s a m e w ay a s th e im age tr a ck; th e m agnetic ta pe, lik e th e film , is lit e ra lly c u t in to s tr ip s o f v a ry in g le ngth s a nd s p lic e d to geth er se quentia lly . E dit o rs r e ly o n th e c la ckin g o f th e c la pboard d escrib ed in ch apte r 8 to syn ch ro niz e th e im age tr a ck w it h it s co rre sp ondin g magnetic ta pe. C onte m pora ry d ig it a l e dit in g s yste m s re ly o n a DIG IT A L AU DIO W ORKSTA TIO N (D AW ), a c o m pute r a nd s p ecia liz e d a pplic a tio n th at m atc h th e d ig it a l r e co rd in g w it h th e im age.

Much o f th e w ork o f c re atin g th e s o undtr a ck is d one d urin g PO ST- PR O DUCTIO N , th e p erio d a fte r th e im ages h ave b een s h ot. In a w ay, th e te rm postp ro ductio n is s o m eth in g o f a m is n om er, p re cis e ly b eca use th e p ro ductio n p ro ce ss g oes o n lo ng a fte r th e p hoto gra phy h as b een co m ple te d. T his is c e rta in ly th e c a se w it h th e s o undtr a ck.

FO LE Y AR TIS TS are so und effe cts cre ato rs w ho duplic a te ce rta in so unds in a s p ecia l re co rd in g s tu dio c a lle d a F ole y s ta ge o r F ole y stu dio . V ario us k in ds o f fo ots te ps, fo r in sta nce , d on’t s o und q uit e r ig ht when th ey a re re co rd ed a t th e tim e th ey a re p hoto gra phed. It ta ke s a Fole y a rtis t, s p ecif ic a lly a Fole y w alk er , to re -c re ate a m ore a ccu ra te effe ct b y w alk in g o n, s a y, s a nd o r g ra ve l a nd re co rd in g th e s o unds th at r e su lt .

Fole y a rtis ts a nd o th er s o und te ch nic ia ns m ay s tr iv e to c re ate o r enhance th e a udie nce ’s s e nse o f re alis m , b ut o th ers c a n b e s a id to work to w ard a d if fe re nt a esth etic g oal. W e ta ke film SC O RES fo r g ra nte d as a p art o f o ur e xp erie nce o f m otio n p ic tu re s, b ut u nle ss w e w alk aro und lis te nin g to our iP ods all day, our re al liv e s do not have music a l a cco m panim ents to s e t a nd d eve lo p th e m ood o f th e m om ent th e w ay m ovie s d o. T he e ffe ct o f a s co re , th en, c a nnot b e c o nsid ere d to be sim ply “re alis tic .” Appro pria te to th e partic u la r film , ye s 100 —“re alis tic ,” n o. W heth er it ’s c h ord s fr o m a s in gle g uit a r o r th e ric h , sym phonic s o und o f a fu ll o rc h estr a , th e e le m ents o f a film ’s m usic a l sco re a ugm ent th e a udie nce ’s e m otio nal re sp onse to th e c h ara cte rs , sto ry , a nd im ages ir re sp ectiv e o f w heth er th e m om ent is m eant to b e re al- s e em in g o r n ot.

An o rig in al s co re m ay b e w rit te n b y a co m poser , th ough m any film s als o ( o r e ve n e xclu siv e ly ) u tiliz e p re exis tin g r e co rd ed s o ngs.

Fin ally , th e so und m ix er ta ke s a ll th e d if fe re nt c o m ponents — th e dia lo gue tr a cks, th e s o und e ffe cts , th e s co re , a nd s o o n— and b rin gs th em to geth er in a n a esth etic a lly b ala nce d w ay. A dju stin g v o lu m e a nd to ne b y b rin gin g p arts o f th e d ia lo gue u p w hile b rin gin g c e rta in s o und effe cts d ow n, a nd m anip ula tin g th e tr a cks s o th at s o unds s e em to move aro und th e th eate r— th ese are so m e of th e crit ic a l ta sks in MIX IN G . A nd ju st a s th ere is n o s in gle , c o rre ct w ay to film a ny g iv e n sce ne, th ere is n o s in gle a nd c o rre ct w ay to m ix s o und. It’s a ll a m atte r of h onorin g th e d ir e cto r’s v is io n (o r in th is c a se hearin g ). A h orro r dir e cto r, fo r exa m ple , m ay w ant her so und m ix e r to pro duce an unnerv in g, e ch o-lik e q ualit y o n th e s o undtr a ck— a q ualit y th at m ig ht not b e w hat th e d ir e cto r o f a ro m antic co m edy w ould w ant. (T hen again , it m ig ht b e, d ependin g o n w hat th e d ir e cto r is tr y in g to a ch ie ve .) A c o m pose r m ay c re ate a n e sp ecia lly b eautif u l p ie ce o f o rc h estr a tio n, but if th e d ir e cto r d oesn ’t th in k it s u se is o f v a lu e to th e s ce ne fo r whic h it was writ te n, th e so und m ix e r will re m ove it fr o m th e so undtr a ck.

ANALY TIC AL C ATE G ORIE S O F F IL M S O UND Beca use th e g oal h ere a nd th ro ughout Film S tu die s is n ot to tr y to fig ure o ut h ow a g iv e n c in em atic e le m ent— in th is c a se so und —was cre ate d, but ra th er to lo ca te , defin e, and analy ze ele m ents of exp re ssiv e m eanin g, yo u m ay b e w onderin g h ow to d eal w it h film so und p ro ductiv e ly . L et’s b egin b y c a te goriz in g s o m e o f th e v a rio us so unds y o u a ctu ally e xp erie nce w hen w atc h in g a nd lis te nin g to film s.

The th re e m ain c a te gorie s o f film s o und a re dia lo gue, m usic , a nd so und e ffe cts .

Dia lo gue in clu des all th e sp oke n w ord s in a film .

101 Dic tio narie s d efin e th e w ord dia lo gue a s a c o nve rs a tio n b etw een tw o people (a s o ppose d to monolo gue— a s p eech , u su ally lo ng, b y o ne pers o n ). B ut in film te rm in olo gy, dia lo gue r e fe rs to any s p oke n w ord s, in clu din g c o nve rs a tio ns, m onolo gues, ra ndom w ord s a udib le in c ro w d sce nes, a nd v o ic e ove r n arra tio n. T he te rm music is s e lf - e xp la nato ry , but it is im porta nt to re m em ber th at in film , m usic m ay b e die getic o r nondie getic ; it m ay b e s o urc e d w it h in th e w orld o f th e s to ry (w e s e e so m eone w it h a n iP od a nd e arp hones o nscre en a nd w e h ear th e music s h e is h earin g) o r n ot (w e h ear m usic p la yin g a s a b ear w alk s alo ne th ro ugh th e w oods).

Sound e ffe cts a re a ll o th er n ois e s, in clu din g both d ie getic a nd n ondie getic so unds. T he cra sh o f o ce an w ave s, bir d s ch ir p in g, a ca nnon’s boom , co m ic a l honkin g so unds— eve ry nois e th at is n ’t s p oke n w ord s o r m usic is c o nsid ere d a s o und e ffe ct, wheth er it ’s d ie getic o r n ot.

One k e y d is tin ctio n to m ake a m ong ty p es o f film s o und is w heth er it is SYN CHRO NO US o r NO NSYN CHRO NO US .

Syn ch ro nous m eans occu rrin g a t th e s a m e tim e , w hic h in c in em atic s o und te rm s m eans th at a s o und is heard a t th e s a m e in sta nt a s it s s o urc e a ppears o n th e s cre en. W e se e a w om an’s lip s m ove , a nd w e h ear th e m atc h in g w ord s. A v is it o r pre sse s a d oorb ell, a nd w e h ear th e b ell. A h ig h s ch ool k id tu rn s o n a ca r ra dio , a nd m usic b egin s to p la y. T hese s o unds a nd im ages a re te m pora lly a nd s p atia lly m atc h ed:

syn ch ro nous s o und .

Not all so unds are syn ch ro nous.

Nonsyn ch ro nous so unds , in co ntr a st, a re s o unds th at o ccu r a t a d if fe re nt tim e a nd/o r in a d if fe re nt sp ace th an w hat a ppears o nscre en. D ir e cto rs a nd e dit o rs o fte n u se nonsyn ch ro nous s o unds to m ake c u ts fr o m s ce ne to s ce ne s m ooth er, le ss ja rrin g. T hese a re c a lle d SO UND B R ID G ES . F or in sta nce , a t th e ta il end o f o ne s ce ne, a m an is b ein g h andcu ffe d a nd le d a w ay in lo ng sh ot. A ntic ip atin g th e n ext s ce ne, th e s o und o f a c e ll d oor c la nkin g sh ut is h eard o n th e s o undtr a ck fo r a s e co nd o r tw o b efo re th e d ir e cto r cu ts to a fu ll s h ot o f th e m an, n ow a p ris o ner, in h is c e ll. F or th e la st fe w se co nds of th e earlie r sce ne, th e cla nkin g so und is nonsyn ch ro nous w it h th e im age; o nce th e n ext sce ne b egin s, th e so unds o f th e c e ll b eco m e s yn ch ro nous.

Som e nonsyn ch ro nous so unds are m is m atc h ed w it h th e im age, eit h er by in te ntio n or by te ch nolo gic a l fa ilu re . W hen a film prin t 102 beco m es w orn , fo r in sta nce , o r h as b een p oorly p rin te d to b egin w it h , ch ara cte rs ’ s p eech m ay s lip o ut o f s yn ch . F ilm d ia lo gue th at h as b een dubbed in to a noth er la nguage is a ls o n onsyn ch ro nous— ch ara cte rs ’ lip s m ove to fo rm w ord s th at a re o bvio usly d if fe re nt th an th ose h eard on th e s o undtr a ck.

A re la te d te rm is ASYN CHRO NO US S O UND . W here as th e p re fix non- means not , th e pre fix a- m eans wit h out .

Asyn ch ro nous so und , th ere fo re , re fe rs to th ose s o unds th at a re h eard w it h out th eir s o urc e s bein g s e en o nscre en; th e te rm asyn ch ro nous s o und m eans th e s a m e th in g a s th e te rm OFFS C REEN S O UND . F or e xa m ple , a s h ot o f a n o ffic e lo ca te d in a la rg e c it y m ay b e a cco m panie d b y fa in t tr a ffic n ois e s. T he ca rs and buse s th at are pre su m ably pro ducin g th e so unds are n’t vis ib le o nscre en— th e s h ot is o f a n in te rio r, a nd th ere m ay n ot e ve n b e a vis ib le w in dow — but th e offs cre en so unds are u nders to od to b e occu rrin g s im ult a neously w it h th e v is ib le a ctio n.

The te rm offs cre en s o und le ads to y e t a noth er:

AM BIE N T S O UND —th e backg ro und n ois e s o f th e s ce ne’s e nvir o nm ent. V ery fe w p la ce s o n Earth a re p erfe ctly sile nt. C ar m oto rs ru n a nd le ave s ru stle ; p ip es ru m ble a nd a ir c o ndit io ners h um . W hen film c o nve rs a tio ns a re s h ot and re co rd ed, e dit e d, a nd s cre ened w it h out a cco m panyin g a m bie nt so unds, th ey s o und lik e th ey a re ta kin g p la ce in a w eir d ly m uffle d o r eve n to ta lly s o undpro ofe d ro om . L is te n to th e ro om in w hic h y o u a re sit tin g, a nd h ear th e p artic u la r a m bie nt s o unds o f th at p artic u la r s p ace .

Nois e s lik e th e o nes yo u a re n ow h earin g a re g enera lly re co rd ed se para te ly fr o m th e d ia lo gue a nd a dded la te r d urin g m ix in g. E ve n in th e a bse nce o f c a r h orn s a nd a la rm s, b ark in g d ogs in th e d is ta nce , and th e lik e , e ve ry ro om h as w hat is c a lle d RO OM T O NE , w hic h is a ls o re co rd ed a part fr o m th e d ia lo gue a nd in se rte d in to c o nve rs a tio ns to fill any g aps th at m ay o th erw is e o ccu r.

As yo u alr e ady kn ow , anoth er w ay of dis tin guis h in g cin em atic so unds is to c a te goriz e th em o n th e b asis o f w heth er th ey a re DIE G ETIC or NO NDIE G ETIC —in o th er w ord s, w heth er th e s o unds a re s o urc e d in th e world o f th e s to ry o r n ot. A lm ost a ll film d ia lo gue is d ie getic : c h ara cte rs sp eakin g, wheth er syn ch ro nously , nonsyn ch ro nously , or asyn ch ro nously , u su ally d o so w it h in th e w orld o f th e sto ry . F or a fu nny e xce ptio n to th is g enera l ru le , s e e th e b egin nin g o f th e c o m edy 103 The G ir l C an ’ t H elp It (1 956), d ir e cte d b y F ra nk T ash lin . T he s ta r o f th e film , T om E w ell, a ppears o nscre en, lo oks to w ard th e c a m era , a nd dir e ctly a ddre sse s th e a udie nce : “L adie s a nd g entle m en, th e m otio n pic tu re y o u a re a bout to s e e is a s to ry o f m usic . I p la y th e r o le o f T om Mille r, a n a gent . . .” E w ell’s d ia lo gue re fe rs to th e s to ry b ut re m ain s outs id e o f it ; it is , th ere fo re n ondie getic d ia lo gue.

Wit h th e n ota ble e xce ptio n o f so -c a lle d backsta g e m usic als , a film ’s s co re is a lm ost a lw ays n ondie getic ; it is ra re ly s o urc e d in th e world o f th e s to ry . ( Backsta ge m usic a ls a re m usic a ls th at ta ke p la ce in th e world of th eate r and film ; th eir ch ara cte rs are th em se lv e s perfo rm ers w ho a re p uttin g o n a s h ow , s o th eir s o ngs a re o fte n s e t in a re al- w orld c o nte xt) . In a m elo dra m a, th e h eartb ro ke n m oth er o f a dyin g b aby b egin s to c ry w hile , o n th e s o undtr a ck, w e h ear th e s o und of v io lin s. O r in a h orro r film , s o m eone s lo w ly a ppro ach es a c lo se d door b ehin d w hic h lu rk a g ro up o f fle sh -e atin g z o m bie s, a nd w e h ear a co uple o f b eats o f te nse p erc u ssio n. T he v io la tio n o f th is g enera l ru le ca n b e u se d to g re at c o m ic e ffe ct. In B la ke E dw ard s’ P in k P anth er co m edy A S hot in th e D ark (1 964), Pete r Selle rs , as In sp ecto r Ja cq ues C lo use au, tu rn s u p a t a n udis t c o lo ny a nd w alk s lu dic ro usly past a n e qually n ude o rc h estr a p la yin g th e fa m ilia r “T hem e fr o m A Shot in th e D ark ” by H enry M ancin i. T he film ’s sco re , w hic h had pre vio usly been nondie getic , su ddenly and rid ic u lo usly beco m es die getic a lly s o urc e d in th e w orld o f th e s to ry .

In th eir b ook The F ilm E xp erie nce , T im oth y C orrig an a nd P atr ic ia Whit e w rit e : “ O ne q uestio n o ffe rs a s im ple w ay to d is tin guis h b etw een die getic a nd n ondie getic s o und: c a n th e c h ara cte rs in th e film h ear th e so und?” If th ey c a n h ear it , o r if th ey c o uld c o nce iv a bly h ear it , it ’s alm ost c e rta in ly d ie getic . F or e xa m ple , a w om an w ho is a lo ne in h er bedro om m ig ht n ot h ear th e fa in t fo ots te ps o f th e in tr u der w ho is a bout to k ill h er, b ut th e in tr u der c a n h ear th em — and w e h ear th em , to o:

th ese fo ots te ps a re th ere fo re d ie getic s o unds. T he c re epy m usic th at acco m panie s th e sce ne, how eve r, ca nnot be heard by eit h er th e wom an o r th e in tr u der a nd is th ere fo re n ondie getic — unle ss, o f c o urs e , th at p artic u la r p ie ce o f m usic is c o m in g fr o m a ra dio o r o th er s o und so urc e in th e w om an’s bedro om ; in th at ca se , both sh e and th e in tr u der c a n h ear it , w hic h w ould m ake it d ie getic .

104 Som etim es in a n arra tiv e film , a c h ara cte r s e em in gly s p eaks d ir e ctly to th e a udie nce w it h out a ppearin g o nscre en. T his is c a lle d v o ic e -o ve r narra tio n, o r V O . O tto P re m in ger’s c la ssic film n oir , Laura (1 944), fo r in sta nce , b egin s ( a fte r th e o penin g c re dit s , w hic h a re a cco m panie d b y th e n ondie getic “T hem e fr o m Laura ”) w it h a v o ic e -o ve r: a d ead m an sp eaks to u s fr o m a n e ntir e ly b la ck s cre en fo r s e ve ra l s e co nds b efo re an im age a ppears . V O is a ls o o fte n u se d to co nve y a ch ara cte r’s (o th erw is e ) unsp oke n th oughts . F or exa m ple , a sh ot of a co lle ge stu dent lo okin g atte ntiv e ly at his pro fe sso r, who is dis cu ssin g nondie getic so und, m ay be acco m panie d by his vo ic e in VO co m mentin g o n h ow b orin g th e c la ss a ctu ally is a nd h ow h e w ould much r a th er b e o n a b each w it h h is g ir lf r ie nd.

SO UND A ND S PA CE Eve r sin ce so und b eca m e sta ndard in w orld cin em a in th e 1 930s, film make rs h ave h ad to c o nstr u ct s p ace s a ura lly a s w ell a s v is u ally .

Beca use o f te ch nolo gic a l lim it a tio ns, th e e arlie st s yn ch s o und film s were e sp ecia lly c u m bers o m e to c re ate , a nd a cco rd in gly , th e re su lt in g so und s p ace h ad a n a rtif ic ia l q ualit y . M ic ro phones p ic ke d u p n ot ju st th e in te nded s o und b ut any s o und, in clu din g th at o f th e c a m era ; a s a re su lt , c a m era s h ad to b e p la ce d in s o undpro ofe d b oxe s. M ore ove r, all th e so unds h ad to b e re co rd ed sim ult a neously — th ere w ere n o se para te tr a cks and no m ix in g— so , if th e film w as to have an orc h estr a l s co re , a n o rc h estr a h ad to b e p re se nt o n th e s e t, p la yin g alo ngsid e th e acto rs as th eir dia lo gue sce nes w ere sh ot. These te ch nolo gic a l re quir e m ents le nt a c e rta in c a nned q ualit y to th e s o und of th ese film s. T he a ura l s p ace c re ate d m ade e ve ry s ce ne s o und lik e —well, lik e it h ad b een re co rd ed in a c a ve rn ous s tu dio s o undsta ge.

In te rio rs , e xte rio rs — it d id n’t m atte r. It a ll s o unded th e s a m e.

Im pro ve m ents in mic ro phones, ca m era s, re co rd in g devic e s, pla yb ack p ro ce sse s, a nd s p eake rs h ave d one m uch m ore th an fr e ed ca m era s fr o m th eir s o undpro ofin g b oxe s (n ot to m entio n m usic ia ns fr o m th e s e t) . B eca use o f th e c la rit y o f c o nte m pora ry s o undtr a cks, w e are a ble to p erc e iv e a nd a pp re cia te a m ore c o m ple te e nvir o nm ent fo r 105 eve ry im age w e se e— beca use w e ca n hear it in m in ute deta il .

Wheth er th e s o und is s yn ch ro nous, n onsyn ch ro nous, a syn ch ro nous, die getic , o r n ondie getic , va rio us p ro pertie s o f th e so unds w e h ear co ntr ib ute to th e c re atio n o f a ura l s p ace .

AM PLIT U DE , o th erw is e k n ow n a s vo lu m e , re fe rs to th e lo udness o r so ftn ess o f th e s o und w e h ear. A s a lw ays in film s tu die s, it ’s th e effe ct of a m plit u de th at c o unts to w ard p la usib ilit y , n ot it s s tr ic t re alis m . F or in sta nce , a s ce ne s e t a t a ro ck c o nce rt m ay b egin w it h a m aste r s h ot of th e entir e are na acco m panie d by deafe nin g m usic on th e so undtr a ck, but w hen th e dir e cto r cu ts to a co nce rtg oer sa yin g so m eth in g to h er d ate in m ediu m tw o-s h ot, th e v o lu m e o f th e m usic dro ps— slig htly perh aps, but no le ss sig nif ic a ntly — to allo w th e audie nce to hear th e ch ara cte r’s dia lo gue. In re alit y , of co urs e , music ia ns a nd th eir a co ustic a l e ngin eers d on’t a cco m modate e ve n th eir m ost d evo te d fa ns’ c o nve rs a tio ns in th is w ay, b ut in th e m ovie s, audie nce s not only acce pt but eve n exp ect th is partic u la r so und co nve ntio n. If th e a m plit u de d id n’t d ro p, a nd th e a udie nce co uld n’t unders ta nd w hat th e c h ara cte rs s a id to e ach o th er, th ey w ould lik e ly beco m e a ngry a nd fr u str a te d.

The a ura l s p ace is m ain ta in ed in th is e xa m ple b y v ir tu e o f th e fa ct th at th e c h ange in v o lu m e is a s u btle c h ange . If th e a m plit u de fe ll to to o lo w a le ve l d urin g th e co nve rs a tio n, th e a ura l sp ace w ould n o lo nger b e p la usib le , a nd th e s ce ne w ould b egin to s e em u nre alis tic .

Bear in m in d: th is c o uld b e a le git im ate a rtis tic s tr a te gy. D ro ppin g th e music ’s v o lu m e d ra stic a lly m ig ht s e rv e to m ake th e tw o c o nce rtg oers se em to b e liv in g in th eir o w n w orld — a ro m antic w orld c o m pris e d o f ju st th e tw o o f th em d esp it e th e fa ct th at th ey a re in th e c o m pany o f 18,0 00 co nce rtg oers . There ’s a sce ne in Jo hn W oo’s Mis sio n:

Im possib le II th at te sts th e lim it s o f p la usib ilit y in th is re gard : tw o ch ara cte rs ( T om C ru is e a nd T handie N ew to n) e ngage in a c o m ple te ly audib le co nve rs a tio n while sp eedin g alo ngsid e each oth er in co m petin g c o nve rtib le s o n a w in din g o ce ansid e h ig hw ay. P la usib le :

bare ly . R ealis tic : n ot a t a ll. A ppro pria te fo r th e film : a bso lu te ly .

Am plit u de is o fte n u se d to e sta blis h a nd fo rtif y th e a udie nce ’s s e nse of dis ta nce . A n e xtr e m e lo ng sh ot o f a co w boy o n h ors e back, fo r in sta nce , m ay b e a cco m panie d b y th e s o und o f w in d a nd d ust b lo w in g 106 on th e s o undtr a ck, b ut if th e d ir e cto r w ere to c u t to a n e xtr e m e c lo se - up of th e hors e ’s hoofs , th e lik e ly acco m panyin g so und on th e so undtr a ck w ould b e th e s o und o f h oofs h it tin g d ir t. (T hese s o unds would p ro bably h ave b een c re ate d n ot b y th e h ors e b ut b y a F ole y artis t.) T his w ould n ot b e th e c a se , h ow eve r, if th e n ext s h ot in th e se quence w as o f a m an lo o kin g th ro ugh a p ow erfu l te le sco pe (th e obje ct o f h is g aze p re su m ably b ein g th e h ors e ’s h oofs ), in w hic h c a se th e im plic a tio n w ould b e th at th e w atc h er w as a t a fa r e nough d is ta nce fr o m th e c o w boy th at h e w ould n ot h ear th e h oofb eats — and n eit h er would w e.

Varia tio ns in a m plit u de m ay a ls o in dic a te a c h ara cte r’s s u bje ctiv e aw are ness o f th e w orld a ro und h er. In th e K ore an h orro r m ovie The Host (2 006), fo r in sta nce , a y o un g g ir l is p re occu pie d w it h s o m eth in g th at h as ju st h appened to a fa m ily m em ber w hen sh e le ave s h er fa th er’s s n ack b ar a nd g oes o uts id e to w alk in a riv e rs id e p ark . T here is re la tiv e sile nce on th e so undtr a ck— th at is , until sh e gra dually beco m es a w are th at s h e is in th e m id st o f h undre ds o f s cre am in g people w ho a re fle ein g a g ia nt m uta nt riv e r m onste r. T he d ir e cto r, Bong Jo on-h o, brin gs up th e so und le ve l of th e scre am in g, th us in dic a tin g a sh if t in th e gir l’s aw are ness. (T ra gic a lly , sh e is so on la sso ed b y th e h id eous s e rp ent’s ta il a nd s p ir it e d a w ay to it s fo ul la ir deep in th e S eoul s e w er s yste m .) Am plit u de is a n im porta nt s ig nif ie r o f c lo se ness o r d is ta nce , b ut it is not th e o nly fa cto r. T he te rm so und p ers p ectiv e d escrib es th e a ura l equiv a le nt o f th re e-d im ensio nal v is io n. J u st a s w e p erc e iv e d epth , th e th ir d d im ensio n (th e o th er tw o b ein g h eig ht a nd w id th ), la rg ely o n th e basis o f th e re la tiv e s iz e o f o bje cts in th e fo re gro und, m id dle gro und, and backg ro und, w e hear in pers p ectiv e , to o.

Sound pers p ectiv e describ es th e re la tiv e pro portio n of dir e ct so und and re fle cte d so und .

Dir e ct s o und is c re ate d (d ir e ctly