Trivia Contest #2: Who was the co-writer of the above film? Who was the film editor? List three films this editor eventually directed. Finally, which film (by another Hollywood director) did Welles purportedly watch over 40 times while filming his own masterwork? First four Media Aesthetic students to e-mail Armstrong the correct responses will receive four (4) bonus points for the Unit #2 unit exam.
Congratulations to Lori, Alyson, and Samantha, for having the correct responses to the above film trivia (+4 bonus points to be used for the second Unit Exam). Okay, one student to go (and very quickly cause the unit two exam is this coming Friday!)
MMC 1540 - Media Aesthetics (OUTLINES/NOTES)
Unit TWO - Depth, Volume, and Space Film/Television image - Really a flat, two-dimensional picture, but as viewers, we tend to accept it as having depth. This strictly illusory dimension is also the most flexible screen dimension and one that filmmakers can utilize to draw us into a visual presentation. Depth in Screen Space - Figure/Ground (Volume Duality) Linear Perspective (including forced perspective/Crowding effect) Three-Dimensional Arrangement of People/Objects Placement in Screen Space (Height, Size) Light, Shadow, Colors X-Axis, Y-Axis, Z-Axis (Z-Axis Motion Vector) Figure/Ground (Volume Duality) - How positive and negative space interacts to provide the sensation of three-dimensional space (mountain/sky). Positive screen space - solid mass (people buildings). Negative screen space - area which can be considered empty and on its own may not allow us to perceive depth within image (sky). Linear Perspective - All equally spaced objects appear to lie closer together in the distance than in the foreground. We perceive "distant" space as shrunk compared to foreground space. The manipulation of parallel lines - often used by media producers to create the illusion of three dimension within an audiovisual production. One element of linear perspective is the vanishing point. This is where parallel lines converge at the horizon line (at eye level). Linear perspective also has an effect on visual motion or lateral movement (a car seems faster near us than when further away). This aspect is especially important to remember in animation design. Two other aspects of Linear Perspective: Forced Perspective - When the camera remains stationary, audiovisual producers, by manipulating linear perspective through set design can create the illusion that there is depth to the screen image. Various line formations can assist in this illusion and the type of lens used to film the action. Crowding Effect - Can create the illusion of depth by simply crowding objects toward the upper part of the screen. Three-Dimensional Arrangement of People/Objects - Entails the overlapping of various elements within the screen area. When we see overlapping images (overlapping planes) on the screen, we perceive that there is depth to the screen space since objects (characters) are positioned either in front or behind other objects. Placement in Screen Space - Height in the Plane - If the camera is shooting parallel to the ground, those images that are higher in the picture field and therefore closer to the horizon line appear further away from us. Size - Large subjects or objects (in relation to the screen border) appear closer to us, while smaller ones appear further away. If two objects that we know to be equal in size lay at different points on the Z-Axis, we perceive them as either being closer or farther away from us. Light, Shadows, Colors - All can help produce a depth illusion (in regard to colors: cool/far, warm/close) X-Axis refers to screen width, Y-Axis to screen height. The Z-Axis (Z-Axis Motion Vector) relates to motion along the Z-Axis (toward or away from the camera).
Unit TWO - Lenses. Working With Depth Lenses - Like the human eye, the camera has a lens that bends rays of light into a sharp focal point on sensitive material. Unlike the eye, a camera's lens provides different kinds of depth perception. A/V media producers can exploit a lens' technological properties for a variety of effects. Depth Characteristics of Lenses - Three basic types of lenses available: Lenses are generally classified according to their focal length which is the distance from the plane of the film to the surface of the lens. Normal Lens - The most common choice for filmmakers. It most closely mimics the way the human eye perceives reality. Wide-Angle Lens - Photographs a wide angle of view. Also has effect of greatly emphasizing our sense of depth perception and often, as well, distorting linear perspective. Telephoto Lens - Long lens acts like a telescope to magnify distant objects. Although a telephoto lens does not distort linear perspective, it does have the sometimes useful effect of suppressing depth perception. It has a narrow angle of view. Wide-Angle Lens - Deep depth of field. Telephoto - shallow depth of field. Depth perception can also be affected by the narrowing or opening of the lens aperture. Stopping it down increases depth of field, while opening it up decreases it. Deep-Focus Photography - The style of photography that strives for sharp focus over the whole range of action. Shallow-focus photography - Maintains focus over a specific area of screen space, while blurring others. Shallow focus is a means in which to direct a viewer's attention to a particular object. Change of Focal Planes - A director can change focus during a shot to maintain focus on a subject moving away or toward the camera (follow focus) or to direct the viewer to shift attention from one subject to another (rack focus). Soft Focus - Or slightly blurred can help to convey certain subjective states (going from sharp to soft focus - see: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington).
Unit TWO - Shots, Opticals, Camera Movement SPECIFIC SHOTS: Full Shot - Shows the entire scene - the complete room, all the action on a wide street, the whole regiment of the cavalry to the rescue. The full shot is also called an establishing shot (or universal shot). Long Shot - Has the central figure of interest (a rider on horseback) at some distance from the camera. Most often, the camera lens is set at infinity. Medium Shot - The most common shot in television. The term "medium" is relative to what is being shot. Thus, a medium shot of a building will reveal only a portion of the building. A medium shot of a person will reveal the person perhaps from the knees up. Close Up - A shot that tightly frames an object of interest. (e.g., a person's face, hand, etc.). Extreme CU - Zeros in on detail: the pupil of an eye as it contracts in terror, a thumbprint being lifted from a drinking glass, etc. POV - A character's point of view: how something looks from his/her eyes. Can also be considered the camera's (our) point of view. Reverse Angle - A change in perspective, usually the opposite of the POV shot. Two Shot - The subject of the shot is two people. OPTICALS: Fade In/Out - FADE IN is used at beginning of scene, FADE OUT at the end. Can be used to suggest to viewers that an emphatic period of time has passed. Dissolve - The slow diffusing of a shot. It most commonly takes the form of a "lap dissolve" (overlapping dissolve), in which one shot is fused to the next by gradually darkening the frames of the first and blending them with the gradually lightening frames of the second. The technique usually suggests a time-lapse, but not as emphatic as a fade out/ fade in. Cut - Simply two shots spliced together - immediate transition from one shot to the next. Jump Cut - A cut between two shots that seems abrupt and calls attention to itself because of some obvious jump in time or space. Wipe - Pushing the frames of one scene off the screen as they are replaced by the first frames of the succeeding scene. Of all transitional devices, this one calls more attention to itself, and therefore, should be used judiciously. Computer-Generated Effect - Computer technology utilized for transitional effects - particularly in variations of wipes (e.g., cube effect as seen during a sports game). CAMERA MOVEMENT: Pan Shot - The camera swiveling from left to right or vice versa to obtain a complete view of a scenic vista. It is always a side to side camera movement. Tilt Shot - Essentially, the camera moves up or down on its vertical axis. Following a balloon, the fall of a skydiver, a person getting up from a chair, etc. Dolly Shot - A camera on wheels or tracks. The camera either moves toward or away from characters or action. (Also, a "tracking shot" where the camera follows the action laterally) Zoom Shot - The camera remains stationary while focal distance is changed (either zooming in toward action or away). A dolly shot makes viewers feel they are moving directly into the action, while a zoom shot simply "brings" the action to them. Therefore, a dolly shot is often more effective as a dramatic device. Zoom/Dolly - Changing the focal distance toward an object while simultaneously dollying back. Creates a distorted feeling of space (e.g., Vertigo, Jaws, Poltergeist). Other possible terms to be discussed: Crane Shot Pivot Steady-Cam Slow Motion/Fast Motion Freeze Frame Thawed Frame Stills
Unit TWO - Editing, Continuity, Narrative Mise en Scene - Term literally means "putting-in-the-scene". The whole complex of pictorial elements inside the frame area. How is an audiovisual media producer using light, color, the placement and movement of performers, costuming, set design, etc. Mise en Scene can refer to the overall visual style of a particular A/V presentation. Often, mise en scene is related to a single shot; montage to how individual shots are put together. Mise en scene can also refer to that part of the cinematic process that takes place on the set, as opposed to montage which takes place afterwards. Critics of mise en scene: Emphasis on mise en scene (which might include long un-cut/"real-time" takes) is often regarded as static, montage as dynamic. This is not necessarily the case. Since we "read" a shot, we are actively involved with it. The A/V director alters and modifies our reading of the shot (using light, color, sets, screen composition, sound, various screen ratios, etc.). Edit - The words "editing" or "cutting" suggest a trimming process, in which unwanted material is eliminated - one edits or cuts raw material down. Montage - Suggests a building action, working up from the raw material - a film/video presentation is seen as being constructed rather than edited. Sergei Eisenstein's definition of Montage: Adjacent shots should relate to each other in such a way that A and B combine to produce another meaning, C, which is not actually recorded on the film. Montage can refer to the following: -Process that creates a third meaning out of the original two meanings of adjacent shots. -Process in which a number of short shots are woven together in order to communicate a great deal of information in a short period of time (often referred to as dynamic cutting). -Parallel montage which allows the A/V media producer to alternate between two activities (or stories) that may or may not be interrelated, cross-cutting between them. -Accelerated montage in which interest in a scene is heightened and brought to a climax through progressively shorter alternations of shots between two or more subjects (chase sequences). -The flashback and flash-forward permit digressions and forecasts. -Involuted montage allows a sequence to be narrated, without particular regard for chronology; an action can be repeated, shots can be edited out of order. Also, jump cut, match cut. Each of these extensions of montage look toward the creation of something other than simple chronology, a factor very little emphasized in Decoupage Classique. Decoupage Classique - The "Hollywood" style of film construction. All the editing practices of the Hollywood grammar were designed to permit seamless transitions from shot to shot and to concentrate attention on the action at hand (invisible editing). The function of editing was simply to push the story forward in a linear fashion. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Other Thoughts: Recorded Continuity - Action may occur within a single, continuous shot. An action begins, develops, and closes in exactly the amount of time it would in reality (real-time). Constructed Continuity - A/V director builds a complete action with separate shots, each contributing only one link in the chain of development (screen-time). Constructed continuity can refer to the manipulation of time (compression of action, events, etc.)
REVIEW FOR QUIZ #2 AND UNIT TWO EXAM Depth in Screen Space Figure/ground (Zettl's Volume Duality) Linear Perspective (Parallel Lines, Vanishing Point, Forced Perspective, Crowding Effect) Three-Dimensional Arrangement of People/Objects Placement in Screen Space (Height, Size) Light, Shadow, Color Movement of Subject (fixed frame) Lenses (Characteristics) - Working with Depth Normal, Wide-angle, Telephoto Deep-focus photography Shallow-focus photography Soft Focus Change of focal planes (follow/rack focus) Shots/Opticals Camera Movement (Pan, Tilts, Dolly, Tracking, Zoom, Crane, Zoom/Dolly) Film Continuity - Mise en Scene/Editing (Montage) Mise en Scene Montage (Various Functions) Decoupage Classique Jump Cut Match Cut Recorded Continuity (real-time) Constructed Continuity (screen-time) Remember to review your notes for media examples viewed in class!
