1. The buzz words that make movie buffs true movie buffs.
Film Terminology
The buzz words that make movie buffs true movie buffs.

2. Scene vs. Shot Shot: Scene:
what is recorded by a single, uninterrupted operation of the camera
when a camera starts to where it stops
Scene:
section of film of continuous action taking place in continuous time and space
usually contains multiple shots

3. Take:
a version of a shot
Cut:
1. action of stopping the film (“Cut!”)
2. a strip of film
3. joining separate shots together.
4. a version of a movie (“director’s cut”)

4. Frame: (3 definitions) 1. a single picture from a strip of film
2. borders of the projected film on a screen
3. to position the camera in such a way that the subject is kept within the borders of the image
Collin Farrel in Phone Booth (2002)

5. Widescreen/Letterbox:
a VHS or DVD version that is shown with the same dimensions and ratios as the original (or close to it) theater version
Return of the King (2004)

7. The Mummy (1999)
Cutthroat Island (1995)

8. Intertitles/ title cards:
D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation (1915)
printed material that appears periodically on the screen, most often used in silent films to give exposition, dialogue, thoughts, descriptions not shown.

9. Mise-en-scène:
French for “staging”; the composition and arrangement of a shot
The Graduate (1967)
The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

10. The Searchers (1956)
Rain Man (1988)

11. Montage:
type of editing in which brief shots are used to present a condensation of time and events

12. Voice-over: off-camera narration or commentary.
narrating I —a storyteller, usually a part of the movie
voice of God –a disembodied, objective voice with no part in the story
voice from the machine —not the voice of God, but a random voice that tries to wrap up the ending
repetitive voice over –voice from a character reverberating in another character’s head, usually previous dialogue
and more!

13. Types of Shots… Close Up (CU): shot of the head Close Shot (CS):
shot of the head and shoulders
Braveheart (1995)
Pirates of the Caribbean (2003)

14. Aka: the Full Shot (FS):
Long Shot (LS)
Aka: the Full Shot (FS):
a shot of the entire person and much of the background
The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
Pirates of the Caribbean (2003)

15. a shot between a close shot and a long shot
Medium Shot (MS):
a shot between a close shot and a long shot
Bourne Identity (2002)
House of Flying Daggers (2004)

16. Extreme Close Up (ECU):
close up of a specific body part: eye, mouth, etc
Extreme Long Shot (ELS):
broad, panoramic view
Fellowship of the Rings (2001)
War of the Worlds (2005)

17. Establishing Shot (ES): a shot which defines and area or setting
The Searchers (1956)

18. Shot-reverse-shot:
alternating shots of characters in a conversation so that the first person is seen, then the other
Notice how the camera is over this fellow’s shoulder.
What is the next shot in the film?
When Harry Met Sally (1989)

19. Represents what the camera sees
Objective Shot:
Represents what the camera sees
Subjective Shot:
Represents what a character sees
Memento (2000)

20. How did Dark Passage (1947) use subjective shots?
Random picture of a tunnel in Scotland
How did Dark Passage (1947) use subjective shots?
Imagine a character is walking down a dark passageway. What would it look like from a subjective shot?

21. Pan:
camera placed on a stationary base and pivots horizontally. A swish pan is one that moves quickly to create blur.
Tilt:
when a camera moves vertically up and down
Tracking Shot:
a camera mounted often on a track or on a vehicle; the camera moves with the action.

22. Fade-out (FO) when the light decreases to (usually) blackness.
Fade-in (FI) when darkness gradually becomes lighter.
It doesn’t have to be blackness. Can be bright, like Return of the King’s three fades
The Truman Show (1998)

23. Dissolve:
outgoing and incoming images merge—one disappears to be replaced by another.
Form dissolve is when similar frames fade (bodies in the same location)
Edward Scissorhands (1990)

24. Iris Shot:
a masking shot in which everything is blacked out except for one portion, usually in the shape of a circle, but often times a key hole, binoculars, etc.

25. Wipe:
One shot is pushed off the frame by another shot replacing it.