Sup Docs?
One of the doc subgenres that categorize 'Bowling for Columbine'.
What are social, political, personal, PBC style with elements of cinema verite?
The name of one movie from film history.
What is 'Horse in Motion', 'Roundhay Garden', 'Arrival of a Train', 'The Great Train Robbery', 'A Trip to the Moon', 'Birth of a Nation', 'Within Our Gates', 'The Cabbage Fairy', 'The Watered Waterer', etc.?
What is the name of our editing software AND audio software. Make sure you distinguish which version of the programs.
Premiere Pro CC and Audition CC
What the aperture is.
What is the device built into our lens that opens and closes to let in/close out light?
The screenwriting software we use is called this.
Celtx
One example of why documentary filmmakers can use existing footage without paying for it.
What are...? 1. US Copyright's Fair Use Clause 2. Public Domain 3. Royalty Free websites
Name one filmmaker from early film history (before talkies began in 1927) and what they're known for.
Who is Eadweard Muybridge, Alice Guy Blache, D.W. Griffith, Oscar Micheaux, George Melies, The Lumiere Brothers, etc.?
Name 3 types of editing transitions (video or audio).
What are constant gain, constant power, or exponential fade, cross dissolve, film dissolve, dip to black, dip to white, cub spin, etc.?
The difference between aperture and shutter.
What is aperture stays at its setting while shutter opens and closes (taking pictures) as we film?
INT. MAC LAB - DAY is an example of what type of line in our scripts?
Scene Heading or Slug Line
The difference between direct cinema and cinema verite.
What is the fact that cinema verite may include composed interviews, non-diegetic sounds, and titles throughout the film while direct cinema literally points and shoots what is happening, i.e. it is directly just a series of moving pictures?
As a film critic, analyze how 'Blackkklansmen' relates to Spike Lee as an auteur. (What are some Spike tropes? How does his own history inspire his work? Etc.)
Example: Spike Lee was born in the segregated south and his films always explore America's history with racism.
This type of sound is the MOST important to record cleanly. Also name the best microphone and set up to record this well.
What is dialogue? Shotgun mic + Zoom (or any sound recording equipment separate from camera).
15 types of static shots.
What are...? 1. WS 2. Master Shot 3. Establishing Shot 4. EWS 5. WS 6. MS 7. MCU 8. CU 9. ECU 10. Insert or Cut-In 11. Cutaway 12. High Angle 13. Bird's Eye View 14. Overhead Shot 15. Low Angle 16. Worm's Eye View 17. Dutch Angle 18. Profile 19. Quarter Profile 20. OTS (Over-The-Shoulder) 21. Cowboy Shot 22. 2 Shot 23. 3 Shot 24. Group Shot 25. Dolly In/Out 26. Zoom In/Out 27. Dolly Zoom 28. Dutch Tilt 29. Pan Left/Right 30. Tracking 31. Following 32. Tilt Up/Down 33. Jib Up/Down 34. Crane 35. Drone
3 reasons it's important to write scripts in a standardized professional format?
1 page per minute; easier for readers to understand; easier for actors to read; easier for producers to estimate time and budget; easier to do a three hole punch in the margins; easier to distinguish scenes; easier to distinguish characters; easier to distinguish dialogue; weeds out those who aren't working hard/makes you look professional!
The names of three famous documentary filmmakers AND at least one tip you've learned from them when it comes to getting strong interviews.
Who are...? 1. Ken Burns 2. Errol Morris 3. Marlon Riggs 4. Michael Moore 5. Ava DuVernay
Tips: Interrotron, don't talk, let people speak for themselves, ask open-ended questions, set the tone using production design for your interview space
As a film critic, explain 3 cinematography elements that Guillermo del Toro does well in 'The Devil's Backbone'? Must use film language.
- Blue and orange color palette & lighting to express warmth & safety vs. cold, dark, danger
- Shallow depth of field
- Variety of camera angles
Name 4 types of positions in a sound crew AND what each does.
What are sound recordist, boom op, foley artist, sfx artist, sound editor, sound mixer, sound designer?
How to achieve the time lapse in the opening of 'House of Cards' where the cars move in fast motion and leave streaks of light trailing behind them. Must comment on frame rate, shutter, aperture/lighting/ISO.
What is a low frame rate, slow shutter speed, open aperture, low lighting ratio, and hopefully an ISO of no more than 800?
Describe how to format a scene that intercuts two people on a phone
(write on board)
Five subgenres of documentary and what each means.
What is...? 1. Cinema Verite 2. Direct Cinema 3. Experimental Doc 4. Historical Doc 5. Rock Doc 6. Found Footage Doc 7. Investigative Doc 10. PBS Style Doc 11. Essay Film 12. Found 13. Ken Burns Style Doc 14. Errol Morris Style Doc 15. Educational Doc
Using film language, explain 5 things that make a movie GOOD and 5 things that make a movie BAD. Hint: All 10 items on the list must be different.
Good: Meaningful color palette, precisely arranged mise en scene, believable performances, surprising yet inevitable plot, originality
Bad: Full of genre cliches, bad sound mixing, show misogony, bigotry, whitewashing
You're at the end of your editing. What are the 8 tracks of sound the mixer usually works with?
Seven ways to achieve interesting and professional looking film. Explain each technique.
What are...? 1. Shallow DoF 2. Proper exposure/aperture/f-stop 3. Low ISO 4. Normal Motion: Shutter speed at double the fps 5. Slow Mo: More than 24 or 30 fps 6. Fast Mo: Less than 24 or 30 fps 7. Time Lapse: Extremely less than 24 or 30 fps (ex: 1 frame per hour or per week) 8. Correct manual focus 9. Steady image on tripod or shoulder mount 10. Using HD DSLR camera or actual film 11. Plan shots ahead of time (storyboard, shot list, or lined script) 12. Variety of shot types 13. Clear aesthetic concept
5 tips for writing professional screenplays.
- active voice
- present tense
- concise action
- separate action lines as much as possible
- not overly flowery, gets to the point
- highly visual