Film Techniques & Cinematography
What is the term for the arrangement of everything in the frame, including lighting, props, and actors?
What is mise-en-scène?
The Truman Show critiques this aspect of modern life.
What is media surveillance or reality TV culture?
What is the term for giving characters space in the direction they are looking on screen?
What is lead room?
In The Truman Show, Truman is an example of this archetype.
What is the hero?
What is the name of the golden statue given out at the Oscars?
What is Oscar?
This type of camera angle looks down on the subject to make them appear small or vulnerable.
What is a high-angle shot?
In Feeling Through, what theme is explored through the interaction between the two main characters?
What is compassion or human connection?
This technique creates tension in Rear Window by contrasting stillness with sudden motion.
What is dynamic composition?
In many fantasy stories like Narnia, the wise figure is an example of this archetype.
What is the guide or mentor?
This legendary actor has been nominated the most times for acting Oscars.
Who is Meryl Streep?
Which element of cinematography determines how much of the image is in focus, from foreground to background?
What is depth of field?
The Chronicles of Narnia is an allegory for this larger narrative or belief system.
What is Christianity?
What visual clue first makes Jeff suspicious of his neighbor Thorwald?
What is the absence of the wife or unusual nighttime activity?
This character in Feeling Through acts as a catalyst for change in the protagonist.
Who is Artie?
What genre is least often represented in the Best Picture category: horror, sci-fi, or comedy?
What is horror?
This technique involves cutting between scenes quickly to create tension or show simultaneous action.
What is a crosscut or parallel editing?
Films often reflect this, defined as the shared beliefs and values of a given era.
What is society or cultural norms?
Define the difference between a scene and a sequence in film.
What is a scene is one continuous action in time/place; a sequence is a group of scenes that form a larger narrative unit?
A recurring symbol or idea in a film, such as light vs. dark, is called this.
What is a motif?
Name the only sequel to ever win Best Picture.
What is The Godfather Part II?
This principle suggests that placing a subject off-center makes for a more dynamic composition.
What is the rule of thirds?
This term describes when a film indirectly addresses broader political messages through symbols and critiques.
What is allegory?
Hitchcock often frames Jeff’s view from his apartment to highlight this theme.
What is voyeurism or surveillance?
This term refers to the journey a hero takes, including trials, transformation, and return.
What is the hero’s journey?
Only three films in Oscar history have won the "Big Five" (Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, and Screenplay). Name one.
What is It Happened One Night (1934), One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), or The Silence of the Lambs (1991)?