Film Language

Film LanguageCritical Analysis of Literature and Cinema

HSS C313 & GS F322 Geetha. B I Sem 2012-13Reading a FilmFilms are experienced firstReading a film implies an active process of making sense of what one is experiencingIt is an emotional and intellectual engagement

HSS C313 & GS F322What all constitute a film?the conflict and dialogue of dramathe narrative description of fictionthe interplay between light and shade of paintingthe movement and rhythm of music HSS C313 & GS F322And above all, its own distinct language of image and of sound

HSS C313 & GS F322Film formfilm form- overall structure of the film; how it is constructed at both the micro and macro levels:from composition of individual shots (audio-visual fragments) to their arrangement into scenes, sequences and finally the entire film

HSS C313 & GS F322Macrostructure: composition in scriptingMicrostructure: composition of images, sounds the concept of editing and its relationship to the concept of structureHSS C313 & GS F322contentContent: what is in the filmMeaning: how meaning is created?Film as a self-contained text: implicit, explicit and referential( internal evidence)Historical/ social context, about the filmmaker/ place (external evidence)

HSS C313 & GS F322Continued..film as film vs film in its social contextwhat is seen in the picture- what is put into the scene :the mise-en-sceneEverything going on within the frame outside of editing (and sound ?)

HSS C313 & GS F322Mise-en-sceneproduction design: sets, props and costumescolour (present in both production design and lighting)lightingactors performance (including casting and make-up) and movement

HSS C313 & GS F322diegetic sound (that is, sound that emanates from the scene and is not extraneous to it, such as the music that is not being played within the scene or a voice-over)framing including position; depth of field; aspect ratio; height and angle (but not movement)HSS C313 & GS F322Setting: Is the scene shot in a studio, sound stage or on location? How is the setting integrated into the action?HSS C313 & GS F322The drama on the screen can exist without actors. A banging door, a leaf in the wind, waves beating on the shore can heighten the dramatic effect. Some film masterpieces use man as an accessory, like an extra, or in counterpoint to nature, which is the true leading character- Andre BazinHSS C313 & GS F322propProp: an object in the setting that operates actively in the ongoing action to further the plot or story line ( a term from theatre); used to dress the setprops often define the genreArt directors design/select sets and dcor in a film

HSS C313 & GS F322costumeA variant of the propTightly connected to the characters identityIn period films, costume of that period is designed to create the eraCostumes can be iconographic (eg.: cowboy outfit with a Western, combat uniform with a War film)HSS C313 & GS F322

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HSS C313 & GS F322colourColour is used as an expressive devicePresent in the setting, props, costume of a film, in the type of lighting used In black and white film, the shades of grey convey moods or set the toneHSS C313 & GS F322cheerful and happy timesnostalgic- sepia tonedull colours- lack of life or sadnesscold or bluish lighting to suggest alienation, technologyyellowish tinge to convey comfort

HSS C313 & GS F322actors performance acting, appearance, gestures, facial expressions, voice- tone/accent/ type of dialect, body posture/ movementmelodramatic or realisticClassical style, Method acting, Natural style

HSS C313 & GS F322Classical acting: obviously mannerede.g. Cleopatra, Gladiator, or Mughal E AzamMethod acting: intense and psychologically driven; actors create in themselves the thoughts and emotions of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performancese.g. Bergmans films

HSS C313 & GS F322Natural: natural style of acting, there is less affectation and it is more naturale.g. Satyajit Rays Pather PanchaliVittorio De Sicas Bicycle Thieves

HSS C313 & GS F322lightingintensity, direction, and quality of lighting have profound impact on the imagebrightly illuminated part of a shot may draw attention to certain objects/ gesturesa shadow may conceal a detail or build up suspense

HSS C313 & GS F322Quality/ intensity: hard or soft lightingDirection: frontal lighting, side-lighting, backlighting, under-lighting or top lightingSource: natural light, light coming from the objects within the frame (visible sources of light) or extra light sourcesHSS C313 & GS F322Colour: white of sunlight and the soft yellow of interior lamps are commonly useddifferent colour filters placed in front of the light source can also be used to colour the onscreen illumination

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HSS C313 & GS F322(courtesy: http://www.tcf.ua.edu/TVCrit/)Key: the main lightusually the strongest placed to one side of the camera/subject so that this side is well lit and the other side has some shadow

HSS C313 & GS F322Fill: secondary light softer and less brightis placed on the opposite side of the key lightis used to fill the shadows created by the keyHSS C313 & GS F322back light: is placed behind the subject and lights it from the rearit provides definition and subtle highlights around the subject's outlineshelps separate the subject from the background and provide a three-dimensional feelHSS C313 & GS F322Diegetic sound: heard from within the films diegesison-screen (emanated from on-screen sound source)off-screen (that which extends to off-screen space, extra-diegetic) Non-diegetic sound: heard outside of the film's diegesis (such as film scores and voice-overs

HSS C313 & GS F322framingThe size and position of objects relative to the edges of the screen; the arrangement of objects so that they fit within the boundaries of the filmPosition, depth of field, aspect ratio, height and angle

HSS C313 & GS F322positionPosition of the camera in relation to the frames contentExtreme close-up (part of a face)Close-up (face)Medium close-up (head and shoulders)Medium (head, shoulders, waist)Medium long ( till the ankle)Long shot (entire human figure)Extreme long shotHSS C313 & GS F322Depth of fieldDOF is the distance through which elements in an image are in sharp focusDeep focus involves staging an event on film such that significant elements occupy widely separated planeselements at very different depths of the image are in focusHSS C313 & GS F322Shallow focus: restricted depth of fieldkeeps only one frame in sharp focusis used to direct the viewers attention to one particular object/elementHSS C313 & GS F322Height and angleHeight of the camera placementeye-level: camera at the same height as its subjectlow angle: the camera is below the subject; subject gains stature; often suggests power HSS C313 & GS F322 high angle: camera is placed above the subjectthe character appears diminished and subduedsuggests vulnerability

HSS C313 & GS F322Height and angle can be used to indicate the relation between a character and the camera's point of viewOr simply to create striking visual compositions

HSS C313 & GS F322Aspect ratiothe ratio of the width and height of the framefor the conventional format- the academy frame it is 1.33: 1. wide-screen formats, aspect ratio varies from 1.85:1 to 2.55:1. Cinemascope frame has wider screen (upto 2.66:1) HSS C313 & GS F322

HSS C313 & GS F322Coined by Prof. Umberto Barbaro 1943. According to him Neorealism aimed at Getting rid off naive and mannered forms from Italian cinema. Abandoning the fantastic and grotesque fabrications excluding human problems and poverty. Dispensing with historical set-pieces and fictional adaptation.

HSS C313 & GS F322Born in the days of shortagesIt introduced a grittier, less polished style of filmmakingCharacteristics:an avoidance of neatly plotted stories in favour of loose, episodic structures a documentary style of using visuals use of conversational speech, rough, raw shots and editingthe use of actual locations than the studio sets, nonprofessional actorsavoidance of artifice in editing, camerawork, and lighting

HSS C313 & GS F322Organizing Editsi. Eye line match: for point of view shots. the first shot shows a character looking - in the second shot we see what the character is looking at Ii. Point-of view cutting: a variant of the eye line matchA character looks off screen-cut- the object the character is looking at(from the characters vantage point; eg. Charulata)Stand by Me by Rob Reiner

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Frame cutting- A character moves out of frame right-cut to- enters frame left

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Shot/reverse shot- to show two people in a conversation First shot shows one of them speaking and the next shot shows the second one in conversationBicycle ThievesHSS C313 & GS F322HSS C313 & GS F322

Post mid-semHSS C313 & GS F322Death of a Salesman by Arthur MillerOn Editing Reluctant Fundamentalist: Novel and FilmWorks for Term Paper: list to be posted