We began reviewing lighting but quickly moved into acting and editing. Acting becomes design element

unique body language choreographing expression

histrionic – precise & exaggerated gestures in silent film

typage – actors and performances are visually stylized, suggest that character embodies a particular social or psychological type

social typage – actors expected to portray a typical representative of a social class or historical movement psychological typage – portray typical representative of mental state

visual mediation of performance – use of visual elements top affect how viewer understands a character (one way is using lighting)

approaches and methods method acting (Lee Strasberg) – actor seeks to portray a character by using personal experience & emotion as foundation for the portrayel technical approach – detached intellectual perspective, what seems right for the character characters have function and motivation – what is their purpose in the film and why do they act the way they do Star Image and Theory pre-classical Hollywood – actors recieved no credit classical Hollywood – films soln on star image star - a performer in a particular medium whose figure enters into subsidiary forms of circulation & then feeds back into future performances 4 components

what the industry puts out what the media says what the star says & does what the audience or spectator selects

Editing work of joining shots to assemble finished film, editor selects best shots nonlinear editing - digital access to any scene or shot, highly dependent on computer linear editing - older, only search for one shot at a time montage - scene composed of rapid series of shots, based on Soviet model, invoke emotions or ideas from seemingly unlinked images Types of Transitions

cut – most commonly used, one shot instantaneously replaced on screen by another, cut is invisible jump cut – editing transition that’s confusing in terms of time & space dissolve – change in place or time, gradual screen transition with distinct optical characteristics, editor overlaps end of one shot with beginning of next shot to produce a brief superimposition fade – substantial change of time & place, visible on screen as brief interval with no picture, fades one shot to black & after pause, fades in next shot other transitions

iris – circular black opening in or out, silent era wipes – vertical or horizontal line bringing in new scene to push out old scene, 1930’s-1940’s

Types of Shot Relationships

graphic (esp. dissolves) – aesthetic or symbolic comparisons or contrasts rhythmic – pacing changes or parallels spatial – manipulating space that doesn’t really exist – action and reaction temporal – manipulating (condensing or expanding) time – showing different actions occurring

Functions of editing

continuity – fundamental principle in narrative filmmaking

move along story in orderly & organized fashion

continuity of movement continuity only exists on screen not in filming flashback - technique which takes the narrative back in time from the point the story has reached, to recount events that happened before flash-forward – suggests predestination dramatic focus – find or emphasize dramatic focus on scene tempo & mood – establish rhythm & pacing, brief shots produce fast pace, horror uses for suspense narration & POV – orientation of viewers, helps tell of parallel action cross-cutting – back & forth between 2 or more lines of action

Principles of Continuity Editing spatial continuity

continuous flow of action – viewers are supposed to be unaware of the film’s technical side matching to master shot – ms defines layout of scene establishing shot – beginning of a new scene, establishes time & space reestablishing shot – reorient viewer with time & space after many cuts constant screen direction eyeline match – characters looking at each other shot – reverse – shot series – used for dialogue, cameras over shoulder of characters 30° rule – between shots camera position must change by at least 30° in order to avoid a jump cut 180º rule – nothing is sacred, used to stabilize space of playing area so spectator isn’t confused or disoriented

temporal continuity

order frequency duration

Editing is seen as not only a technical aspect of film but also creative. It takes art to assemble a film.

Any other thoughts on Let the Right One In?  If you do, leave a comment. After discovering the “how” of what you see, we enter the world of “what” you see. Everything within the frame is fair game as we look at mise-en-scene. Mise-en-scene

French term meaning “putting into the scene” usually planned by director George Méliès – 1st master of mise-en-scene

Aspects of mise-en-scene Setting

can become more than just a setting and influence character action color use of props

prop can become a motif (a reoccurring theme) – shower curtain in PSYCHO

Costume & Make-up

sometimes committed to authenticity of period of film can be stylized language system of costumes

Lighting 4 major features of lighting

quality – relative intensity of illumination (hard & soft light) direction – path of light from source to object lit

frontal lighting, sidelight, backlighting, edge or rim lighting, underlighting, top lighting

source – may use real light or studio lighting

key light – primary source of illumination fill light – less intense, softens or eliminates shadows cast by key light 3 point lighting – use of a key light, fill light, and back light to illuminate a scene

color – can convey symbolic meaning, establish narrative organization, convey mood and tone

Some of the lighting notes will be gone over on Monday in addition to discussing more about acting.