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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 4, 2017 17:43:16 GMT
I learned some Cinema related words that were totally new to me so I looked them up.
Any cool ones you know or recently learned that you want to share with the class ? They may be things that seem like "everyone" would know them but, hey, post them anyway ( thanks in advance. )
I shall try not to interrupt too often.
Mine:
DIEGETIC Sound is called diegetic when its source is visible or implied in the world of the film. Common diegetic sounds present in most films are: actors speaking to each other (dialogue). sounds originating from any object on the screen, like footsteps and police sirens. music that comes from a sound system or orchestra.
Anything that is part of the story that you can see being made on the screen. So a tiger thumping his paws against the ground would be diegetic. Also people speaking would be diegetic. And even someone playing music. Anything that is actually part of the story.
Examples of things that are non-diegetic are mood music or the narrators voice.
AGITPROP Definition of agitprop : propaganda; especially : political propaganda promulgated chiefly in literature, drama, music, or art
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Post by wmcclain on Apr 4, 2017 18:29:29 GMT
From photography, "bokeh" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh) the look of an out-of-focus background of an image. Sometimes patterns and shapes appear.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 4, 2017 23:53:46 GMT
wmcclain How cool to know that. I have been "bokeh"ing my pictures and never knew it. Sometimes even deliberately and on purpose. Flower closeups with a fuzzy background. Not the fuzzy tulip and clear background though those are just "wrong". thanks.
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Post by wmcclain on Apr 5, 2017 0:10:27 GMT
Here's Gerard Butler in Timeline. Looks like floating UFOs in the background, but is actually rock outcrops on a hillside:
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 6, 2017 1:04:52 GMT
Cinema Note:
When you post your note #666 (which happened to me while on the CFB so it counts as cinema) you get a brief surprise from the management. Watch for it when posts are in the vicinity of that number. It's pretty cool and easily missed and I don't want to give away the secret but it's really cool ! Watch for post # 999 too .
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 6, 2017 12:26:11 GMT
THE WELHELM SCREAM
The Wilhelm scream is a stock sound effect that has been used in more than 225 movies and television episodes, beginning in 1951 for the film Distant Drums. The scream is often used when someone is shot, falls from a great height, or is thrown from an explosion, and is most commonly used in films and television.
Lots of clips on you-tube.
PEBLUM FILMS
The peplum film (pepla plural), also known as sword-and-sandal, is a genre of largely Italian-made historical or Biblical epics (costume dramas) that dominated the Italian film industry from 1958 to 1965, eventually being replaced in 1965 by Eurospy films and Spaghetti Westerns. They can be immediately differentiated from the competing Hollywood product by their use of dubbing. The pepla attempted to emulate the big-budget Hollywood historical epics of the time, such as Spartacus, Samson and Delilah and The Ten Commandments. The terms "peplum" (referring to the tunic-style Greek and Roman garment often worn by characters in the films) and "sword-and-sandal" were used in a condescending way by film critics. Later, the terms were embraced by fans of the films, similar to the terms "spaghetti western" or "shoot-'em-ups". Italian director Vittorio Cottafavi called the genre "Neo-Mythology".
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Post by vegalyra on Apr 6, 2017 18:01:08 GMT
RANOWN CYCLE "The Ranown Cycle movies were seven movies that starred Randolph Scott and were directed by Budd Boetticher. Most of the movies in the series were produced by Randolph Scott and Harry Joe Brown (hence the name Ranown),. The first film in the series, Seven Men from Now, was produced by John Wayne's production company, Batjac. The story and screenplay were the first ones written by Burt Kennedy, who would go on to help write (screenplay and/or story) five of the movies in the series. Westbound wasn't written by Burt Kennedy and wasn't produced by Harry Brown but it did star Randolph Scott and was directed by Budd Boetticher, In each movie, Scott plays a loner who just goes about doing what he feels he has to do, even if he doesn't really want to. There is also usually an adversary who he admires, and who admires him. Most of the movie have very similar plots and even use some of the same dialogue. It looks like the team was tweaking little things to try to get the story right." Taken from ranown.blogspot.com/
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Post by mikef6 on Apr 6, 2017 18:38:09 GMT
THE KULESHOV EFFECT
Back in the 1920s a Russian director named Lev Kuleshov conducted an experiment. He asked a popular actor to stand in a doorway and look to his right without any expression. He then edited the clip to cut to a bowl of soup. In another clip he cut to a child in a coffin, and, in a third clip, to a scantily clad woman. He tested all versions on different audiences who praised the actor for his expressions of hunger, grief, and lust. This is called The Kuleshov Effect. It is considered one of the most important theoretical studies of the effects of montage – juxtaposing one image next to another – in early film history. Of today's actors in my not-so-humble opinion, it is Scarlet Johansson and Ryan Gosling who benefit the most from this effect. IOW, their performances are created for them through editing. There are no doubt others.
Note: At least one author (I have lost the source) that I read several years ago argued that the Kuleshov Effect experiment was apocryphal. Some modern researchers have not been able to duplicate the results.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 6, 2017 22:45:03 GMT
CINEMATOGRAPHERS NAME, A.S.C.Often seen following a great cinematographers name (such as James Wong Howe) the letters A.S.C. show that he was a member of the... The American Society of Cinematographers which was founded in Hollywood in 1919 with the dual purpose of advancing the art and science of cinematography and bringing cinematographers together to exchange ideas, discuss techniques and promote the motion picture as an art form. Members can put the letters A.S.C. after their names, membership has become one of the highest honours that can be bestowed upon a professional cinematographer, a mark of prestige and distinction. ASC membership is by invitation and is extended only to directors of photography and special effects experts with distinguished credits in the film industry. Learned from manfromplanetx in the James Wong Howe thread here on the CFB. Thanks ! I always wondered about those initials.
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Post by gunshotwound on Apr 7, 2017 1:06:56 GMT
CINEMATOGRAPHERS NAME, A.S.C.Often seen following a great cinematographers name (such as James Wong Howe) the letters A.S.C. show that he was a member of the... The American Society of Cinematographers which was founded in Hollywood in 1919 with the dual purpose of advancing the art and science of cinematography and bringing cinematographers together to exchange ideas, discuss techniques and promote the motion picture as an art form. Members can put the letters A.S.C. after their names, membership has become one of the highest honours that can be bestowed upon a professional cinematographer, a mark of prestige and distinction. ASC membership is by invitation and is extended only to directors of photography and special effects experts with distinguished credits in the film industry. Learned from manfromplanetx in the James Wong Howe thread here on the CFB. Thanks ! I always wondered about those initials. Many countries have a society for cinematographers. The ASC also invites cinematographers from other countries to join (ex: Roger Deakins, Emmanuel Lubezki, Vittorio Storaro, Philippe Rousselot). Here are the initials used by a few selected countries to indicate a cinematographer is a member of that country's society. BSC = Great Britain AFC = France AIC = Italy AEC = Spain BVK = Germany FSF = Sweden RGC = Russia JSC = Japan CSC = Canada ACS = Australia AMC = Mexico ABC = Brazil ACF = Cuba
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Post by manfromplanetx on Apr 7, 2017 9:58:06 GMT
Thanks for the great thread topic Bat Ottaheck , an interesting compilation and valuable reference building up.. probably most of us know of this one but others may not...
Mise-en-scène The arrangement of everything that appears in the framing of a shot the actors, lighting, décor, props, costume is called mise-en-scène, it comes from a French term that means “placing on stage.”
The mise-en-scène is the result of the collaboration of the many professionals involved in the production of a film but ultimately it is the director who is the one to oversee the entire mise-en-scène and all of its elements. It is the director who collaborates with set designers, prop masters, location managers, costume designers, and scenic artists to determine the look, to create the feel intended. Four general elements setting, lighting, costume and staging are all considered and combined for desired effect.
Signature styles are attributed to the great directors in the creation of their mise-en-scène which evoke & maintain emotions that permeate throughout their films. For example... Edgar Ulmer loved repeated architectural and modular units and used them as the main building blocks in most of his film compositions, with a low budget he creatively combined these with dramatic angles for a great dramatic tone.
I love the 30's films of William Dieterle , particularly the elaborate Art Deco décor furnishings the mise-en-scène of Kay Francis's office in Man Wanted (1932)
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Post by manfromplanetx on Apr 8, 2017 22:25:26 GMT
AUTEUR... . Auteur originated in French film criticism and cinematic theories of the late 1940s. Generally defined as a singular artist who controls all aspects of a collaborative creative work, when referenced to filmmakers, directors with a recognizable style or thematic preoccupation. "a film director who influences their films so much that they rank as their author"
The theory presented in the 40s, that it is the originality and creative independence of a director that brings the film to life and uses the film to express their thoughts and feelings about the subject matter as well as their worldview.
Auteur is a term which has caused much debate amongst film critics and theorists over the years , due to its exclusion of the other important figures that participated in the inherently collaborative process of cinema and film-making. Screenwriters, cinematographers, producers, and some even argued actors, all who had also left their mark on films, but were not given the privileged titled of auteur.
Written , Produced, Directed by Samuel Fuller... seen as the credit rolls in many of his films examples of Auteur Directors generates debate and would probably make a lively thread topic for separate discussion.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 9, 2017 2:04:56 GMT
TROPE a common or overused theme or device : cliché
Which leads us to: Definition of cliché 1: a trite phrase or expression; also : the idea expressed by it 2: a hackneyed theme, characterization, or situation 3: something that has become overly familiar
Example: the usual horror movie tropes
I have read "tropes" often and was pretty much sure what it meant but looked it up anyway. I was right ! Yay, me!
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 10, 2017 23:09:15 GMT
PORTMANTEAU FILM
A portmanteau film (also known as an omnibus film, package film, or anthology film) is a subgenre of films consisting of several different short films, often tied together by only a single theme, premise, or brief interlocking event (often a turning point). Sometimes each one is directed by a different director. These differ from "revue films" such as Paramount on Parade (1930)—which were common in Hollywood in the early sound film era to show off their stars and related vaudeville-style acts—composite films, and compilation films.
Sometimes there is a theme, such as a place (e.g. New York Stories, Paris, je t'aime), a person (e.g. Four Rooms), or a thing (e.g. Twenty Bucks, Coffee and Cigarettes), that is present in each story and serves to bind them together. Two of the earliest films to use the form were Edmund Goulding's Grand Hotel (1932), released by MGM with an all-star cast; and Paramount's If I Had a Million (also 1932), featuring segments helmed by a number of directors.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Apr 16, 2017 22:28:18 GMT
We've all read the "This MAJOR star is a HACK" I wondered about the term and here's what I learned recently: " The word is derived from Hackney Carriages in London, England. They were horse-drawn taxis from the 1600s who were granted a license on condition they accepted any passenger and destination within city limits. They could not pick or choose and were the lowest tier of public transport."Followed by a little essay on the subject that makes a lot of sense: " You cannot really call an actor who takes lead roles in major productions a "hack", however bad or mediocre they may be. That should be reserved for supporting actors who uncritically accept most any part they are given to earn a steady but modest living. There are other nasty words for lead actors who fail, but not "hack"
a tip of my cabbie's hat to london777 for a stolen (I prefer borrowed) definition / explanation.
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Post by BATouttaheck on May 16, 2017 4:06:52 GMT
Giving this puppy a bump in case anyone happens to have anything to add.
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Post by jeffersoncody on May 16, 2017 5:52:07 GMT
I learned some Cinema related words that were totally new to me so I looked them up. Any cool ones you know or recently learned that you want to share with the class ? They may be things that seem like "everyone" would know them but, hey, post them anyway ( thanks in advance. ) I shall try not to interrupt too often. Mine: DIEGETIC Sound is called diegetic when its source is visible or implied in the world of the film. Common diegetic sounds present in most films are: actors speaking to each other (dialogue). sounds originating from any object on the screen, like footsteps and police sirens. music that comes from a sound system or orchestra. Anything that is part of the story that you can see being made on the screen. So a tiger thumping his paws against the ground would be diegetic. Also people speaking would be diegetic. And even someone playing music. Anything that is actually part of the story. Examples of things that are non-diegetic are mood music or the narrators voice. AGITPROP Definition of agitprop : propaganda; especially : political propaganda promulgated chiefly in literature, drama, music, or art FLUFFER.Definition of a fluffer: A person employed on an adult film set to ensure that male actors are kept aroused.
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Post by london777 on May 16, 2017 6:31:01 GMT
TROPE a common or overused theme or device : cliché Which leads us to: Definition of cliché 1: a trite phrase or expression; also : the idea expressed by it 2: a hackneyed theme, characterization, or situation 3: something that has become overly familiar Example: the usual horror movie tropes I have read "tropes" often and was pretty much sure what it meant but looked it up anyway. I was right ! Yay, me! Trope is not the same as cliché, although many tropes may become clichés. Clichés are always bad or neutral. Neutral if they are so familiar as to be part of the language. For example, if a character says "It's raining cats and dogs" it would be a cliché, but not an offensive one as the expression is so much used as to become part of normal English parlance. No-one would think the speaker was trying to be clever, witty, metaphorical or original so no-one would give the screenwriter a fail. But take the situation where our hero causes a huge explosion and unhurriedly walks away from it, calmly turning his back on a huge mushrooming ball of fire. Very cool the first time it was used (in a James Bond film perhaps?) but a horrible cliché these days after a hundred or more appearances. Tropes are the building blocks of storytelling or drama. Every novel or screenplay ever written consists of tropes. They are basic situations or relationships between protagonists. The most important ones are rooted in human psychology and some can be traced to the earliest recorded literature, such as rivalry between brothers, or sons rebelling against their fathers. Such themes are tropes which will never go out of fashion. They continue to form the basis of great literature and movies, though if mishandled can be reduced to clichés. Other tropes can get over-used and become bad clichés, or become redundant because times have changed. For example, in the sixties and later, a common trope was passengers in an airport being pestered by Hare Krishnas, usually for comedy but sometimes for tension if our hero is delayed wasting valuable seconds. We do not see these scenes in modern films, not because we are tired of that trope, but because airport security no longer permits such people to hang around waiting areas. And a huge number of thriller and mystery plots would be unfilmable in a modern setting as most people carry mobile phones these days. Many of the best films rely on our knowledge and experience of tropes by ringing the changes on them to surprise us and freshen things up. This is a huge subject which is investigated in depth with numerous film citations on this website: tv tropes
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Post by BATouttaheck on May 20, 2017 22:23:54 GMT
We see it in the credits and now we know: BEST BOYIn a film crew there are two kinds of best boy: best boy electric and best boy grip. They are assistants to their department heads, the gaffer (in charge of electricians) and the key grip (lighting and rigging), respectively. In short, the best boy acts as the foreman for their department
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Post by BATouttaheck on May 28, 2017 22:41:39 GMT
NSFW Not technically about films but might prove useful to know when reading the boards:
NSFW ABBREVIATION not safe (or suitable) for work (used in electronic communication to indicate that a particular web page or website contains explicit sexual material or other adult content): "if your friend just sent you something with NSFW in the subject line, don't go there" (especially if you are at work !"
Am amazed daily at the things I need to look up around here !
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