Micro Elements

The Term 'Micro' elements refers to: 

- Cinematography

- Sound

- Mise-en-scene

- Editing

Cinematography - Use of the camera:

- Camera Shot

- Camera Movement

- Camera Angles 

SHOT

- Extreme close up (ECU)

- Close up (CU)

- Long shot (LS)

- Wide shot (WS)

- Medium shot (MS)

- Point of view (POV)

- Low angle

- High angle

- Over the shoulder (OTS)

MOVEMENT:

- Pan

- Tilt

- Crane shot

- Tracking shot

- Rolling shot

- Steadicam

Sound:

Diegetic refers to world of the text

- Examples: dialogue, sound effects, music with a source within a text e.g. radio.

Non-diegetic refers to everything outside the world of the text

- Examples: voiceover, soundtrack, captions, titles, subtitles. 

On-screen sound - the audience can see the source of the sound.

Off-screen sound - the audience can't see the source of the sound.

Parallel sound match the action.

Contrapuntal sound does not match the action. 

Jaws:

- Diegetic sound of the dialogue and beach sounds.

- Non diegetic soundtrack contrapuntal into parallel when shark shows up.

A sound bridge creates a smooth transition between one scene to another.

The sound 'bridges' the two scenes.

Editing:

- The length of each sequence establishes the pace of the film moving the action along. 

- The speed of editing will help to determine the mood of what is taking place on screen. 

-If filmakers want the audience to feel anxiety and suspence, the editing will be quick - the scenes / shots changing frequently.

- If a relaxed mood is desired, the scenes last longer and change less frequently. For example in a romantic comedy. 

-A film may not have any editing. Some films are filmed in one take using a steadicam and a digital camera. This requires split-second timing and organisation. More recently, this was used in Sam Mendes' film 1917.

Pyscho:

Cuts BEFORE: 1111111111111111 - 16

Cuts AFTER:11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 - 44 - answer 46

- To cross-cut is to edit together with two sequences that hte audience need to know are connected in some way.

- Something is happening at the same time in different locations. 

- A character reliving a memory.

- Cross-cutting can be used to very effectively develop a sense of drama. It can be used to create tension, increase anxiety, direct emotion, make subtle links between characters. 

Style of editing:

- How shots are linked together.

- The movement from one shot to the next is called a transition.

- Basic trainsitions include:

   - Straight / invisible cut

   - Fade

   - Dissolve 

   - Wipe

Straight cut:

- Invisible form of transition.

- One shot moves instananeosly to the next without attracting the audience's attention. 

- Straight cuts help retain reality. They do not break the viewers suspension of disbelief.

Fades:

- A gradual darkening or lightening of an image until the screen becomes completely black or white.

Used to:

- Indicate the beginning or end of a particular section of time within the narrative. 

- Can show the passing of time. 

Dissolves:

- Dissolving one shot off the scree nwhile another shot is fading in.

- The audience will be able to see both shots on the screen at the mid-point of the dissolve. 

Used:

- If the film maker wants to show a connection between two characters, places or objects. 

Wipes:

- Extensively in StarWars.

- One imnage is pushed off the screen by another.

- Images can be pushed left or right. 

Used to:

- Signal a movement between different locations that are experiencing the same time. 

Advanced Editing Skills:

- Continuity editing

- 180 degree rule

- Shot, reverse shot

Continuity Editing:

- Eye-line match - we see a character looking at something off screen and then we cut to a shot of what they are looking at.

- Match-on-action - we see a character start an action in one shot and then see them continue it in the next.

180 degree rule:

- The 180 degree rule is a basic guideline that states that two characters (or other elements) in the same scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other. 

- If the camera passes over the imaginary axis connecting the two subjects, it is called crossing the line.

Shot/reverse shot:

- Shot/reverse shot is used to show conversations/arguements, but also helps to establish relationships. 

Mise-En-Scene:

- This is a French term meaning 'in the scene or frame'

- The elements of mise-en-scene are:

1 - setting props

2 - facial expressions and body language

3 - costume, hair and make-up

4 - lighting and colour

5 - positioning of characters and objects in the frame (proxemics)

Colour:

- From the 1930s to the 1940s black and white represented reality and colour represented fantasy and spectacle. 

- Today it's the opposite.

Denotation and Connotation:

Denotation - the literal description of an idea, concept or object.

Connotation - what we associate with a particular idea, concept or object. 

- Colour works on the subconscious mind to create mood.

- e.g. red - denotation: a particular wavelength of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Connotation - Anger, danger, romance, blood etc.

Proxemics:

- Where characters and objects are positioned is very important.

- Objects can be in the foreground, middle-ground or background. 

- This can emphasise the relative importance of the object or character. 

- If characters or objects are positioned evenly within the frame, this will give a balanced feel to the shot. 

- If characters are positioned at the outside edges of the frame then this indicates a distance between the characters. 

Focus pulling

Lighting:

- The key light is them ost influencual.

- The back light helps counteract the effect of the key light or creates an outline or silhoutte.

- The filler light helps to soften the harsh shadows that the use of key and back lights create.