Please sit as close to the front as possible

Please sit as close to the front as possible

Ch. 5 Mise-en-scène

What is a frame? A frame demarcates the 3 dimensions of the image we see on screen Height Width Depth Filmmakers must decide what to include and what to exclude What is seen/not seen (onscreen off screen space) Control distribution, balance and spatial perspectival relations of what appears on screen In controlling framing, filmmakers shape the from, content, and meaning of the image

Framing: What we see on Screen Cinematic seeing = framing The frame of the camera s viewfinder indicates the boundaries of the camera s point of view. The frame offers filmmaker s complete control over 2 kinds of cinematic space Onscreen space Offscreen space

Open vs. Closed Frames Open frame: designed to depict a world where characters move freely within an open, recognizable environment Closed frame: designed to imply that other forces (such as fate; social, education or economic background) have robbed characters of their ability to move and act freely

Mise-en-scene from French mettre to place, put refers to the visual arrangement or staging of items on screen BUT, mise-en-scene also takes into account how those items affect the atmosphere and the mood of the shot

2 Components of Mise Design: the process by which the look of the settings, props, lighting and actors is determined Composition: the organization, distribution, balance, and general relationship of actors and objects within the space of each shot

Elements of Design 1. Setting, Décor & Props 2. Lighting 3. Costume, makeup, and hairstyle 4. Actors and performance **

Definitions Setting: the environment (realistic or imagined) in which the narrative takes place Properties (props): objects that help us understand the characters by showing us their preferences in things

Setting Background for Action OR Dynamic; Plays Active Role in Narrative

Elements of Mise-en-Scene 1. Setting, Décor & Props 2. Lighting 3. Costume, makeup, and hairstyle 4. Actors and performance

Lighting Allows us to see action Shadows strategically conceal things Directs our attention

Three Point Lighting Key: Main source (not always the brightest) Fill: Eliminates Shadow/ softens key Back: Depth 15

High Key Low Contrast Soft Detail Clarity Hollywood Optimism

Low Key Contrast Hard Shadow

Light (Direction) Frontal (flattens features, no shadow) Sidelight (sculpts features) Backlight (creates silhouettes) Underlight (horror effect) Toplight (halo/glamour effect) Hairlight (specific toplight) Eyelight (tiny light for eye sparkle)

Frontlighting

Sidelighting

Backlighting

Toplighting

Eyelight

Light (Shadows) Attached shadows (aka shading) object/figure creates shadow on itself Cast shadows object/figure casts shadow on something else Chiaroscuro areas of extreme light and dark in a single shot

Attached Shadows

Cast Shadow

Chiaroscuro

Elements of Mise-en-Scene 1. Setting, Décor & Props 2. Lighting 3. Costume, makeup, and hairstyle 4. Actors and performance

Costume: clothing (wardrobe) worn in film Costumes can contribute to the setting and suggest specific character traits, such as social station, self-image, the public image the character is trying to project, state of mind, etc. Costumes

Makeup The makeup used to enhance or alter (positively or negatively) an actor s appearance can be traditional or digital

Nicholson in Batman (1989) Highly Stylized, Exaggerated Costume/ Makeup Characterize Joker as theatrical, aberrant.

Ledger in The Dark Knight (2008)

Kirsten Dunst in Marie Antoinette (2006)

Elements of Mise-en-Scene 1. Setting, Décor & Props 2. Lighting 3. Costume, makeup, and hairstyle 4. Actors and performance

Performance Blocking: general movement and placement of figures Choreography: specific/ detailed movement of figures (dance, fights) Acting

Character Placement The arrangement of characters on the screen (position, size, etc.)

Staging Position The characters reactions to the camera Is the character looking at the viewer? Looking away? How intimate is the viewer able to get with the character?

Acting Two aspects of an actor s performance: Ø Visual elements (body, gesture) Ø Auditory elements (voice) Film acting vs. stage acting largely a question of scale and spontaneity Acting Styles: Ø Realistic (aims for verisimilitude) Ø Stylized (stagey, fantastical)

Kinesis

COMPOSITION

The visual organization of all objects on screen (similar to elements of a good shot, but for a still image) Note horizon, placement, sizes, positions, etc. of objects. Composition

Density The amount of visual information on screen High density can symbolize chaos. Low density can symbolize calmness.