Test your basic knowledge |

Film Vocab

Subjects : performing-arts, film
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Creating an image by combining several elements created separately using computer graphics rather than photographic means






2. Smaller corporations that did not own distribution and/or exhibition companies in the studio era - including Universal - Columbia - and United Artists






3. A long shot in which the film frame resembles the proscenium arch of the stage - distancing the audience






4. A shot combining two kinds of movement: the camera tracks in toward the subject wile the lens zooms out






5. A shot transition that involves the gradual disappearance of the image at the same time that a new image gradually comes into view






6. (Automatic dialogue replacement) recording synchronized dialogue in post-production - cutting several identical lengths of developed film and having actors record the dialogue repeatedly






7. A pan executed so quickly that it produces a blurred image - indicated rapid activity or - sometimes - the passage of time






8. The narrative path of the main or supporting characters - also called a plotline. Complex films may have several lines of action






9. Dialogue that restates What is already obvious from images or action






10. A shot that interrupts a scene's master shot and may include character reactions






11. The practice of Hollywood studios contracting out post-production work to individuals or firms outside the U.S.






12. A process of blending the three elements of the sound track (dialogue - music - and effects) in post-production






13. A story narrated by one of the characters within the story - using the 'I' voice






14. The chip in a video camera that converts the incoming light to an electronic signal






15. A lens with a focal length greater than 50 mm (usually between 80mm and 20mm) - which provides a larger image of the subject than a normal or wide-angle lens but which narrows the angle of vision and flattens the depth of the image relative to normal






16. The written blueprint for a film - composed of three elements: dialogue - sluglines (setting the place and time of each scene) - and description. Feature-length screenplays typically run 90-130 pages






17. Then Hollywood writers and directors cited for Contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with the House Committee on Un-American Activities' attempts to root out Communists in the film industry






18. A technique of shifting the camera angle - height - or distance to take into account the motion of actors or objects within the frame






19. The rules of character - setting - and narrative that films that belong to a genre - such as Westerns - horror films - and screwball comedies - generally obey.






20. A scene transition wherein sound from one scene bleeds over into the ext scene - often resulting in a contrast between sound image






21. Non-diegetic; any element in the film that is not part of the imagined story world






22. Any narrative - visual - or sound element that is repeated and thereby acquires and reflects its significance to the story - characters - or themes of the film.






23. A fiction film (often a comedy) that uses documentary conventions on fictional rather than real-world subject matter






24. The way an actor delivers a line of dialogue - including pauses - inflection - and emotion






25. A shot that focuses audience attention on precise details that may or may not be the focus of characters






26. Experimental film; Underground cinema;






27. A group of films within a given genre that share their own specific set of conventions that differentiate them from other films in the genre. For example - the slasher film is a subgenre of the horror genre






28. A technique of manipulating focus to direct the viewer's attention






29. Also called 'stop motion photography.' A technique of photographing a scene one frame at a time and moving the model between each shot






30. A visual effect created when the subject in the frame is restricted by the objects or the physical properties of the set






31. A shot that makes the human subject very small in relation to his or her environment. The entire figure from head to toe is onscreen and dwarfed by the surroundings






32. Author; A term popularized by French film critics and refers to film directors with their own distinctive style






33. Also called 'rushes.' Footage exposed and developed quickly so that the director can assess the day's work






34. Early films that documented everyday events - such as workers leaving a factory






35. A film style that - in contrast to the classical and formalist styles - focuses characters - place - and the spontaneity and digressiveness of life - rather than on highly structured stories or aesthetic abstraction






36. A film's main characters - one whose conflicts and motives drive the story forward






37. The width of the film stock - measured across the frame. Typical sizes are 8mm - 16mm - 35mm - and 70mm






38. A continuity editing technique that preserves spatial continuity by using a character's line of vision as motivation for a cut






39. A narrative approach that limits the audience's view of events to that of the main character(s) in the film. Occasional moments of omniscient narration may give viewers more information than the character shave at specific points in the narrative






40. A flexible celluloid strip that - along with the emulsion layer - comprises 35mm film stock






41. The film medium's technological apparatus is inherently ideological






42. A form of shot transition - generally concluding a scene - where a circular mask constricts around the image until the entire frame is black






43. A type of documentary film whose purpose is to present the way of life of a culture or subculture






44. The camera should move at least 30 degrees any time there is a cut within a scene






45. An unstated meaning that underlies and is implied by spoken dialogue






46. A shot taken from a camera position above the subject - looking down at it






47. Creating the appearance of movement by drawing a series of frames that are projected sequentially - rather than photographing a series of still images






48. A technique of running the motion picture camera at a speed slower than projection speed (24 frames per second) - in order to produce at a fast motion sequence when projected at normal speed. The term derives from early film cameras - which were cran






49. A technique of shooting a scene at a very high speed (96 frames per second) - then adding and subtracting frames in post-production - 'fanning out' the action through the overlapping images






50. A compositing method that allows cinematographers to combine live action and settings that are filmed or created separately. Actors are filmed against a green or blue background. During post-production - this background is filled in with an image thr