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. A style associated with Hollywood filmmaking of the studio and post-studio era - in which efficient storytelling - rather than gritty realism or aesthetic innovation - is of paramount importance






2. Fish-eye lens; With a focal length of 15mm or less - this lens presents an extremely distorted image - where objects in the center of the frame appear to bulge toward the camera






3. The camera does not move across an imagined line drawn between two characters






4. Film productions shot outside the U.S. for economic reasons






5. A lens with a variable focal length that allows changes of focal length while keeping the subject in focus






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






7. A shot depicting the human body from the waist up






8. A measure of a film stock's sensitivity to light. 'Fast' refers to sensitive film stock - while slow film is relatively insensitive






9. 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






10. The average length in seconds of a series of shots - covering a portion of a film or an entire film; a measure of pace within a scene or in the film as a whole.






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






12. A transparent sheet on which animation artists draw images.






13. The visual arrangement of objects - actors - and space within the frame






14. A black masking device used to black out a portion of the frame - usually for the insertion of other images






15. Optical illusions created during post-production






16. A shot taken fro a position directly above the action - also called a 'birds' eye shot'






17. The arrangement of images to depict a unified storyline






18. A part of the story world implied by visual or sound techniques rather than being revealed by the camera






19. A device attached to the film camera that records videotape of what has been filmed - allowing the director immediate access to video footage






20. A filter that simply reduces the amount of light entering the lens - without affecting the color characteristics






21. A lens with a shorter focal length than a normal or telephoto lens (usually between 15-35mm). The subject appears smaller as a result - but the angle of vision is wider and an illusion is created of greater depth in the frame






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






23. A film composed entirely of footage from other films.






24. A technique of leaving empty space around the subject in the frame - in order to covey openness and continuity of visible space and to imply offscreen space






25. A visual effect achieved through the use of photography and digital techniques that appears to stop time and allow the viewer to travel around the subject and view it from a multitude of vantage points






26. The plotline that surrounds an embedded tale. The frame narration may or may not be as fully developed as the embedded tale






27. A model of industrial organization in the film industry from about 1915 to 1946 - characterized by the development of major and minor studios that produced - distributed - and exhibited films - and held film actors - directors - art directors - and o






28. Dutch angle; a shot resulting from a static camera that is tilted to the right or left - so that the subject in the frame appears at a diagonal






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






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






31. 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






32. A narrative - visual - or sound element that refers viewers to other films or works of art






33. Squeezes the image at a ratio of 2:1 horizontally onto a standard film frame. On the projector - it unsqueezes the image - creating a widescreen aspect ratio during presentation






34. A machine used to create optical effects such as fades - dissolves - and superimpositions. Most are now created digitally






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






36. The central cause(s) behind a character's actions






37. A technique of moving from the telephoto position to the wide-angle position of a zoom lens - which results in the subject appearing to become smaller within the frame - while remaining in focus






38. Recording images at a slower speed than the speed of projection (24 frames per second). Before cameras were motorized - this was called undercranking. Fewer frames are exposed in one minute - so - when projected at 24 f.p.s. - that action takes less






39. An outlawed studio era practice - where studios forced exhibitors to book groups of films at once - thus ensuring a market for their failures along with their successes






40. 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






41. The camera does not move across an imagined line drawn between two characters






42. The non-chronological insertion of scenes of events yet to happen into the present day of the story world






43. 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






44. A series of individual drawings that provides a blueprint for the shooting of a scene






45. A device that projects photographs or footage onto glass so that images can be traced by hand to create animated images






46. The imagined world of the story






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






48. A technique used to join live action with a pre-recorded background image. A projector is placed behind a screen and projects an image onto it. Actors stand in front of the screen and the camera records them in front of the projected background






49. The non-chronological insertion of events from the past into the present day of the story world






50. The chronological accounting of all events presented and suggested