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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 shot transition where shot A slowly disappears as the screen becomes black before shot B appears. A fade-in is the reverse of this process






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






3. Louis Althusser's term for the way in which a society creates its subjects/citizens through ideological (as opposed to repressive) state apparatuses - which include education - media - religion - and the family






4. A shot transition that emphasizes the visual similarities between two consecutive shots






5. The period after principal photography during which editing and looping take place - and special visual effects are added to the film






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






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






8. An actor whose career rests on playing minor or secondary quirky characters rather than leading roles






9. An attribute of newer television monitors - where each frame is scanned by the electron beam as a single field. If slowed down - each frame would appear on the monitor in its entirety on the screen - rather than line by line - as is the case with int






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






11. Optical illusions created during production - including the use of matte paintings - glass shots - models - and prosthesis






12. A technique of recording very few images over a long period of time - say - one frame per minute or per day






13. A device used to manipulate the amount and/or color of light entering the lens






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






15. A production crew responsible not for shooting the primary footage but - instead - for remote location shooting and B-roll. See also B-roll






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






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






18. Light striking the emulsion layer of the film - activating light-sensitive grains






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






20. A person responsible for putting a film together from a mass of developed footage - making decisions regarding pace - shot transitions - and which scenes and shots will be used






21. 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






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






23. Cinema verite; a documentary style in which the filmmaker attempts to remain as unobtrusive as possible - recording without obvious editorial comment






24. A technique of recording very few images over a long period of time - say - one frame per minute or per day






25. A type of film stock that is sensitive to (in other words - registers) all tones in the color spectrum






26. A technique of intentionally adding scratches in a film's emulsion layer for aesthetic purposes - such as to simulate home movie footage






27. A computer-generated actor that some speculate will replace flesh and blood actors in the not so distant future






28. 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






29. 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






30. A story; a chain of events linked by cause-and-effect logic






31. Color. The strength of a hue is measured by its saturation or desaturation






32. A term for film stock used in early cinema that was insensitive to red hues






33. A filter that creates points of light that streak outward from a light source






34. The artful use of light and dark areas in the composition in black and white filmmaking






35. A neutral account of the basic plot and style of a film - a part of a film - or a group of films






36. A technique of arranging the actors on the set to take advantage of deep focus cinematography - which allows for many planes of depth in the film frame to remain in focus






37. 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






38. Any noticeable but unintended discrepancy from one shot to the next in costume - props - hairstyle - posture - etc.






39. 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.






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






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






42. Lighting design in which the greater intensity of the key light makes it impossible for the fill to eliminate shadows - producing a high-contrast image (with many grades of light and dark) - a number of shadows - and a somber mood






43. A system of constructing and arranging buildings and objects on the set so that they diminish in size dramatically from foreground to background - which creates the illusion of depth






44. A brief chronological description of the basic events and characters in a film. It does not include interpretive or evaluative claims






45. A format that uses a larger film stock than standard 35mm. IMAX - Omnimax - and Showscan are shot on 70mm film






46. Invisible editing; a system devised to minimize the audience's awareness of shot transitions - especially cuts - in order to improve the flow of the story and avoid interrupting the viewer's immersion it in






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






48. Processes such as Cinemascope and Cinerama - developed during the 1950s to enhance film's size advantage over the smaller television image






49. An uncredited actor - usually hired for crowd scenes






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