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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 change of focus from one plane of depth to another. As the in-focus subject goes out of focus - another object - which has been blurry - comes into focus in either the background or the foreground






2. A camera device that opens and closes to regulate the length of time the film is exposed to light






3. A system for recording images on magnetic tape using a digital signal - that is - an electronic signal comprised of 0s and 1s






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






5. A shot that contains two characters within the frame






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






7. An action film cycle of the late 1960s and early 1970s that featured bold - rebellious African American characters






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






9. A method for producing a widescreen image without special lenses or equipment - using standard film stock and blocking out the top and bottom of the frame to achieve an aspect ration of 1.85:1






10. Wheeled platform with wheels that rotate - so the dolly can change direction






11. A shot that depicts a human body from the feet up






12. 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






13. Reels of film that are shipped to movie theaters for exhibition. Digital cinema - which can be distributed via satellite - broadband - or on media such as DVDs - may soon replace film prints because the latter are expensive to create - copy - and dis






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






15. 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






16. A technique in which the audience temporarily shares the visual perspective of a character or a group of characters. The camera points in the directions the character looks - simulating the character's field of vision






17. A contemporary modification of the standard three-act structure that identifies a critical turning point at the halfway mark of most narrative films






18. A platform on wheels - used for mobile camera shots






19. A process of transferring film to video tapes or DVDs so that the original aspect ratio of the film is preserved






20. The distance that appears in focus in front of and behind the subject. It is determined by the aperture - distance and focal length of lens






21. Assists the editor with various tasks - including taking footage to the lab - checking the condition of the negative - cataloguing footage - and supervising optical effects - often produced by an outside company






22. An alternative to classical and realist styles - formalism is a self-consciously interventionist approach that explores ideas - abstraction - and aesthetics rather than focusing on storytelling (as in classical films) or everyday life (as in realist






23. A consistent style - theme - and subject matter developed over the course of a director's body of work






24. An effect created when too little light strikes the film during shooting. As a result the image will contain dark areas that appear very dense and dark (including shadows) and the overall contrast will be less than with a properly exposed image






25. A technique of underdeveloping exposed film stock (leaving it in a chemical batch a shorter amount of time than usual) in order to achieve the visual effect of reducing contrast






26. The imagined world of the story






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






28. A term describing a conclusion that does not answer all the questions raised regarding characters or storylines - nor tie up all loose ends






29. An alternative to classical and realist styles - formalism is a self-consciously interventionist approach that explores ideas - abstraction - and aesthetics rather than focusing on storytelling (as in classical films) or everyday life (as in realist






30. A property of older television monitors - where each frame was scanned as two fields: One consisting of all the odd numbered lines - the other all the even lines. If slowed down - the television image would appear to sweep down the screen one line at






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






32. 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






33. Light emitted from a larger source that is scattered over a bigger area or reflected off a surface before it strikes the subject. Soft light minimizes facial details - including wrinkles






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






35. 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






36. The first print made from a film negative






37. 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






38. A crew member who works in post-production in a specially equipped studio to create the sounds of the story world - such as the shuffling of shoes on various surfaces for footsteps






39. A term that refers to the organization of an industry wherein one type of corporation also owns corporations in allied industries - for example - film production and video games






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






41. 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






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






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






44. A short screen appearance by a celebrity - playing himself or herself






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






46. A short documentary on current events - show in movie theaters along with cartoons and feature films beginning in the 1930s






47. The use of editing techniques - such as a fade or dissolve - to indicate the end of one scene and the beginning of another






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






49. A style of Japanese animation - distinguished primarily by the fact that it is not all geared for young audiences






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