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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 vertical - up-and-down - motion of an otherwise stationary camera






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






3. The five vertically integrated corporations that exerted the greatest control over film production in the studio era: MGM - Warner Brothers - RKO - Twentieth Century Fox - and Paramount






4. Sound recorded on a set - on location - or - for documentary film - at an actual real-world event - as opposed to dubbed in post-production through ADR or looping






5. Devices that attach to actors' faces and/or bodies to change their appearance






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






7. 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






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






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






10. Standard shot pattern: A sequence of shots designed to maintain spatial continuity. Scene begin with an establishing shot - then move to a series of individual shots depicting characters and action - before reestablishing shots re-orient viewers to t






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






12. 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






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






14. A widescreen process that uses three cameras - three projectors - and a wide - curved screen






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






16. An efficient system developed for film lighting. In a standard lighting set-up - the key light illuminates the subject - the fill light eliminates shadows cast by the key light - and the back light separates the subject from the background






17. A narrative moment that signals an important shift of some kind in character or situation






18. 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






19. These filters bend the light coming into lens - softening and blurring the image






20. A shot taken from a level camera located approximately 5' to 6' from the ground - simulating the perspective of a person standing before the action presented






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






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






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






24. Images that originate from computer graphics technology - rather than photography






25. 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






26. The arrangement of images to depict a unified storyline






27. An early color process - involving bathing lengths of processed film in dye one scene at a time






28. A statement that presents an argument about a film's meaning and significance






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






30. A description of film stock that is highly sensitive to light






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






32. A shot taken by a camera that is held manually rather than supported by a tripod - crane or Steadicam. Generally - such shots are shaky - owing to the motion of the camera operator






33. A non-standard narrative organization that assumes 'day in the life' quality rather than the highly structured three-act or four part narrative - and that features loose or indirect cause-effect relationships






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






35. The space between the camera and subject it is filming.






36. A technique of exposing film frames - then rewinding the film and exposing it again - which results in an image that combines two shots in a single frame






37. A musical accompaniment written specifically for a film






38. A type of matte shot - created by positioning a pane of optically flawless glass with a painting on it between the camera and the scene to be photographed. This combines the painting on the glass with the set or location - seen through the glass - be






39. 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






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






41. Exposed and developed film stock from which the master positive is struck. If projected - the negative would produce a reverse of the image - with dark areas appearing white and vice versa or - if color film - areas of color appearing as their comple






42. Images that originate from computer graphics technology - rather than photography






43. Any lens with a focal length approximately equal to the diagonal of the frame. For 35mm filmmaking - a 35-50 mm lens does not distort the angle of vision or depth






44. 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






45. Literary narration from a viewpoint beyond that of any one individual character






46. A technique used to join live action with pre-recorded background images. A projector is aimed at a half-silvered mirror that reflects the background - which the camera records as being located behind the actors






47. A shot taken from a camera mounted on a crane that moves three-dimensionally in a space






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






49. The classical model of narrative form. The first act introduces characters and conflicts; the second act offers complication leading to a climax; the third act contains the danouement and resolution






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






Can you answer 50 questions in 15 minutes?



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