Glossary
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This glossary defines many of the terms you will encounter when making a video or film. Use the menu above to navigate through the glossary.
- Assistant director
- (AD) Assistant director
- Aperture
- This is the same as the iris.
- Art department
- Responsible for the design, look, and feel of a film set. Also for the number and type of props including the furniture, windows, floors, ceilings dressings, and all other set materials.
- Assembly edit
- The first stage of editing, in which all the shots are arranged in original script or shot list order.
- Atmos
- Atmosphere, also called room tone. This is when the sound recordist records the 'sound of a location' to help the sound editor.
- Audio
- Refers to the sound portion of a film including dialogue, music, and effects; sound effects refers to all created sounds except dialogue or music.
- Backlighting
- Illumination cast onto the figures in a scene from opposite the camera. Usually creates a thin outline of light on the edge of the figure/s. With backlighting, the subject is separated from the background.
- Blocking
- The process of figuring out where the camera goes, how the lights will be arranged, and what the actors' positions and movements (moment by moment) are for each shot or take. The specific staging of a film's movements are worked out by the director, often with stand-ins and the lighting crew before actual shooting.
- Blow out
- When a bright light or light source causes a part of your shot to glare and flare – that is, to 'blow out'. A good example is when you see people shot inside and the window behind them is white and glaring.
- Blue screen
- A special-effects process whereby actors work in front of an evenly-lit, monochromatic (usually blue or green) background or screen. The background is then replaced (or matted) in post-production by chroma-keying or optical printer, allowing other footage or computer-generated images to form the image. Since 1992, most films use a green-screen
- B shot
- A shot on the shot list that is desired for a scene but not vital – if running out of time a 'B' shot can be scrapped.
- Call sheet
- A sheet given out periodically during film production to let every department/person know when they are supposed to arrive and where they are to report to.
- Camera
- The basic machine involved in film-making, from a hand-held version to portables, to heavy studio cameras. Parts of a camera include the aperture, lens, film magazine (for storage), and viewfinder.
- Camera angle
- The position of frame in relation to the subject it shows; that is, above looking down (high angle), horizontal, on the same level (straight-on angle) or looking up (low angle).
- Camera movement
- Change of frame by either the cameras being physically moved or possibly caused by a zoom lens or certain special effects.
- Cast
- A collective term for all of the actors/performers/subjects appearing in a particular film.
- Computer generated imagery (CGI)
- A term referring to the use of 3-D computer graphics and technology (digital computers and specialised software) in film-making to create filmed images, special effects, and the illusion of motion.
- Cinematography
- A broad term that covers all manipulations of the film during both the shooting and post-production phases.
- Close-up (CU)
- A shot in which the scale of the object or subject is relatively large. Most common CUs show a person's head from the neck up or a medium-sized object.
- Colour temperature
- A measurement of the colour of light, and important because film is much more sensitive to colour temperature than our eyes.
- Colour balance
- The 'colour' of light differs between inside and outside and depending on time of day or what kinds of lights are in a room. The colour balance feature on the camera allows adjustment of the light recorded.
- Colour grading
- This happens in post production. Certain editing and post production software allows you to go back and correct each of your shots so they all meld perfectly together.
- Continuity
- The seamlessness of detail from one shot to another within a scene. Refers particularly to physical elements, including actor or subject actions, prop placement, lighting, and costumes.
- Coverage
- The options you have to tell each part of your video story. For example your opening dialogue may be covered in a WS, a CU and a MS – this gives you good coverage.
- Crane shot
- A shot with a change in framing accomplished by having the camera on a crane and moving through the air in any direction.
- Crew
- Refers to those people involved in the technical production of a film who are not actual performers.
- Cut
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- What the director says to end filming of a shot.
- The cutting apart of two shots at frame line, or the point where shots have been cut apart.
- Depth of field (DOF)
- When a lens focuses on a single plane of depth, there is usually an additional area in focus behind and in front of that plane that is called depth of field. Closing the iris can increase DOF – the wider the lens the more depth of field and longer the lens the less DOF.
- Diffusion
- Refers to something in front of the camera lens that softens the light to create a soft fuzzy effect. It can be a special diffusion filter or it may be as simple as a camera person misting up the lens with their breath or stretching pantyhose over a lens creates a special diffused look.
- Digitising
- The input of the raw rushes/field tapes into an editing software application. This is the first part of the digital editing process.
- Director
- The creative artist/s responsible for artistic control of all phases of film production such as making day-to-day decisions about sound, lighting, action, casting, even editing. Also responsible for translating/interpreting a script or storyboard into a film, guiding the performances of the actors in particular roles and/or scenes, and supervising the cinematography and film crew.
- Dissolve
- A transition between two shots during which the first image gradually disappears while the second image gradually appears. Momentary merge or superimposition.
- Edit
-
- The cutting and arranging of shots.
- In the different stages, or at the completion of editing, the edited film can be referred to as 'the cut' or 'the edit'.
- Extreme close-up (ECU)
- A shot that enlarges a small detail, such as an eye or a line text.
- Exterior (EXT)
- Exterior as in an outside location.
- Eye line
- A cut between two shots that creates the illusion of the character (in the first shot) and looking at an object (in the second shot).
- Fade
- A video transition where a shot can fade up from black or fade out to black.
- Flare
- Refers to when light is directly hitting the camera lens. This causes strange spots and 'fogging'. Sometimes you may want this effect, but usually it is hard to control and best avoided.
- Fleckie
- A tool for reflecting light into a shot. Often a fleckie is a white or silver coloured board.
- Focus
- Refers to the degree to which light rays coming from the same part of an object through different parts of the lens re-converge at the same point on the film frame, creating sharp outlines and distinct textures.
- Focus in/focus out
- A punctuation device in which the image gradually comes into focus or goes out of the focus.
- Focus pull
- Refers to when the focus of the camera is adjusted to follow an action or a person in shot.
- Handheld
- Shooting without a tripod, but with the camera held by the camera person.
- Head room
- The space between the top of a person's head and the top of frame – the camera person should be very aware of this!
- Improvisation
- To create or perform spontaneously, without preparation, and with whatever is available.
- Interior (INT)
- Interior meaning an inside location.
- Iris
- A round, moving mask that contracts to close down to end a scene, emphasise a detail, open a scene or to reveal more space around a detail.
- Lighting
- Refers to the illumination of a scene or shot.
- Long shot (LS)
- A shot in which the scale of the object or subject shown is small. A standing human figure for example, would appear nearly the height of the screen.
- Long take
- A shot that continues for an unusually lengthy time before moving onto the next shot.
- 'Make it safe'
- Film set slang for making sure nothing is in shot that should not be there – such as a crew member, lighting gear and so on.
- Medium close-up (MCU)
- A shot in which the scale of the object shown is fairly large. For example, a human figure, seen from the chest up, would fill most of the screen.
- Medium shot (MS)
- A shot in which the scale of the object or subject shown is of moderate size. For example a human figure, seen from the waist up, would fill most of the screen.
- Mise-en-scene
- Incorporates all the elements placed in front of the camera to be filmed – all subjects and objects including props, setting, lighting, costumes, make-up and so on.
- Narration
- The telling of a story, and the supplemental information given to the film audience by an off-screen voice.
- 'Not my department' (NMD)
- Slang term used by crew members when asked to do something that is not part of their job description.
- 'On the day'
- This means when we press 'record' on the camera. So you might tell the actor not to 'break the plate' during rehearsals means can they please wait for 'on the day' – even if 'on the day' is two minutes later!
- Over shoulder (O/S)
- A camera shot positioned to look over the shoulder.
- Out of shot (O/S)
- Off the visible stage, or beyond the camera's field of vision or depicted frame (off screen).
- Pan
- Movement of camera from left to right or vice versa on a stationary tripod. On screen it produces a mobile frame, which scans the space horizontally.
- Point of view (POV)
- A shot taken with the camera placed approximately where a character's eye would be and showing the audience what the character would see. Is important to match this with a reaction shot.
- Post-production
- The final stage in film' production involving editing, the addition of sound/visual effects, musical scoring, mixing, dubbing, and distribution.
- Practical
- This refers to a light that is seen in a shot such as a lamp or house lights.
- Pre-production
- The planning stage in film production involving script treatment and editing, scheduling, set design and construction, casting, and scouting/selection of locations.
- Production
- The general process of putting a film together, including casting, set construction, and shooting.
- Props
- An abbreviation for properties – refers to the furnishings, fixtures, hand-held objects, decorations, or any other moveable items that are seen or used on a film (or stage) set but that are not a structural part of the set.
- Reaction shot
- A quick shot that records a character's or group's response to another character or some on-screen action or event.
- Recce
- A survey or inspection of a possible location.
- Rushes
- Refers basically to the raw footage, unedited, and shot that day. Americans call them dailies, sometimes referred to as field tapes.
- Scene
- A segment within a narrative film that takes place in one time and one space.
- Screen ratio
- This is about the size and shape of your video. At the movies the ratio is very different from television – it is big and rectangular while television is squarer. This is referred to as ratio; the ratio of a film is represented in numbers. For example most films are 1:1:85 while television is 1:1:33.
- Script writer
- Refers to the individual/s who writes the content of the piece from pre-existing material or an entirely new idea. Usually there are many writers involved with re-writes, adaptations, character development, and so on.
- Special effects (SFX)
- A general term for various photographic manipulations that create illusionary spatial relations within the shot.
- Shot
- The basic building block or unit of film narrative; refers to a single, constant take made by a motion picture camera uninterrupted by editing, interruptions or cuts, in which a length of film is exposed by turning the camera on, recording, and then turning the camera off. It can also refer to a single film frame (such as a still image).
- Shot list
- A list of all the different shots that you have on the storyboard.
- Sound mix
- This is where a professional sound engineer modulates all the different sound tracks on a film so they are cohesive and uniform.
- Storyboard
- A sequential series of illustrations, stills, rough sketches and/or captions (sometimes resembling a comic or cartoon strip) of events, seen through the camera lens, that outline the various shots or provide a synopsis for a proposed film story and detail action and characters.
- Theme
- The central characteristic, idea, concern, or motif in a film.
- Tracking shot
- A shot where the camera is placed on a dolly and is moved while filming. Can travel through space forward, backward or laterally.
- Track lay
- Refers to when a professional sound engineer completes various tracks of sound for a film. Often a big movie will have a number of dialogue tracks, some Foley tracks and a soundtrack track.
- Tripod
- What the camera is mounted on. Also referred to as the 'legs' or the 'sticks'.
- Tweak
- To alter very slightly.
- Video split
- A monitor that is hooked up to a camera so that the director and others on a set can see what the camera is seeing (without annoying the camera person).
- Voice over (VO)
- Refers to recorded dialogue, usually narration that comes from an unseen, off-screen voice, character or narrator that can be heard by the audience but not by the film characters.
- 'Watch your back'
- Film slang for 'Watch out! We are coming through with something heavy or difficult and we might hurt you'.
- Wide shot (WS)
- Also referred to as an extreme long shot, (ELS or XLS). A shot taken with a lens that is able to take in a wider field of view (to capture more of the scene's elements or objects) than a regular or normal lens. A wide-angle shot exaggerates the distance or disparity between foreground and background planes; an extreme or ultra-wide-angle lens giving a 180 degree view is called a 'fish-eye' lens.