Film: Art and Technique of Projecting Moving Images
Film is the art and technique of projecting moving images on a screen from still images. The word “film” comes from the Greek root kineme, meaning “movement,” and graphein, meaning “drawing.”
Summary Historical Background
The initial development of film was based on Edison’s phonograph. Edison traveled to France and met Etienne Jules Marey, a physician and photographer who had developed the chronograph, a similar invention that used a roll of film.
The Plane
The plane is the minimum unit of audiovisual writing. There are different types of planes, including the great floor plan, general plan, plano full, American plan, plano east, in focus, major focus, map detail, overshoulder plane, and plane sequence.
Angles and Movement of the Camera
When speaking of camera angles, we refer to the view. There are normal and natural angles, chopped angles, contrapicado angles, nadir, zenith, and plan Netherlands.
Camera movements can be descriptive, dramatic, or a combination of both. There are different types of camera movements, including panoramic, sweep, travelling, accompaniment, approximation, removal, horizontal travelling, vertical travelling, oblique travelling, and zoom.
Temporal Units within the Narrative Audiovisual
A film is fragmented by shots, scenes, and sequences. These three elements are scattered dramatic content and aesthetic history.
- Takes are the basic unit of film, ranging from the director saying “action” to “cut.”
- Scenes are abstract units that tell a dramatic clause.
- Sequences are units of time and space that consist of a series of interrelated scenes.
Ellipsis
Ellipsis is a jump in time or space that does not lose the continuity of the sequence. There are two types of ellipsis: objective and subjective.
Flashback and Flashforward
A flashback is a sudden and rapid return to the past of a character. A flashforward is a sudden and rapid jump to the future of a character.
Classical Structure of the Narrative Audiovisual
The classical structure of the narrative audiovisual is based on the Aristotelian structure, which divides the narrative into three acts: introduction, development or conflict, and resolution or outcome.
The Three Acts
Each act has its own characteristics and percentage of total time:
- Act I (Approach): One quarter of the total length
- Act II (Development and Conflict): Half of the total length
- Act III (Outcome or Resolution): Quarter of the total length
The Script and Drafting Stages
The script is the written account of what is going to happen in the movie. There are two types of scripts: original screenplay and adapted screenplay.
The structure of the script includes sequences, scenes, and shots. The stages in writing a script are:
- The idea
- The argument
- The plot
- Creating characters
- Drawing fictional or treatment
- Literary script or continuity through dialogue
- Technical screenplay
- The storyboard
Script Types
There are two recognized types of script: the literary script and the technical script.