Q&A Hero

Q: The compositional principle that breaks the frame into three vertical sections and three horizontal sections, resulting in a grid, is a. three-point lighting. d. deep-focus composition. b. cubic divisional placement. e. the rule of thirds. c. framing theory.

Q: During the production of a movie, light is controlled and manipulated by the ________ to achieve expressive effects. a. editor d. production designer b. script supervisor e. producer c. cinematographer

Q: ________ is a lighting technique that uses deep gradations and subtle variations of lights and darks. a. High-key d. Chiaroscuro b. Night-for-day e. Diffusion c. Backlighting

Q: Which of the following generally characterize the quality of hard light? a. low contrast b. bright illumination and dark shadows c. diffusion d. less distinct shadows e. flattering illumination

Q: Which three sources of light make up the three-point lighting system? a. key light, fill light, and soft light d. hard light, soft light, and backlight b. key light, backlight, and hard light e. key light, fill light, and backlight c. fill light, soft light, and backlight

Q: The colors and textures of interiors, furniture, draperies, and curtains are aspects of a. decor. d. exterior locations. b. lighting. e. properties. c. depth perception.

Q: When a character in a movie handles an object such as a tennis racket, a glass of beer, or a shovel, it is known as a a. setting. d. dressing. b. location. e. prop. c. decoration.

Q: How did Orson Welles create more immersive sets in Citizen Kane (1941) to lend their settings a more expansive spatial quality? a. He shot the interiors in black and white. b. He built only the minimum parts of the rooms needed to accommodate the story action. c. He built a complete set of four walls for shots captured from high angles. d. He used actual locations that he had reconstructed on a soundstage. e. He used a Steadicam to provide moving, close-to-the-floor point-of-view shots.

Q: Studios of the classical Hollywood period had no qualms about ordering male actors with star potential to undergo cosmetic surgery and change hair color in order to a. maintain the studios ideal kind of masculinity. b. disguise the actors true identity from the public. c. conform to the look of their rival studios roster of stars. d. subvert the control of the director on the set. e. prevent them from being stereotyped.

Q: What usually determines the selection and design of costumes used in a film? a. the physical size of the cast b. authenticity for a storys time period and setting c. the camera lens of a given shot d. the native language of the location e. the type of lighting

Q: Although much attention was paid to the authenticity of historical costumes during the studio era, hairstyles were often based on a. the actors personal style. d. genre formulas. b. advertiser demands. e. modified contemporary looks. c. polyester wigs.

Q: For the costuming in the 1963 historical epic Cleopatra, the Hollywood studio 20th Century Fox was more concerned with ________ than historical accuracy. a. glamour d. nuance b. character progression e. generic conventions c. expressionism

Q: Until the 1960s, why were actors in almost every film, whether period or contemporary, required to wear wigs? a. Hair styling was too costly. b. It was feared that the audience would not recognize the star. c. Wigs reflected light better than real hair. d. An actors real hair could be the source of a continuity error. e. The stars contract prevented it.

Q: ________ is the process by which the look of settings, props, lighting, and actors is determined. a. Casting d. Design b. Costuming e. Editing c. Budgeting

Q: In Edward Scissorhands (1990), the unusual costume and makeup of the title character emphasizes his a. sexual neediness. d. outsider status. b. conformity. e. addictive personality. c. brutality.

Q: Although facial painting and prosthetics were used for the face of the Joker in The Dark Night (2008), the transformation of Harvey Dent into Two-Face was created by a. special facial makeup only. d. prosthetics only. b. a process involving digital makeup. e. the actor. c. chiaroscuro lighting.

Q: What did movie studios hope to gain by building soundstages after the first two decades of filmmaking? a. authenticity d. available light b. natural depth e. unpredictability c. cost savings

Q: Sets are often built on a ________, which is a windowless, soundproofed, interior shooting environment. a. stadium d. theater b. back lot e. soundstage c. camera booth

Q: Arrivals alien egg-shaped craft, which seems to be made of stone and has interiors that are spare, organic, and enormous, is an example of a. the largest interior set in existence. b. subverting established movie expectations. c. German expressionism. d. the rule of thirds. e. high-key lighting.

Q: What is the primary function of secondary characters? a. to provide comic relief b. to question the morality of the protagonist c. to move the story forward or flesh out the motivations of the protagonist d. to narrate the story e. to frustrate the protagonists quest

Q: In The Big Lebowski (1988), the moment when The Dude gets ambushed by two thugs looking for a different Jeffrey Lebowski is the ________ of the film. a. normal world d. revelation b. rising action e. central question c. inciting incident

Q: The nature of the pursuit in a typical narrative movie depends on a. the filmmakers vision. d. the individual character. b. the protagonists rival. e. the actors performance. c. the narrative structure.

Q: Which of the following is NOT one of the traits that determines the nature of a characters pursuit of a goal? a. position d. costume b. background e. attitudes c. beliefs

Q: What is an antagonist? a. the person, people, creature, or force responsible for obstructing the protagonist b. an extreme antihero c. a moment in the narrative structure that spins the story in a new direction d. a catastrophic nature disaster that provides the climax to many films e. a badly written second act

Q: Narrative cannot exist without the protagonist possessing a. round traits. d. a message. b. flat traits. e. a goal. c. a sidekick.

Q: What does it mean when the stakes rise in a movie? a. that the movie becomes more profound and complex b. that the movie provokes its audience to accept controversial political doctrines c. that as the movie progresses the protagonist confronts greater risks d. that as the movie progresses the protagonist becomes more significant e. that as the movie progresses the antagonist gains in strength over the protagonist

Q: Which of the following is an example of rising action? a. in a comedy in which a rich twin and poor twin swap places, the first turning point where the pair exchanges identities b. in a documentary, the opening voice-over narration explaining the movies topic c. in a horror film, the build toward the moment when the last survivor of a terrifying monster believes the possibility to escape is completely lost d. in a musical, a rousing, show-stopping number that involves the entire cast e. in a film noir, the introduction of the femme fatale who will come to dominate the protagonists life

Q: In film analysis, the term mise-en-scne refers to a. everything the audience sees in every shot. b. the technique of editing from shot to shot. c. a method of determining the length of each scene. d. only those objects and people who appear in the foreground of a shot. e. everything in the frame except lighting and composition.

Q: One of the first and most important collaborators hired by a director is the ________, who helps develop the overall look of a movie. a. production designer d. engineer b. editor e. camera operator c. makeup artist

Q: Which of the following falls under the supervision of a movies production designer? a. the choice of lenses, cameras, and film stock b. the casting of actors c. the actors performances d. the pacing, tempo, and rhythm of the final film e. the costumes, set construction, and hairstyling

Q: The spatial and temporal ________ of a film is the environment in which the narrative takes place. a. framing d. scene b. setting e. genre c. boundaries

Q: During the first twenty years of moviemaking, directors preferred to shoot in/on ________ locations. a. interior d. remote b. exterior e. exotic c. soundstage

Q: What is character motivation? a. the goal the character pursues b. the development the character undergoes c. the obstacles the character must overcome in pursuit of a goal d. the realistic or plausible reasons behind the characters actions and desires e. the ability or inability of the audience to understand a characters actions and desires

Q: The first few minutes of a narrative film lay out the rules of the universe that audiences will inhabit (or at least witness) for the next couple of hours by establishing the ________ of a narrative film. a. abnormal situation d. main milieu b. normal world e. first turn c. obstacles

Q: What is narration? a. the story b. who or what tells the story c. fiction films d. the act of telling the story e. a cinematic structure in which the filmmakers have selected and arranged events in a cause-and-effect sequence occurring over time

Q: What is the primary narrator in every movie? a. the camera b. the protagonist c. the director d. the screenwriter e. the omniscient, third-person storyteller

Q: Which of the following represents an example of a first-person narrator? a. a voice-over in a horror movie from a source we never see, and who knows the thoughts and feelings of all the characters b. a voice-over from a private investigator, who talks about the past events of his life as the movie images show what he is speaking of c. a voice-over from an instructional authority, who explains important information concerning the subject of a controversial documentary d. a voice-over from an undefined source and unconnected to any possible character in an experimental film e. a voice from a character talking amid the action of a romantic comedy

Q: How many narrations take place at the same time when a character from a film becomes a first-person narrator? a. one d. four b. two e. five c. three

Q: What is direct address narration? a. first-person voice-over narration delivered to another character b. third-person voice-over narration delivered in the middle of a film c. second-person voice-over narration commanding the audience to participate in the film events d. multiple third-person voice-over narrations e. first-person narration delivered directly to the audience, breaking the fourth wall

Q: Which of the following demonstrates the effective use of third-person narration? a. We enter the thoughts of the protagonist as she relates to the audience in voice-over what she is truly feeling. b. We are addressed by the protagonist when he makes an aside to the camera after a particularly embarrassing moment. c. We are addressed by an omniscient yet unseen voice who explains to the audience the various motivations of multiple characters. d. We are addressed by the filmmaker herself as she provides a warning to sensitive viewers before the movie story proper begins. e. We are addressed by several characters over the course of a highly unusual narrative.

Q: A film that contains unrestricted access to all aspects of the narrative, providing any characters experiences and perceptions as well as information that no character knows, is an example of a. restricted narration. d. first-person narration. b. third-person narration. e. Hitchcockian narration. c. omniscient narration.

Q: What is the source of the pleasure involved in watching a film that provides unrestricted access to all aspects of the narrative? a. It allows the viewer to directly interact with the film and change its outcome. b. It allows the viewer to know more than the characters and anticipate what will happen when they learn the whole truth. c. It allows the viewer to intensely identify with just a single character. d. It allows the viewer to engage in a formal experiment conducted by the filmmaker, in which he tries to make a film using strict limitations and constraints. e. It allows the viewer to escape into a fantasy world untethered to the logic of reality.

Q: Which of the following constitutes restricted narration? a. a film in which multiple storylines featuring several major characters, none of whom know much about the others, but of whom the viewer knows all, converge b. a film in which an omniscient third-person narrator provides information concerning the thoughts and feelings of several members of a boating expedition c. a film in which the camera allows the viewer to follow the disparate events leading up to the assassination of a controversial political leader d. a film in which the viewer is privy to the machinations of supernatural forces working unbeknownst to a group of scared campers e. a film in which a man trapped in a tunnel provides the only point of view by which the audience sees and understands the action

Q: How is the restricted narration of The Black Swan unreliable? a. The films story is told entirely from the point of view of a protagonist who is losing touch with reality. b. The films story is narrated by a sarcastic third-person narrator. c. The films story is continually shown from dual perspectives: the protagonists and that of the people who think she is insane. d. The films story is told in a highly stylized and heavily frenetic fashion. e. The films story is told in nonchronological order.

Q: Which of the following can be said about different types of narration? a. Restricted and omniscient narration cannot be used within the same film. b. Restricted and omniscient narration can be used within the same film depending on the needs of the story. c. Restricted and omniscient narration can be used within the same film, but only along with a third-person voice-over narrator. d. Restricted and omniscient narration can be used within the same film, but only along with a first-person voice-over narrator. e. Restricted and omniscient narration can be used within the same film, but only if there is no voice-over narrator.

Q: What is a round character? a. an important character that is featured in every scene of a movie b. a special character that comes full circle and ends up the way he or she was in the beginning of a movie c. a complex, multidimensional character that changes over the course of a movie d. an uncomplicated, one-dimensional character that does not change over the course of a movie e. a stupid, un-sharp character that lacks edge

Q: Which of the following is NOT true of flat characters? a. They are always supporting characters. b. They exhibit few distinct traits. c. They do not change significantly as the story progresses. d. They are relatively uncomplicated. e. They are less dimensional than round characters.

Q: How does the setting of the stagecoach emphasize the importance of social hierarchy to the story and characters?

Q: What is an antihero? a. a rival to the protagonist b. an unsympathetic character in pursuit of a less-than-noble goal c. a round hero possessing potentially fatal flaws d. a hero who resorts to violence in pursuit of his or her goal e. a flat hero who does not possess the nuances audiences expect in a richly compelling main character

Q: Explain the complexities of Stagecoachs representation of wilderness and civilization.

Q: Narratives are fiction films, as opposed to a. other movie genres, like horror and the musical. b. other movie techniques, like chiaroscuro lighting. c. other movie modes, like documentary or experimental. d. other movie terms, like mise-en-scne. e. other movie eras, like the silent era.

Q: Explain why the camera is the primary narrator in every movie.

Q: Why is it that movie stories are invigorated by a plethora of possible character traits available for possible character types?

Q: Using a hypothetical example, explain how a movie protagonist in active pursuit of a goal invests the viewer in the story.

Q: Using a hypothetical example, explain how a happy ending in a movie is not always dependent on the protagonist achieving his or her goals.

Q: Explain how an inciting incident, or catalyst, moves a typical narrative forward.

Q: Why does narrative depend on obstacles to impede the protagonist from reaching his or her goal?

Q: Using a hypothetical example, explain how story and plot can overlap in creative ways.

Q: Provide an example of three movies with similar or the same stories, and then explain how each is uniquely conveyed to the audience through distinct plots.

Q: What does the hierarchy of events consist of, and why is it important?

Q: Using a hypothetical example, explain real time in terms of screen and plot duration.

Q: Using a hypothetical example, explain what a familiar image is and how it functions in narrative filmmaking.

Q: How do the two main subtypes of the biopic, a historical figures life as told through one significant episode or period, or else through a series of events, often from birth to death, reveal the many ways in which scope can be employed in movies?

Q: Why do character traits in Stagecoach transform over the course of its story?

Q: What is manifest destiny in relation to Westerns? a. a social theme concerning the belief that the United States really belongs to Native Americans b. a social theme concerning the corrupting influence of civilization c. a social theme concerning doubts as to Americas inherent greatness d. a social theme concerning the environmental destruction of the Old West e. a social theme concerning the inevitability of God-ordained territorial expansion

Q: Which of the following is one of the beliefs that is persistently expressed in the movies of John Ford? a. that Americans can only achieve liberty through individual pursuits b. that manifest destiny was a philosophy in opposition to those of the founding fathers c. that the wilderness should not be explored or tamed by civilizing forces d. that civilization occurs as a result of a genuine community built through heroism and shared values e. that social hierarchies must be upheld in order to foster democracy

Q: Which of the following demonstrates a stretch relationship between screen and plot duration? a. A five-minute scene captures in dramatic slow motion a two-minute shootout between police and a gang of bank robbers. b. A 145-minute film covers the twenty-year career of a major league baseball player. c. A minute-long flashback portrays a character thinking through the most important moments of his entire life. d. An opening sequence summarizes the major events of the Vietnam War from beginning to end. e. A short montage sequence encapsulates a typical school day for a teenage girl.

Q: What device typically allows for the possibility of a stretch relationship in cinematic time? a. voice-over narration d. lighting b. editing e. sound track music c. camera movement

Q: What is the advantage of suspense over surprise? a. Suspense momentarily shocks the viewer. b. Suspense disengages the viewer from the narrative by making events entirely predictable, thus allowing him to critically think about them. c. Suspense is easier to place into a script than surprise. d. Suspense makes the viewer active in watching the film by causing her to wonder at how events will unfold or turn out. e. Suspense can be used in all types of movies, whereas surprise can only be used for thrillers and horror films.

Q: What does the repetition of a story element signal? a. that the filmmakers have made a continuity error b. that the element is relatively insignificant because it is overemphasized c. that the element is relatively important because it is part of a pattern d. that the element can be removed from the film and made an object of study on its own e. that the element is one of the directors trademarks placed in the narrative for only die-hard fans

Q: What does the setting of a film consist of? a. the time and place in which the story occurs b. the time and place in which the film was shot c. the time and place in which the film is projected to an audience d. the time and place in which the backstory occurs e. the genre to which the film belongs

Q: Which of the following CANNOT be established or provided by setting? a. the date the film takes place b. the social background of a character c. the educational background of a character d. what a character eats e. the overall editing style of the film

Q: What do we mean when we refer to the scope of a film? a. a type of screen format b. a type of camera lens c. an epic quality attributed to adventure and historical films d. the overall range, in time and place, of the movies story e. the overall range, in emotion, of the movies characters

Q: Which of the following describes the relationship between plot and story in Stagecoach? a. The plot takes place over a lengthy period of time and covers the lives of several characters, whereas the story takes place in just two days and mostly brings the characters together to trace their progress. b. The plot takes place in just two days and mostly brings the characters together to trace their progress, whereas the story takes place over a lengthy period of time and covers the lives of several characters. c. The story and plot never converge. d. The story and plot are exactly the same. e. The story and plot are lacking within the film.

Q: Which of the following is a flat character in Stagecoach? a. Dallas d. Lucy b. Ringo e. Peacock c. Doc Boone

Q: What common goal do the characters of Stagecoach share? a. exacting revenge on the Plummers d. reaching Lordsburg b. creating new lives on the frontier e. resolving social divisions c. defeating Geronimo

Q: Which of the following describes the order of the story events in Stagecoach? a. chronological b. nonchronological c. both chronological and nonchronological d. obscure e. unknown

Q: Which of the following is a diegetic element in Stagecoach? a. opening titles d. background music b. closing titles e. closing credits c. a honky-tonk piano in the bar

Q: Which of the following is a minor plot event in Stagecoach? a. Bucks wavering enthusiasm for driving the stagecoach against the odds b. Ringos willingness to risk his life to bring the stagecoach under control as the Apaches attack c. Ringos attempt to escape at Apache Wells d. Dallass decision at the Apache Wells station to accept Ringos proposal e. Marshal Curly Wilcoxs decision to set Ringo free

Q: Which of the following characterizes the scope of Stagecoach? a. narrow d. nonmythic b. broad e. courageous c. overwhelming.