Q&A Hero

Q: "Perspective" refers to a set of spatial relations around a particular viewing point.

Q: If a wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens photograph the same scene, the perspective relations in the images they capture will likely be the same.

Q: Today telephoto lenses, sometimes called long lenses, are usually at least 100 mm in length.

Q: The most realistic type of special effect is superimposition.

Q: Current 3-D technology creates live-action images with all of the volume and solidity of the real world by always using extreme depth of field.

Q: "Aspect ratio" is the ratio of frame width to frame height.

Q: In an extreme long shot, a human figure appears tiny or is lost to view.

Q: Action involving digital special effects must be shot in front of a blue or green screen.

Q: Describe some of the tools of mobile framing available to the cinematographer and some of the artistic functions they can serve. Give some specific examples from FilmArt, the lecture, and any film seen for this class.

Q: "Warm" colors tend to attract the spectator's eye more than "cool" colors.

Q: When balancing the shot, filmmakers assume that the viewer will concentrate on the lower half of the projected frame.

Q: Most of the gags in Our Hospitality depend on shallow-space compositions.

Q: Setting plays a less significant role in the cinema than it does in the theater.

Q: Animated films, like live-action films, have mise-en-scene.

Q: "Hard" lighting reveals well-defined shadows and crisp textures.

Q: Unplanned events that are filmed by accident are not part of the mise-en-scene of a shot.

Q: Discuss the problems with using realism as a criterion for evaluating films, giving specific examples from any of the films shown for this class.

Q: Marlon Brando's performance in On the Waterfront was considered a major example of realistic acting in its day.

Q: Films shot in the studio have mise-en-scene, whereas films made entirely on location do not.

Q: "Fill" light is used to create deep shadows.

Q: "Edge" lighting is a type of backlighting used to make characters stand out against a background.

Q: In Hollywood studio filmmaking, the lights are kept in the same position throughout a scene, no matter where the camera is placed.

Q: "High-key" lighting is typical of Hollywood filmmaking.

Q: Soft, high-key lighting is associated with mystery stories, crime films, and filmsnoir.

Q: According to Film Art, realism is the most useful standard for evaluating actors' performances.

Q: Since the advent of sound, it is less important for actors to use their eyes, brow, and mouth to express character emotions.

Q: German Expressionist films, such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, are characterized by realistic mise-en-scene and subtle, psychologically based acting.

Q: When a filmmaker employs a limited palette, he or she uses A. a simple setting with few props. only a few colors in the same range. C. a small cast of actors. D. only one or two camera angles.

Q: The term key light refers to A. subdued lighting. B. background lighting. the primary light source. D. a natural light source.

Q: A "prop" is an object in the setting that A. has a function in the action of the film. B. helps the actors remember their lines. C. supports large pieces of scenery. D. serves as a filler to make a set look complete.

Q: The two most basic types of light in a scene are the key and the rim.

Q: Frontal lighting has a tendency to A. create shadows. B. distort images. eliminate shadows. D. sculpt a character's features.

Q: Georges Mlis's "Star-Film" studio was designed to give him control over every aspect of mise-en-scene.

Q: The aspect of lighting that refers to the relative intensity of illumination is called A. density. quality. C. direction. D. color.

Q: When filmmakers choose to control lighting, they typically use A. different colors of lighting. B. a soft, yellow, incandescent light. C. natural sources of lighting. D. a light that is as purely white as possible.

Q: In a film, when actors engage in conversation, they usually A. look directly at each other and seldom blink. B. glance away often as they gather their thoughts. C. blink frequently to show that they are interested in the conversation. D. focus their gaze directly at the camera.

Q: In classical Hollywood, an actor who was typecast A. played roles in office settings, showcasing fast typing skills. B. was directed to avoid portraying a specific stereotype. was directed to conform to audiences' expectations. D. usually represented a social class or historical movement.

Q: "Performance capture" focuses on filming A. the whole body. the face. C. background images. D. unexpected events.

Q: The easiest way for a filmmaker to achieve compositional balance is to A. focus on figures on the right or the left. B. make the shot as wide as possible. center the frame on the human body. D. counterweight two or more elements.

Q: Which of the following is NOT a way in which a film suggests volume in a space? A. Planes B. Shape C. Shading D. Movement

Q: Depth cues that create the illusion of depth requiring input from only one eye are A. monochromatic. B. monotone. C. monolithic. D. monocular.

Q: In shallow-space composition, the closest and most distant planes appear A. blurred. only slightly separated. C. significantly separated. D. indistinguishable.

Q: Which statement about film acting is TRUE? A. Unlike stage actors, film actors must usually overplay their roles. B. Film actors typically act in a more restrained manner than stage actors. C. Film actors must adjust their movements based on camera distance. D. Film actors are less concerned with facial expressions than stage actors.

Q: Which of the following is NOT a term used to describe how far away from the camera a plane is? A. Near ground B. Foreground C. Background D. Middle ground

Q: Movement is an important depth cue because it suggests A. size diminution. B. balance of composition. C. aerial perspective. D. both volumes and planes.

Q: Film scholars use the term mise-en-scene to describe the director's control over A. where the film will be shot. what appears in the film frame. C. what actors will appear in the film. D. how long shooting will last.

Q: Discuss at least two ways in which Citizen Kane's narrative adheres to conventions of classical Hollywood narrative and some of the ways in which it departs from that tradition.

Q: In a film, a "highlight" refers to A. a significant scene that may become part of a movie trailer. B. acting that exceeds the director's expectations. C. the climax of the story developed in the film. D. lighting that produces a patch of brightness on a surface.

Q: Discuss at least two ways in which Citizen Kane's plot differs from its underlying story. Be as specific as you can in giving examples of manipulations of temporal order, duration, and frequency.

Q: Explain how Citizen Kane's narrative fails to achieve complete closure and discuss some of the effects this has on the spectator's understanding of the film.

Q: Which of the following is NOT considered part of a shot's mise-en-scene? A. The actors' movements B. The camera's angle on the action C. Objects visible in the distance D. The shadows

Q: A major example of a nonrealistic and expressionistic set design is A. Greed. B. Intolerance. C. The Spider's Stratagem. D. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.

Q: The system of lighting widely used in classical Hollywood filmmaking is known as three-point lighting. B. five-point lighting. C. cast-shadow lighting. D. omnidirectional lighting.

Q: Which of the following is NOT a term for a type of directional lighting? A. Top lighting B. Underlighting C. Overlighting D. Backlighting

Q: Which of the following is NOT a type of lighting in the three-point lighting system? A. Rack light B. Backlight C. Key light D. Fill light

Q: According to Film Art, a film actor's performance style is most affected by A. the microphone placement. the camera distance. C. the aspect ratio. D. the lighting.

Q: "Frontality" of staging means that A. a character is placed in the extreme foreground of the shot. B. a character is facing toward the camera. C. one character blocks spectators' views of another character. D. a character is moving toward the foreground.

Q: Which of the following is NOT a motif in the mise-en-scene in Buster Keaton's Our Hospitality? A. A sampler embroidered "Love Thy Neighbor" B. A fish-on-a-line motif C. A gun rack D. A dog-on-a-leash motif

Q: Georges Mlis was A. an early director of fantasy films and master of mise-en-scene. B. an important French set designer of the 1930s. C. the director of Our Hospitality. D. the first historian to study mise-en-scene in the cinema.

Q: Stop-action involves A. having actors stand in the same spot where they were at the end of one shot while the lighting is adjusted for the next shot. B. halting the filming in one set and moving on to another while shooting out of continuity. C. one actor in a scene refraining from any obvious movement after delivering a line so as not to call attention away from the actor who is responding. D. animating an object by changing its position between each frame shot.

Q: Aerial perspective suggests depth by making more distant planes seem hazier than closer ones. B. creating a high angle that makes parallel lines meet at the horizon. C. composing a shot that makes the sky dominate the image. D. filming from directly above a character or a setting.

Q: Size diminution suggests depth by A. making parallel lines seem to intersect. B. creating false perspective by placing taller characters closer to the camera and shorter characters farther off. C. implying that the elements which are smaller in the shot tend to be farther away. D. reducing the cues for perspective so that the space appears relatively shallow

Q: [The following question can be used if you show your class a film that presents a distinct alternative to the classical Hollywood cinema.] Describe two significant ways in which the narrative of [film title] departs from the classical Hollywood cinema's tradition. Be as specific as possible in giving examples from the film.

Q: In classical films, characters rarely achieve their goals through changing their situations or attitudes.

Q: A common pattern of plot development involves a character gaining knowledge as the film progresses.

Q: The onset of the conflict is the part of the plot that introduces the backstory and initial situation.

Q: Characters are the most common source of causes in a narrative.

Q: Groundhog Day is an example of a film with a "what-if" plot.

Q: The locale of the plot is always the same as that of the story action.

Q: An "omniscient" narrator usually has very little information about plot and characters.

Q: Explain the distinction made in Film Art between "plot" and "story" in narrative films. Use specific examples from Film Art, the lecture, and [title of film shown in class].

Q: Discuss some of the ways in which a spectator actively participates in understanding the narrative of a film. Give specific examples from Film Art, the lecture, and any of the narrative films shown for this course.

Q: Explain why it is often useful to compare the opening and closing of a film in analyzing its narrative. Give some specific examples from Film Art, the lecture, and any of the narrative films shown for this course.

Q: Explain the term narration, making reference in the course of your discussion to the concepts of range and depth. Use specific examples from Film Art, the lecture, and any of the narrative films shown for this course.

Q: Discuss how causality operates in two or three scenes from [title of film shown in class]. Be sure to describe how specific events motivate other events.

Q: Define the terms order, duration, and frequency as they apply to narrative time. Give specific examples of each from Film Art, the lecture, and any of the narrative films shown for this course. Answers will vary

Q: Describe at least two basic narrative traits of the classical Hollywood cinema, and give examples of each from Film Art, the lecture, and films shown in class.

Q: Non-character narrators are common in documentaries.

Q: A classical narrative usually involves a blocking element, or an opposition that creates conflict for the protagonist.

Q: At what point in a film does most of the exposition usually take place? A. Just before the climax B. During the resolution C. Near the beginning D. Immediately following the climax