A good blend of
Cinematography- A good film should be nice to look at and the shots should be well crafted and filmed
Story- A story should be interesting and compelling not boring and make audiences think or feel a certain way
Acting- A good film should be well acted to increase the verisimilitude of the scene
Mise en scene- A good film should have all the relevant props it needs that fit w the directors vision
Shot sizes:
Extra long shot, good for setting scenes and establishing locations as it is the most zoomed out and shows the most information in one shot.
Long shot, good for the same reasons as the last but instead is less zoomed out so less overall information is given but in return we see more detail about the items more focused on like for example you will see a characters entire body but the shot size wont be drastically larger.
Medium long shot, a good staple shot size because it is just about the same size as the character making it good for telling narrative without focusing much on one person “for most shots”.
Medium shot, a more personal version of the shot above except it slightly focuses on one subject as it is quite zoomed.
Medium close up, this is when the shot stops suggesting a focus on a particular character and informs the audience that this character is indeed the focus of this shot.
Close up, the first shot where you as the audience really get the sense that the camera is zoomed into the face, head and the details of someones face/emotions becomes the forefront of the shot these shots are used to in contrast with the extra long shots to instead establish emotion instead of location.
Big close up, shows basically just the face of the subject good for detail and emotions
Extra close up, is the most extreme kind of shot that just shows the face it is very good for showing raw intense emotion.
Shot angles:
Low, gives a menacing feel to the audience as if you are looking up towards something can also be used to convey power.
Eye level, basic angle good for not giving anyone power over anyone.
High, gives an omnipotent feeling to the audience like they are a god in the world of this particular film.
Worm’s eye, a more intense version of the low angle which is even more drastic and dramatic.
Canted/dutch angles, when the camera is tilted this distorts people perception of the image and is used in old cinema to show when things are very wrong.
Movements:
Pan, pivoting around on the spot.
Crab, moving left or right same angle.
Zoom, zooming in or out.
Track, moving backwards or forwards same angle
Ped, bringing the camera up or down.
Tilt, tilting the camera up or down.
Diegetic gaze: American history X, Casablanca and most traditional films.
Intra-deigetic gaze: Cloverfield, Enter the void, Maniac.
Extra-deigetic gaze: Ferris buellers day off, Bladerunner, dead pool
Diegetic gaze basically puts the audience in an omniscient position where they are able to see more of the scene than each of the individual characters present. Intra-deigetic gaze puts the audience in a first person viewpoint of a character which makes the entire thing more personal to the character from which we are viewing the world. Extra-diegetic gaze is when the character is looking at and directly addressing the audience like in dead pool or ferris bullers day off, this can be to open up about something/speak there mind and for other reasons such as to provide comic relief.
This angle from Harry Potter is an eye-level angle giving off the affect that Harry is staring directly at the audience, emitting an eerie feeling.
This shot from the film pirates of the Caribbean is at a birds eye view angle, this angle gives a feeling of depth and perception.
This angle is a canted angle, this is used to create dramatic affect to help portray unease, disorientation, frantic or desperate action. In this specific scene Thor is reaching for the hammer with the canted angle so that the city behind him can be seen and all flow together.
This shot from Star Wars is a long shot, it gives off the effect that there is a longer journey ahead and that there could be more to come, due to the fact that the camera is behind the character, showing a wide view of the desert ahead of them.
This shot is from the film Valerian, it is a medium shot, this shows detail in both the foreground and background, presenting a view of what has happened and what is currently happening.
This shot from Harry Potter is a close sot, it gives a clearer detail of the expression on Harry’s face so that the audience can feel and understand what Harry is feeling.
Cinematography is the art of photography and camerawork in film-making.
A cinematographer is a person who oversees or directs photography and camerawork in film-making, especially operating the camera.
The cinematographer is the head of the camera and lighting crew. They work beside with the camera operators, camera assistants, gaffers and the light grip crew. Whereas the director interprets the script and remodels it into a film.
A diegetic perspective or “gaze” is expressed in terms of how the audience is being asked to look at the content or subjects on screen by the director. For example. What is being emphasized through the use of close up shots? Star Wars is an example of this because you watch the film unfold in front of you without feeling like you are in the film, this might have been used to create a more detailed view of the film so that the audience can see and understand each scene in the film.
The Intra-dietic gaze is when the audience are put in the place of character and being asked to see things from their point of view. A good example of this is Paranormal Activity because it makes the audience become the character and create the same emotions of fear that the other characters are going through during the movie.
The extra-diegtic gaze is when someone on screen addresses the audience directly by looking directly down the lens of the camera – sometimes known as “breaking the 4th war”. An example of this is in the film Deadpool where Deadpool looks and speaks to the camera, creating a feeling that you’re in the film and he is talking to you.
The definition of the depth of field is the difference between the distance of the furthest objects and the closest objects in a photo or film that appears more focused or sharp.
Shallow focus: shows that one plane of the image is in focus while the other plane of the image is out of focus.
Deep focus: shows that the foreground, middle-ground and the background are all in focus.
For this shoot, we wanted to make the character an old school gentleman, who has some dark secrets down below. I photo shopped 3 of the shots to maximize the effect. All shots, edited and unedited, are below:
We took these pictures in order to try and achieve the effect that I was running and wanted to get away from someone (a chase scene). We followed the rule: extra wide shot, wide shot, mid shot, close-up shot, and an extra-close shot.
Zoom in/out camera movement
This camera movement, also known as the ‘dolly zoom’, is used to show that the character has just seen or realised something usual or dangerous all of a sudden.
Tracking camera movement
This is when the camera itself is on a railway-like track and it follows the characters. This has an effect on the viewer because we can follow the characters actions as we’re more more immersed in the scene.
Tilt up/down camera movement
This is when the camera is tilted up and down vertically at a fixed point. This camera movement can be used to introduce an important character very dramatically.