Glossary of terms
- Anime
Japanese term for animated films (film equivalent of ‘manga’ comic books).
- Aspect Ratio
Relationship between the width and height of a picture as it is displayed on a screen. It is expressed as a ratio of width: height. See Aspect Ratio page for further details.
- Auteur
French term meaning ‘author’; a filmmaker who has a distinctive, recognisable vision. An Australian example would be Paul Cox.
- Camera angle
Position from which the camera frames what is filmed.
- Cellulose nitrate film
The first type of film base used in motion picutres, and the most common until 1951. Cellulose nitrate film is highly unstable and presents a very serious fire risk.
- Censorship rating
Rating (G, PG, M etc) given to a motion picture by a film classification body (in Australia,
Office of Film and Literature Classification), according to certain classification guidelines. Also known as Classification Rating.- Cinema verite
Style of documentary from the French term ‘cinema of truth’. Similar to ‘direct cinema’, it describes a style of filmmaking that follows the subject in an observational style with minimal or no use of filmmaking techniques such as voice over or lighting.
- Cinematographer
Person who designs or directs the positioning of the camera and lighting for each shot; the director of photography. The cinematographer can also be the camera operator, but this is not always the case.
- Close-up
Camera shot showing a close-up view of the subject that fills most of the screen.
- Composition
Arrangements of elements in a shot in relation to each other and to the viewer; the way they are framed.
- Cut
Abrupt transition from one shot to another; a splice between two frames of a film.
- Deep focus
Shot where the foreground and background are equally in focus.
- Depth of field *
Area in perfect focus in front of and behind the subject. Anything within this ‘depth of field’ will appear sharp.
- Director
Person who has primary control over a film’s creative aspects, as well as over the direction of the principle cast and crew.
- Director of Photography
See Cinematographer.
- Dissolve
Gradual transition between two shots where the images from one shot are replaced by images from another.
- Documentary Film
Program type that seeks to represent reality or remain factual; a non-fiction film.
- Dolly Shot
See Tracking Shot.
- Editing
Selection and assembling of the pieces of film (shots) which will comprise a finished movie; the process of fine-tuning a script.
- Fade
Gradual appearance (fade in) or disappearance (fade out) of an image or sound from or to a black screen.
- Feature Film
Full length fiction film running over 60 minutes in duration. Called feature because of its place as the main feature in a cinema program in the days when cinemas ran shorts and newsreels.
- Film
A motion picture or movie.
- Film language
Way in which films tell stories and affect the viewer; the elements of filmmaking employed to tell the story in a particular way.
- Frame
Rectangle formed by the outside of a movie screen; to arrange a shot’s composition; also each separate image in a motion picture film.
- Gauge
Refers to the format of the film stock. For example super 8 mm, 16 mm, 35 mm.
- Genre
Style of film dictated by particular thematic conventions.
- High-angle shot
A downwards shot where the camera is in a higher vertical position than the subject.
- Intertitle
Piece of descriptive text which appears in between scenes or shots of a film. Commonly used in silent films to clarify action or dialogue.
- Long shot
Camera shot which makes the subject look small and far away; often used to show an object in relation to its surroundings.
- Low-angle shot
An upwards shot where the camera is in a lower vertical position than the subject.
- Medium shot
Camera shot midway between a close-up and a wide shot.
- Mise-en-scene
From the French term for ‘putting on stage’; the arrangement of cinematic elements; what appears in the frame. The mise-en-scene determines the visual style of the film.
- Montage
French term for editing.
- Motion Picture
Series of images on a strip of film, usually projected at the rate of 24 frames per second, which make up a conceptually complete work. Also referred to as a film.
- Newsreel
Short film compilation featuring news stories about current events. These were commonly screened before a feature in the days before television.
- Pan
Camera movement created when the camera swivels horizontally on a stationary tripod (from the word ‘panorama’).
The projectable version of a film.
- Reconstruction
Process of rebuilding a film from its various sound and visual elements. It may be done in a case where parts of a film have been newly recovered or rediscovered. An example is The Sentimental Bloke (1919).
- Restoration
Process of returning an artefact to as close to its original condition as possible. An example of a film which has been restored is Jedda (1955).
- Scene *
Section of film unified by time or place; a segment of film that depicts a single situation or incident made up of a number of frames. Film scripts are divided into scenes.
- Score
Music written specifically for a film. Separate from the film soundtrack.
- Screenplay
Film script.
- Shoot
To film something.
- Shot
Any set-up of the camera so that something can be filmed; also used as a verb, with the same meaning as ‘filmed.’
- Soundtrack
Commonly refers to music not specifically written for a film but which is used in the film, such as popular songs.
- Stop-motion
Animation technique whereby the impression of movement is created by filming a sequence of one or two still frames at a time. An example is Harvie Krumpet (2003).
- Storyboard
Pictorial representation of a film sequence often depicted as a series of comic book style drawings. Part of a director’s preparation for a film shoot.
- Subtitle
Written text which commonly appears in the lower part of the screen to translate dialogue for foreign audiences.
- Tilt
Vertical movement of the camera on its tripod.
- Tracking shot
Shot where the camera (mounted on a mobile platform) steadily travels along a horizontal plane to the object being filmed. Also known as a dolly shot.
- Voice-over
Recorded dialogue, usually narration, that comes from an unseen, off-screen voice.
- Wide shot
Shot which covers the action of the scene in a wide or panoramic view.
- Widescreen
Any aspect ratio wider than 4:3 or the standard Academy Frame. See Aspect Ratio.
- Zoom shot
Shot which moves closer to, or away from, the subject using the lens rather than moving the whole camera in or out.
* Definitions taken from the National Film and Sound Archive’s Glossary of Audiovisual terms
Another useful film glossary link: The British Film Institute’s screenonline glossary
