GLOSSARY 545scene A complete unit of plotaction incorporating one or more
shots; the settingof that action.
scope The overall range of a story.
score music Nondiegetic music that is typically composed and
recorded specifically for use in a particular film, and is used to
convey or enhance meaning and emotion.
screen direction The direction of a figure’s or object’s
movement on the screen.
screen duration The amount of time that it has taken to
present the movie’s plot on-screen, i.e., the movie’s running
time. Compare plot durationand story duration.
screen test A filming undertaken by an actor to audition for a
particular role.
script supervisor The member of the crew who is responsible
for ensuring continuity throughout the filming of a movie.
Although script supervisors once had to maintain detailed
logs to accomplish this task, today they generally rely on the
video assist camerafor this purpose.
second AC See assistant cameraperson.
select focus See rack focus.
sequence A series of edited shotscharacterized by inherent
unity of themeand purpose.
sequence shot See long take.
series photography The use of a series of still photographs to
record the phases of an action, although the actions within the
images do not move.
set A constructed space used as the setting for a particular
shot in a movie. Sets must be constructed both to look
authentic and to photograph well. Compare on location.
setting The time and space in which a storytakes place.
setup One camera position and everything associated with it.
Whereas the shotis the basic building block of the film, the
setup is the basic component of the film’s production.
shift focus See rack focus.
shooting The first stage of creating motion pictures, in which
images are recorded on previously unexposed film as it moves
through the camera. Shooting is followed by processingand
projecting.
shooting angle The level and height of the camera in relation
to the subject being photographed. The five basic camera
angles produce eye-level shots, high-angle shots, low-angle
shots, Dutch-angle shots, and aerial-view shots.
shooting script A guide and reference point for all members of
the productionunit, in which the details of each shotare
listed and can thus be followed during filming.
short-focal-length lens Also known as wide-angle lens. A lens
that creates the illusion of depth within a frame, albeit with
some distortion at the edges of the frame. Compare long-
focal-length lens, middle-focal-length lens, and zoom lens.
shot One uninterruptedrun of the camera. A shot can be as
short or as long as the directorwants, but it cannot exceed
the length of the film stockin the camera. Compare setup.
shot/reverse shot One of the most prevalent and familiar of all
editing patterns, consisting of parallel editing
(crosscutting) between shotsof different characters,
usually in a conversation or confrontation. When used in
continuity editing, the shots are typically framedover each
character’s shoulder to preserve screen direction.
shutter A camera device that shields the film from light at the
aperture during the film- movement portion of the
intermittent cycle of shooting.
simultaneous sound Sound that is diegeticand occurs
onscreen. Compare nonsimultaneous sound.
single character’s point of view A point of viewthat is
captured by a shotmade with the camera close to the line of
sight of one character(or animal or surveillance camera),
showing what that person would be seeing of the action.
Compare omniscient point of viewand group point of view.
slate The board or other device that is used to identify each
sceneduring shooting.
slow motion Cinematographic technique that decelerates
action on-screen. It is achieved by filming the action at a rate
greater than the normal 24 frames per second (fps). When the
shot is then played back at the standard 24 fps, cinematic time
proceeds at a slower rate than the real action that took place
in front of the camera. Compare fast motion.
sound crew The group that generates and controls a movie’s
sound physically, manipulating its properties to produce the
effects that the directordesires.
sound design A state-of-the-art concept, pioneered by director
Francis Ford Coppola and film editor Walter Murch,
combining the crafts of editingand mixingand, like them,
involving both theoretical and practical issues. In essence,
sound design represents advocacy for movie sound (to
counter some people’s tendency to favor the movie image).
sound effect A sound artificially created for the sound track
that has a definite function in telling the story.
soundstage A windowless, soundproofed, professional
shootingenvironment that is usually several stories high and
can cover an acre or more of floor space.
sound track A separate recording tape occupied by one
specific type of sound recorded for a movie (one track for
vocals, one for sound effects, one for music, etc.).
source light See key light.
special effects (SPFX, FX) Technology for creating images
that would be too dangerous, too expensive, or, in some cases,
simply impossible to achieve with traditional cinematographic
materials. The goal of special-effects cinematographyis
generally to create verisimilitudewithin the imaginative
world of even the most fanciful movie.
speed See film-stock speed.
SPFX See special effects.
splicing In pre-digital editing, the act of gluing or taping
together shots together to form a continuous whole. See
cutting.
split screen A method, created either in the camera or during
the editingprocess, of telling two storiesat the same time by
dividing the screen into different parts. Unlike parallel
editing, which cutsback and forth between shotsfor
contrast, the split screen can tell multiple stories within the
same frame.
sprocketed rollers Devices that control the speed of
unexposed film as it moves through the camera, printer, or
projector.
staging See mise-en-scène.
stakes In a conventional narrative, that which is at risk as a
consequence of the protagonist’s pursuit of the goal.
stand-in An actor who looks reasonably like a particular movie
star(or at least an actor playing a major role) in height,
weight, coloring, and so on, and who substitutes for that actor
during the tedious process of preparing setupsor taking light
readings.