Cinematography
AND Conventions of Framing
Conventions of Framing
Graphic weight
Every visual element within a clearly-defined 2-dimensional
space (the frame) carries “weight”
This weight is determined by:
Its size, relative to the total screen area
Its location within the frame
Conventions of Framing
Magnetism of the Frame
When a visual element is placed closer to one
side of the frame, that side seems to “pull” the
element towards it
Creating “tension” within the image – a sense of
unbalance
Frame Magnetism
Frame Magnetism
Conventions of Framing
Headroom
Eyeroom (noseroom)
Leadroom
Headroom
Too Much Headroom
Too Little Headroom
Headroom
Headroom
Headroom
Conventions of Framing
Distribution of Vectors
A visual element that guides our eyes in a certain direction
Noseroom
Leadroom
Conventions of Framing
Eyeroom (AKA: Noseroom)
Direction of person’s face guides our eyes towards one side
of the frame
Eyeroom
Eyeroom
Leadroom
Motion of object guides our eyes towards one side of the
frame
Leadroom
Motion of object on
screen adds extra
“weight” to image
Balanced Compositions
Balanced Compositions
Tend to be boring
Too balanced
Images are much more compelling when we can add
“tension”
Without creating a sense of “unbalance”
The Rule of Thirds
Rule of Thirds
Divides screen
3 horizontal fields
3 vertical fields
Method for producing
Balance
Tension
Interest
Places important
elements on any 3rd
Or combination of thirds
Rule of Thirds
Framing a Conversation
2-Shot
Uses Rule of Thirds to balance two figures onscreen
Over-the-Shoulder shot
Uses “rule of thirds” to depict conversation between two
people
2-Shot (wide)
Over-the-Shoulder Shot
2-shot (tight)
Rule of Thirds
Conventions of Framing
Balance vs. Tension
Centered (symmetrical)
“balanced”
Central axis point
Both sides of image equal
Almost never used in fiction film
Symmetrical Compositions
Conventions of Framing
Balance vs. Tension
Off-center (asymmetrical)
Having parts that are not equal in some respect
Increases the dramatic “tension”
Standard way to frame in fiction film
Asymmetrical Composition
Counter-weighting
Correcting
imbalance of a
composition
Using a second
object to off-set the
“weight” of the
main one
Conventions of Framing
Counterweighting
For dramatic
purposes
Axe “fills in” the
“negative space”
created by the door
in the foreground
Symmetrical Composition
Symmetrical Composition
Film Noir
“Whom can we trust? No one.”
• Translated as “Black” film
• Popular from 1930s – 1950s
• Setting: Usually the city at night
• No place is safe, no place to rest or hide; no
comfort or shelter; no friendship; no pleasure
that isn’t short lived, and usually purchased
with one’s money or life.
Archetypes
• Lone protagonist – often a detective, disillusioned or
psychologically wounded & Morally ambiguous
• Femme Fatale – knows more than she tells – uses her
sexuality
• Doomed lovers on the run from the police
• Omnipresent voiceover
http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/infographic-what-makes-film-noir
• Corrupt police force
• Threatening government
• Thugs/muscle
• Dark atmosphere – threats everywhere
• Labyrinthine mystery
• Cynical tone
• Points out inherent corruption & complacency
of post WWII life
Deeper Themes
• Hopelessness
• Paranoia
• Despair & violence
• Deceit
• Betrayal
• Darkness surrounds the characters (literally &
symbolically) within the narrative,
threatening to engulf them at any moment.
Techniques
• High-contrast lighting (revealing certain characters in
bright, almost washed-out light, while casting others into
almost total shadow, for example);
• low-angle camera setups (making the subject seem taller
and more powerful);
• deep focus (a new technology at the time, allowing the
camera to maintain in focus objects and characters in both
the background and foreground in the same shot)
• John Blaser
Film Techniques
Intro to Film – ART 2010
What’s your favorite scene?
• What movie and why?
Mise En Scene
Refers to the staging of a scene (theater), in
relation to setting, arrangement of the actors, the
lighting, etc. In film, it describes the arrangement
of elements within the frame of a single shot
Death of a Salesman set
Entering the Emerald City
Composition
The arrangement of all the elements within the screen image to
achieve a balance of light, mass, shadow, color, and movement.
Crop Duster scene (North by Northwest)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g458w2X9uHc
Back Lighting
Lighting which comes from directly behind the subject, placing it
in silhouette
Camera Angles
• Position of camera in relation to the subject determines the
camera angle
• Low Angle: camera looking up at subject
• Tarentino trunk scenes
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_whQnqwEYk
• High Angle: camera looking down at subject
Camera Angles
• Crop Duster Scene (Hitchcock)
• http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/05/north-by-northwestcrop-duster/
• The draft shows where Hitchcock wants the audience and
character to look.
Close-Up
A shot in which a face or object fills the frame
steadycam
Dolly Shot
A shot taken while the
camera is in motion
https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=eMhDQFLwrAA
(Rocky II)
Steadicam
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=3Sr-vxVaY_M
(Goodfellas)
Crane Shot
A moving shot taken on a specially
constructed crane, usually from a
high perspective
Touch of Evil
Other camera movements
• Pan: horizontal camera movement
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lQ_MjU4QHw
• Zoom
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgpnJpgX-Hw
Filmmaking: Composition
and Framing Tutorial
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6N2SpA2XPI
Singin’ in the Rain
(Dolly)
Motion
• Accelerated (Fast) Motion: taking place at higher speed than it
did in reality
• Superman (1978) train scene
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSlTtr5NVUg
• Decelerated Motion: taking place at slower speed than it did
in reality
• Chariots of Fire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSav51fVlKU
Continuity
• Continuity Editing: A style of editing
that maintains a continuous and
seemingly uninterrupted flow of
action
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M8szlSa-8o
Flashback
• A shot or sequence that takes the action of the story into the
past
• Harry Potter & The Deathly Hollows Part 2
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHolRZeQNG4
Cross-Cutting
• Jumping back and forth between two or
more locations, inviting us to find a
relationship between two or more events
The Godfather Baptism Scene
Montage
Montage: a rapid succession of shots assembled, usually by
means of super-impositions and/or dissolves, to convey a visual
effect, such as the passing of time
Creed Montage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-j8W2ffr2k
Cinema Verite
• A way of filming real-life scenes without elaborate equipment,
playing down the technical means of production (script,
special lighting, etc.) and emphasizing the “reality” of the
screen world
• Hoop Dreams
Sound
• Non-diegetic: sound whose source is neither visible on the
screen nor has been implied to be present in the action
• Score
• The Natural
Sound – Diagetic
• sound whose source is visible on the screen or whose source
is implied to be present by the action of the film:
• voices of characters
• sounds made by objects in the story
• music represented as coming from
• instruments in the story space
• (filmsound.org)
Soundtrack Songs
• The Great Gatsby
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8wtDY6TZgc
Sound (cont)
• Voice-over
• Shawshank Redemption
Throw the ball, Joey
Purchase answer to see full
attachment
AND Conventions of Framing
Conventions of Framing
Graphic weight
Every visual element within a clearly-defined 2-dimensional
space (the frame) carries “weight”
This weight is determined by:
Its size, relative to the total screen area
Its location within the frame
Conventions of Framing
Magnetism of the Frame
When a visual element is placed closer to one
side of the frame, that side seems to “pull” the
element towards it
Creating “tension” within the image – a sense of
unbalance
Frame Magnetism
Frame Magnetism
Conventions of Framing
Headroom
Eyeroom (noseroom)
Leadroom
Headroom
Too Much Headroom
Too Little Headroom
Headroom
Headroom
Headroom
Conventions of Framing
Distribution of Vectors
A visual element that guides our eyes in a certain direction
Noseroom
Leadroom
Conventions of Framing
Eyeroom (AKA: Noseroom)
Direction of person’s face guides our eyes towards one side
of the frame
Eyeroom
Eyeroom
Leadroom
Motion of object guides our eyes towards one side of the
frame
Leadroom
Motion of object on
screen adds extra
“weight” to image
Balanced Compositions
Balanced Compositions
Tend to be boring
Too balanced
Images are much more compelling when we can add
“tension”
Without creating a sense of “unbalance”
The Rule of Thirds
Rule of Thirds
Divides screen
3 horizontal fields
3 vertical fields
Method for producing
Balance
Tension
Interest
Places important
elements on any 3rd
Or combination of thirds
Rule of Thirds
Framing a Conversation
2-Shot
Uses Rule of Thirds to balance two figures onscreen
Over-the-Shoulder shot
Uses “rule of thirds” to depict conversation between two
people
2-Shot (wide)
Over-the-Shoulder Shot
2-shot (tight)
Rule of Thirds
Conventions of Framing
Balance vs. Tension
Centered (symmetrical)
“balanced”
Central axis point
Both sides of image equal
Almost never used in fiction film
Symmetrical Compositions
Conventions of Framing
Balance vs. Tension
Off-center (asymmetrical)
Having parts that are not equal in some respect
Increases the dramatic “tension”
Standard way to frame in fiction film
Asymmetrical Composition
Counter-weighting
Correcting
imbalance of a
composition
Using a second
object to off-set the
“weight” of the
main one
Conventions of Framing
Counterweighting
For dramatic
purposes
Axe “fills in” the
“negative space”
created by the door
in the foreground
Symmetrical Composition
Symmetrical Composition
Film Noir
“Whom can we trust? No one.”
• Translated as “Black” film
• Popular from 1930s – 1950s
• Setting: Usually the city at night
• No place is safe, no place to rest or hide; no
comfort or shelter; no friendship; no pleasure
that isn’t short lived, and usually purchased
with one’s money or life.
Archetypes
• Lone protagonist – often a detective, disillusioned or
psychologically wounded & Morally ambiguous
• Femme Fatale – knows more than she tells – uses her
sexuality
• Doomed lovers on the run from the police
• Omnipresent voiceover
http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/news-bfi/features/infographic-what-makes-film-noir
• Corrupt police force
• Threatening government
• Thugs/muscle
• Dark atmosphere – threats everywhere
• Labyrinthine mystery
• Cynical tone
• Points out inherent corruption & complacency
of post WWII life
Deeper Themes
• Hopelessness
• Paranoia
• Despair & violence
• Deceit
• Betrayal
• Darkness surrounds the characters (literally &
symbolically) within the narrative,
threatening to engulf them at any moment.
Techniques
• High-contrast lighting (revealing certain characters in
bright, almost washed-out light, while casting others into
almost total shadow, for example);
• low-angle camera setups (making the subject seem taller
and more powerful);
• deep focus (a new technology at the time, allowing the
camera to maintain in focus objects and characters in both
the background and foreground in the same shot)
• John Blaser
Film Techniques
Intro to Film – ART 2010
What’s your favorite scene?
• What movie and why?
Mise En Scene
Refers to the staging of a scene (theater), in
relation to setting, arrangement of the actors, the
lighting, etc. In film, it describes the arrangement
of elements within the frame of a single shot
Death of a Salesman set
Entering the Emerald City
Composition
The arrangement of all the elements within the screen image to
achieve a balance of light, mass, shadow, color, and movement.
Crop Duster scene (North by Northwest)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g458w2X9uHc
Back Lighting
Lighting which comes from directly behind the subject, placing it
in silhouette
Camera Angles
• Position of camera in relation to the subject determines the
camera angle
• Low Angle: camera looking up at subject
• Tarentino trunk scenes
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_whQnqwEYk
• High Angle: camera looking down at subject
Camera Angles
• Crop Duster Scene (Hitchcock)
• http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/05/north-by-northwestcrop-duster/
• The draft shows where Hitchcock wants the audience and
character to look.
Close-Up
A shot in which a face or object fills the frame
steadycam
Dolly Shot
A shot taken while the
camera is in motion
https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=eMhDQFLwrAA
(Rocky II)
Steadicam
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=3Sr-vxVaY_M
(Goodfellas)
Crane Shot
A moving shot taken on a specially
constructed crane, usually from a
high perspective
Touch of Evil
Other camera movements
• Pan: horizontal camera movement
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lQ_MjU4QHw
• Zoom
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgpnJpgX-Hw
Filmmaking: Composition
and Framing Tutorial
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6N2SpA2XPI
Singin’ in the Rain
(Dolly)
Motion
• Accelerated (Fast) Motion: taking place at higher speed than it
did in reality
• Superman (1978) train scene
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSlTtr5NVUg
• Decelerated Motion: taking place at slower speed than it did
in reality
• Chariots of Fire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSav51fVlKU
Continuity
• Continuity Editing: A style of editing
that maintains a continuous and
seemingly uninterrupted flow of
action
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M8szlSa-8o
Flashback
• A shot or sequence that takes the action of the story into the
past
• Harry Potter & The Deathly Hollows Part 2
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHolRZeQNG4
Cross-Cutting
• Jumping back and forth between two or
more locations, inviting us to find a
relationship between two or more events
The Godfather Baptism Scene
Montage
Montage: a rapid succession of shots assembled, usually by
means of super-impositions and/or dissolves, to convey a visual
effect, such as the passing of time
Creed Montage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-j8W2ffr2k
Cinema Verite
• A way of filming real-life scenes without elaborate equipment,
playing down the technical means of production (script,
special lighting, etc.) and emphasizing the “reality” of the
screen world
• Hoop Dreams
Sound
• Non-diegetic: sound whose source is neither visible on the
screen nor has been implied to be present in the action
• Score
• The Natural
Sound – Diagetic
• sound whose source is visible on the screen or whose source
is implied to be present by the action of the film:
• voices of characters
• sounds made by objects in the story
• music represented as coming from
• instruments in the story space
• (filmsound.org)
Soundtrack Songs
• The Great Gatsby
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8wtDY6TZgc
Sound (cont)
• Voice-over
• Shawshank Redemption
Throw the ball, Joey
Purchase answer to see full
attachment
