Classwork: Camera, MES, Sound, Edit

This is an individual-worked blog about how each of us differently learn about camera angles/movements, mise-en-scene, sound, and edit:

Camerawork

The 'Camera' is the most essential and, without most people consciously realizing it, the one that influences how the Media Text shown (like movies, shows, comics, etc...) has a narrative, meaning, and emotion of its own. This includes both camera angles, and movements.

Camera Angles

High Angle: Gives the characters a sense of vulnerability or inferiority

Low Angle: Gives the character a sense of superiority ot authority of some sort

Bird’s Eye View: Makes it so the camera seen from above everything so that everyone I the shot feels equally inferior or small.

Dutch Angle: The camera is tilted to give a sense of no stability.

Close-Up: Shows the characters facial expressions & emotions, close up.

Medium Shot: Only shows the character(s) fm waist up specifcally. Used for conversation or interaction with another subject of so sort.

Long Shot: shows the character's body in full, also shows the environment/background.

Extreme Long Shot: Shows the subject from WAY further distance - to have a bigger emphasis on the environment around them or maybe the size comparison of the subject and the environment.

Cowboy Shot: Shows the subject from the pistol holster up, to give a more heroic, confident stance.

Extreme close-up: to show really specific and small details or create tension, depending on what details.

Over-The-Shoulder: TO show or create a relationship between the subjects.

POV: Shows the relationship between subjects or outer environment and the character's perspective or point of view from their own eyes.

Establishing shot: To show background or the context of the location, or maybe show that the location is the context. Can also set a new scene or the start of one.

Camera Movements

Pan: The camera moves horizontally to follow action. Meant to reveal information or bring attention to something else in the scene or environment.

Tilt: The camera moves vertically, often used to show height or stature.

Zoom: Changes the focal length of the lens, either moving closer or farther from the subject. To show distance between the audience or the characts and something else.

Tracking/Dolly: The camera moves along with the action, providing a more immersive experience.

Static: Camera stays still to show calm, peace, or neutrality.

Push-In: Pushs the camera forward to the subject or an object, or anything really. Meant to bring the audience closer or more involved with it.

Pull-out: The camera is meant to pull backwards from a subject or object, and maybe show the general environment too, sometimes.

Tracking: Camera moves around on tracks, mainly to follow a subject or object, in a smooth manner perhaps.

Crane: A camera is used on a crane from a top; to show or reveal the epic size or scale of something.

Handheld/random: The camera shakes a lot randomly, as if it was being held by a person without any stabilizer. Meant to have a 'realistic' and more 'immersize' perspective of whatever given situation or scene of the environment.

Here is a video our teacher reccomended us to watch that explained about Camera Angles

Mise-en-Scène

MES explains what is actually in the shot/scene, and how the small details and visuals all add up to frame a certain meaning or connotation. Things like costumes/props, environment, blocking, etc...

Setting: The actual location or setting.

Lighting: Helps either set the mood or put focus on something.

Costume and Props: No matter if they are wearing a regular outfit in a regular mundane city, or wearing a fancy sage robe, the costume and props help give the character a sense of identity or idea of what kind of character they are. (Hair & Make-up is also applied here)

Set Design: Just like costume and props, the design of the environment is meant to bring life and character to the background or environment of whatever given scene or shot, it helps make it distinct. (Colour & Weather also applies to here and, to an extent, Costume & Props)

Actor Blocking: How the characters are positioned in relation to each other. Can give a sense of 'whose side' we are supposed to be on, or some kind of personal connection to the character, or show who hawsw higher or lower position.

Performance: The presentation and action and emotion of a actor that plays a character is also important in bringing the character to life/characterizing them, giving them a distinct personality and identity for the audience to dissect or resonate.

Here is a video recommended by our teacher that explains about Mis-en-Scene

Sound

What we hear in media though our own ears.

Diegetic Sound: Sounds that are in-universe that should be heard or contextualize within the characters and setting of the movie.

Non-Diegetic Sound: Sounds that come from outside the movie world, only for us to HEAR. Can give a sense of background or 'general-ness' of the movie.

Trans-diegetic: One of the former two sounds transitions from one, to the other. Is meant to create a link between the fictional world and the audience themselves. Makes it more immersive.

Melodic: Positive and pleasing sounds/connotations. Enhance a positive scene or let's the audience feel positive emotions.

Discordant: Harsh & unpleasent sounds/connotations. Makes negative scenes more negative. Makes or creates anxious or suspenseful vibes.

Contrapuntal: The sound directly contrasts the sound of the scene. Perhaps too add a deeper, complex meaning to the scene, adding more layers to a scene, or more often it's used for *irony* or dark humor.

Sound Effects: Can enhance the in-universe world, and also bring or show the subtle effect that the characters actions have in inside the universe.

Dialogue: Conversation and words being shared between the characters.

Music: Can set the tone or show what emotions.

Here is video our teacher recommended to learn more about sound

Editing

Editing involves trying to take the individual shots together and sple them together to make a good, cohesive narrative and show the true connections between them.

Cuts

Straight Cut: When two shots directly go from one, to the other.

Jump Cut: A cut that issued to skip to another timeframe, to show disorientation or move on to another scene or shot.

Match Cut: A smooth transition between two, sometimes seemingly different and unrelated, shots to show a connection or parralel between the two.

Long Take/Lengthy Cuts: A shot or scene stays for longer; it feels slow, builds suspense, extends the feelings, more immersive.

Short Take/Quick Cut: A shot or scene that quickly switches or cut so another in a relatively short amount of time, usually in seconds; Increase pace; High energy/high excitement, action, usually has a focus on detail.

Transitions

Dissolve: When one shot fades to another.

Wipe: One shot pushes the other to another.

Special Techniques

Montage: A bunch of shots and scenes put together to show time progression or maybe the connections and ideas of something big and varied in scale, (I.e. a montage of many recorded scenes of a summer camp)

Cross-cutting: Constant Alternating between two scenes to show connection, but in a more fast paced and tense way.

Self-Reflection: As tedious as this blogwork is... I do enjoy learning about Media, it's the most interesting subject among the ones I've joined, content-wise at least. Technical elements are very simple to learn, yet at the same time are so versatile, it's not wonder the film industry is as vast and wide as it is. In retrospect, it's kind of interesting to think about how amazing it is small elements in a film, like the speicifc angle of a camera or set piece in the environment can lead to big meanings and symbolism in a Media Text. I hope to use the knowledge we have learned in Media to try and make the most out of the visual meaning & symbolism for out music video.