Mise-en-Scene and Sound

Mise-en-Scene

• This is a French term meaning: "in the scene or frame"
• The elements of mise-en-scene are:                 

       

Colour

• From the 1930s to the 1940s, black and white represented fantasy and spectacle.
• Today it's the exact opposite.

Colour: Denotation and Connotation

• Denotation and Connotation
• Denotation= the literal description of an idea, concept or object.
• Connotation= What we associate with a particular idea, concept or object.
• Colour works on the subconscious mind to create mood.

Eg.- the colour RED

-Denotation= a particular wavelength of the electromagnetic spectrum.

-Connotations= anger, danger, romance, blood etc....

Mise-en-Scene

• Positioning of characters and objects within a frame.
• Where objects and characters are positioned is very important.
• Objects and characters can be in the foreground, middle-ground or background.
• This can emphasise the relative importance of the object or character.

Foreground                                                                        Background

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• If characters or objects are positioned evenly within a frame, this will give a balanced feel to the shot.
• If the characters are positioned at the outside edges of the frame, this indicates a distance between the characters.

Deep Focus

• Where both foreground and background are in focus.
• This enables the audience to choose where to look.

Focus Pulling

• Where the focus changes in a shot.
• Going in and out of focus.
• The focus could change from one thing to another.

Lighting

A standard lighting set-up 

• The Key Light

The brightest and most essential.

• The Back Light

Helps counteract the effect of the key light or creates an outline or silhouette.

• The Filler Light

Helps to soften the harsh shadows that the use of key and back lights create.

• Underlighting

-When the main source comes from below the Subject.

-Used in thrillers and horror films.

• Back lighting

-When the source is behind the subject.

-If no other lighting is used, silhouettes are created.

Sound

Sound: Diegetic/Non-Diegetic

• Diegetic refers to the world of the text.                                                                                            Eg: dialogue, sound effects, music with a source within the text e.g. radio.
• Non-diegetic refers to everything outside the world of the text.                                                  Eg: voiceover, soundtrack, captions, titles, subtitles.

Sound: On/Off-Screen

• On-Screen Sound= The audience can see the source of the sound.
• Off-Screen Sound= The audience can't see the source of the sound.

Sound: Parallel/Contrapuntal

• Parallel Sound matches the action.
• Contrapuntal Sound does not match the action.

Sound: Sound Bridge

• A Sound Bridge helps create a smooth transition from one scene to another.
• The sound 'bridges' the two scenes.