Each film format defines the film’s frame size. The larger the frame size, the greater the detail that can be captured, resulting in better image quality. By mixing these formats within a movie, a filmmaker can achieve varying levels of perception, based on the way the image texture changes.
Where can I see it?
Several of Oliver Stone’s films Mix Stocks. In Drugstore Cowboy, we see 8mm home movies. In The Game, 16mm film is used to create flashback sequences to the character’s childhood.
SOUND DESIGN,
VOICEOVER
What does it sound like?
Although Sound Design is not a visual cinematic technique, we must keep in mind that movies are an audio-visual medium. Sound Design is an incredibly important aspect of the cinematic experience. Imagine what Star Wars would be like without music. It would lose much of its grandeur. If you stripped a horror movie of its bombastic Sound Design, it would probably lose its ability to frighten us. Music goes a long way toward setting the mood for a scene, but even more subtle and powerful are the sounds that the audience doesn’t notice. It is not uncommon for films to add sounds as enhancements in post-production: birds singing, cars driving by, water running. Sound Design can enhance or detract from an audience’s enjoyment of a film.
A Voiceover is a specific aspect of Sound Design employed in many films. This technique involves dubbing a character or a narrator’s voice over a scene as a means of narration.
Where can I hear it?
In Wolfen, we hear the sound of a baby crying in an abandoned building. This is quite creepy. In Little Children, a narrator gives Voiceover to the characters’ inner thoughts and feelings. In Rabbit Proof Fence, eerie low-frequency sounds are used to set the mood. In The Lady Vanishes, just as a woman tries to give her name, a train whistle obscures her words. Blow Out is a film about unravelling the mystery of a series of recorded sounds. In The Emerald Forest, the chirping of frogs indicates the oncoming rain. In Picnic at Hanging Rock, the sound of a clock ticking is important, because when it stops, it indicates death.
A very powerful example of sound design happens in The Godfather. As Michael Corleone prepares to execute his first victims, the sound of a rushing train fades in and out to signify the ebb and flow of his emotions. As he walks out into the diner to make the kill, the sound of the train floods the scene.
In any movie with music, observe how the music affects the mood of the scene. In The Graduate, the music slows down as Ben’s car runs out of gas. In many horror movies, bombastic sound effects are used to emphasize horrifying and surprising moments. Goodfellas is partially narrated by a Ray Liotta Voiceover. In Duel, the character’s thoughts are vocalized as a Voiceover. The beginning of Citizen Kane is narrated by a Voiceover.
CGI CINEMA
What does it look like?
CGI stands for “computer-generated imagery.” As computers become more powerful and sophisticated, their ability to generate lifelike creatures, models, and special effects improves. The number of films that rely on computer graphics is steadily increasing each year.
CGI Cinema allows filmmakers to achieve complex cinematic movements that are not possible in the real world. In a virtual world, the camera can move anywhere and at any speed. This kind of control allows for the introduction of many new and exciting additions to the cinematic palette available to filmmakers.
Where can I see it?
Computer enhancement of films has resulted in new storytelling possibilities, such as in the rotoscope-animated films Waking Life and A Scanner Darkly. Davy Jones is an entirely computer-animated character, derived from an actor’s performance in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. In Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, Gollum is a CGI-created actor that takes a central part in the story. Real actors and CGI actors are blended against CGI backdrops in Immortal.
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow was filmed almost entirely against green screens, with CGI locations added in later. Most of the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy consists of sets, actors, and locations created entirely as CGI.
Jurassic Park and Terminator 2: Judgment Day are just two well-known examples of breakthroughs in mainstream computer-generated imagery for films. In Forrest Gump, computer effects are used in subtle ways that are almost transparent to the audience. A feather that floats to the ground is computer generated, and the “legless” Vietnam veteran had his legs removed inside a computer.
X-FILES
There are many techniques used by filmmakers that don’t fit into a neat little “box” or “category.” Just because they seemed interesting to me, I’ve included a few examples of these “X-Files ” techniques for your enjoyment. I’ve also included some references that simply won’t fit on the appropriate page.
In The Last King of Scotland, the camera often “slips” composition and re-frames itself. This technique is a kind of “intentional mistake,” and adds kinetic energy to the scenes. In The Hustler, Paul Newman executes a trick shot. But we never see the shot, we only see his reaction to it. In Tideland, a young girl swims underwater in her imagination. In Au Hasard Balthazar, the story jumps around in time and space with no explanation given.
In The Big Blue, Jacques lies in bed, and the sea literally descends on him from the ceiling. This is quite surreal. In Runaway Jury, the camera cranes up and over an empty jury box, giving us a visual expectation of what is to come. A particularly strange image is seen in Shock Corridor. As an inmate dreams of Asia, color images of Asia are shown. The odd thing about this is that Shock Corridor is a black and white movie. In The Man Who Fell to Earth, sudden jumps in time and space occur. We often see the start of an action by a character, but never the result. In Crooklyn, Alfre Woodard reads a letter directly to the camera. Even though she’s looking at the camera, the composition is not intended to create tension, nor is it a “broken wall” technique. In Shoot the Piano Player, captions appear onscreen as a band leader sings.
In Onibaba, a field of tall waving reeds adds mystery to the film. In Alice, Alice turns invisible after taking special herbs. As characters talk in Annie Hall, captions appear that reveal what they’re really thinking (as opposed to what they’re saying). In The Color Purple, when Nettie is attacked, she kicks Albert. But we don’t see Albert’s pain. Instead we see a horse that’s nearby and it flinches. After being struck by a white man in The Color Purple, Oprah lifts her hand to smack him back. Before she hits him a truck moves in front of the scene and obscures the action. As the truck leaves, the white man falls.
We can see a type of “potential energy” in The Cider House Rules. First, a boy carries a pile of wood. He then finds a dead body, and immediately drops the wood. The potential energy of the wood about to fall from his arms adds a kind of tension to the scene. In Le Cercle Rouge we see two men entering a train. It is only after entering the train the frame reveals that they are handcuffed together.
An example of selective composition can be seen in Rififi. First, we find a dead man but we only see his legs. Then a woman falls, but only her legs are visible. Finally, a phone drops from its cord, and hangs in the frame. The “phone hanging from a cord” to indicate death or fainting concept is also used in The Lady from Shanghai. It isn’t necessary to show every action in a scene. The audience can fill in the gaps. In Harold and Maude, we see the acetylene torch, but not the actual welding. Then we see the results.
The visual image of rain is used to thematically link different locations when cutting between scenes in Stray Dog. A camera movement can be used to indicate a character’s intentions. In Smilla’s Sense of Snow, a woman stands over a sleeping man with a weapon. The camera tilts down to his open shirt, to reveal the possibility of a target for a stabbing to occur. Reality in films can be dynamic and changing. In Don Juan, the camera pushes to a man in a crowded bar. When the camera pulls back (no cuts), the bar is empty.
EXERCISES
• Study cinema. Now it’s time for you to start doing your own cinematic research. With a n
ew perspective, watch movies that you’ve seen several times before. Watch those you don’t think you will like — you may find new “flavors” of filmmaking that you never knew existed. Keep an eye out for commonly used cinematic techniques and try to invent your own. Study directing, filmmaking, cinema. Learn common techniques and common mistakes. A great deal of knowledge can be gained by studying the work of artists before you.
SUMMARY
If you’re a filmmaker, perhaps you can use the knowledge here to hone your technical skills. If you’re a film buff, you may have been motivated to watch movies you wouldn’t have considered before. If you are new to film studies, we hope you’ve been inspired to look more deeply into movies you used to take for granted.
Regardless, we sincerely hope that this book has increased your appreciation and understanding of films.
Jeremy Vineyard, Author
Jose Cruz, Illustrator
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Jeremy Vineyard, Author
Jeremy Vineyard is the aforementioned “do-gooder,” the guy that had an idea and ran with it. Why not make it easier to learn a craft that should be straightforward, but is often wrapped up in textbooks that are so dense they obscure learning rather than promote it? In other words, he’s got way too much time on his hands. In ten years he’ll either be grinning out with a diamond smile, or pulling carts in a salt mine to pay the bills.
Jose Cruz, Illustrator
Jose Cruz is a professional illustrator and storyboard artist. He has worked on several feature films, short films, animated shorts, and international commercials. His passion for art is surpassed only by his love for the art of filmmaking. Jose hopes to continue working in films as a storyboard artist and an art director. He also plans to produce film and television content for American-Hispanic audiences in the future.
MOVIES REFERENCE
13 Tzameti 23, 124
2001: A Space Odyssey 20, 88, 97, 105
25th Hour 66
300 121
400 Blows 102
48 Hours 128
8 1/2 23, 120
A
A Better Tomorrow 99, 121
A Girl Called Rosemarie 35
A Scanner Darkly 144
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective 82
Addicted to Love 122
After Hours 52, 64
Alexander 129
Alfie 67
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore 94, 129
Aliens 82
Alphaville 137
Annie Hall 67
Apocalypse Now 138
Apocalypse Now: Redux 88
Apocalypto 6
Apollo 13 97
Army of Darkness 64, 81, 89
Au Hasard Balthazar 145
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me 133
B
Babel 76
Bambi 129
Barry Lyndon 21
Batman 30, 85, 90, 99
Batman Returns 30
Battleship Potemkin 138
Being There 120
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls 111
Blade Runner 53
Blood Diamond 44, 45
Blow Out 106, 143
Blue 72, 73
Blue Velvet 68
Bonfire of the Vanities 24
Bonnie and Clyde 121
Bound 42, 53
Branded to Kill 70
Braveheart 49
Breaking the Waves 80, 94, 139
Breathless 94
Buffalo ‘66 110
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid 102, 107, 131
C
Cadillac Man 67
Cape Fear 88
Carlito’s Way 49, 88, 124
Carrie 109
Casino 80
Cast Away 24, 126
Casualties of War 69
Children of Men 23, 58
Child’s Play 102
Cinema Paradiso 43, 83
Citizen Kane 20, 43, 143
Close Encounters of the Third Kind 59
Contact 132
Cool Hand Luke 21, 124
Cool World 141
Cries and Whispers 97
Crimewave 125
Crooklyn 145
D
Dangerous Liaisons 89
Das Boot 16, 70
Das Experiment 59
Day of the Dolphin 59
Desperado 30
Die Hard 2 105
Dirty Harry 23
Do the Right Thing 24
Don Juan 129, 145
Down to You 67
Dracula 87
Drugstore Cowboy 114, 142
Duel 72, 143
E
Easy Rider 82, 87, 98, 107
Ed Wood 36, 114
El Mariachi 121
Everyone Says I Love You 120
Evil Dead 62
Evil Dead 2 63, 74
F
Face/Off 56, 121
Fearless 21
Femme Fatale 58, 74
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off 67
Fight Club 98
Flashdance 107
Fletch 116
Forrest Gump 144
Four Rooms 90
Four Weddings and a Funeral 41
Frida 114, 122
Friday the 13th 69
From Dusk Till Dawn 98
Full Metal Jacket 75
Funny Games 67
G
G.I. Jane 7
Gangs of New York 58, 80, 107, 125
Gloria 24
Gone With the Wind 29, 75, 129
Good Will Hunting 50
Goodfellas 41, 43, 54, 67, 82, 102, 143
Great Expectations 34
Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes 33
Grindhouse 67
H
Harold and Maude 145
Harsh Times 121
Havana 71
He Got Game 120
Heaven and Earth 75, 129
Heaven’s Gate 83
Hellraiser 32
High and Low 44, 65, 72
High Fidelity 67
High Plains Drifter 129
Highlander 132
Hoodlum 45
Hour of the Wolf 59, 126, 139
House 29
How Green Was My Valley 21, 126
I
In & Out 120
In Cold Blood 97, 122
Indiscreet 109
Insomnia 44
Intacto 66, 84
Irreversible 65, 89
J
Jacob’s Ladder 8, 76, 136, 138
Jaws 54, 62, 69, 75, 113
Jurassic Park 36, 72, 144
K
Kickboxer 75
Kill Bill: Volume 1 75
Killer’s Kiss 66, 126
King Arthur 125
King Solomon’s Mines 33
Kiss the Girls 108
Klute 71
Knock Off 110
Kung Fu 33
L
La Femme Nikita 51, 63, 64, 105
La Grande Bouffe 129
La Jetée 102
La Strada 42
Labyrinth 29, 36
Lady Snowblood 128
Last Tango in Paris 45, 71, 75
Lawrence of Arabia 126
Le Cercle Rouge 22, 140, 145
Le Mans 51
Little Children 143
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King 144
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 132
Lost Highway 138
Lost in Space 135
M
M 74, 138
Madame Butterfly 129
Marathon Man 138
Mean Streets 76
Midnight Cowboy 84
Miller’s Crossing 51, 124
Mimic 107
Mishima 72, 129
Mission to Mars 88
Mission: Impossible 73
Mon Oncle 123
Monster’s Ball 71
N
Natural Born Killers 62, 89, 137
Network 21
Nevada Smith 23, 126
Niagara 15
Nights of Cabiria 125
Nixon 125
North by Northwest 59, 96, 97
Numero Deux 73
NYPD Blue 107
O
Oldboy 58, 120
Once Upon a Time in America 125
Once Upon a Time in the West 33, 82, 85, 141
One From the Heart 128
Onibaba 145
Opera 88
Out of Africa 124
Out of Sight 102
P
Paper Moon 21, 24
Papillon 88
Picnic at Hanging Rock 72, 143
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest 25, 83, 144
Places in the Heart 35
Planet of the Apes 139
Platoon 131
Pleasantville 34
Point Break 84
Poltergeist 42
Pulp Fiction 128
Punch Drunk Love 75, 96, 128, 129
R
Rabbit Proof Fence 71, 143
Setting Up Your Shots Page 10