LESSON 41: FILM LANGUAGE

We need to focus on how all of what we have been exploring in the print medium translates into other platforms.

Film [and broadcast fiction] employs all of the ideas we have looked at in the still image - technology; content; layout; representation; values; ideology - with the addition that we also have the added dimensions of movement, performance, dialogue, sound and a different set of contexts.

We will begin with some basic exploration of the key ideas and then move to greater complexity. Don't worry if some of this doesn't at first gell with your thinking. Keep focused and it will become clear. Whenever stuck, go back to these basics.

 Learning Objectives:

•       To understand that ideas studied in semiotics can be applied to film

•      To apply these ideas to the example texts

•       To understand the structures that enable these to be applied to all media texts and to be able to use these as a tool to ‘read’ texts 

MISE-EN-SCENE

The elements of film language that convey the story and structure the narrative [the way the story will be told to us]:

•       Camera shots [close-up; angle of shot etc]

•       Editing of shots [fade; length; pace]

•       Music [emotional ideas; pace]

•       Lighting [dark; high-key]

•       Setting/location [atmosphere; degree of believability]

•       Costume

•       Performance/dialogue

Exemplar Product:

Made in 1992, Martin Scorsese’s film is regarded as one of the greatest films ever made.  It is not because of its story –  the true story of Henry Hill which is both thrilling and violent – but because of the way the story is told.

Scorsese is a great student of film – he is steeped in the classic films and aware why they are classic – lessons he applies to his own work.

Goodfellas is a textbook of how to manipulate an audience by the use of sound, camera shot choice and clever editing.

In Scorsese’s hands the film language shapes the way in which we view the story – where our sympathy lies, how we feel about characters and their actions and why they behave in the manner that they do.

Over the next few slides we will use examples from Goodfellas to illustrate some of the key points about the use of film language.