Film Production Terms PDF

A Abby singer (shot) A nickname for the second-to-last production shot of the day; the name was attributed to famed American production manager and assistant film director Abby Singer between the 1950s-1980s; the last shot of the day is known as the martini shot. Adaptation The presentation of one...

A Abby singer (shot) A nickname for the second-to-last production shot of the day; the name was attributed to famed American production manager and assistant film director Abby Singer between the 1950s-1980s; the last shot of the day is known as the martini shot. Adaptation The presentation of one art form through another medium; a film based upon, derived from (or adapted from) a stage play (or from another medium such as a short story, book, article, history, novel, video game, comic strip/book, etc.). Aerial shot A camera shot filmed in an exterior location from far overhead (from a bird's eye view), as from a helicopter (most common), blimp, balloon, plane, drone, often the aerial shot is at the opening of a film or scene, aka an establishing shot. Alan Smithee film The pseudonym used by directors who refuse to put their name on a film and want to disassociate themselves, usually when they believe their control or vision has been co-opted by the studio (i.e., the film could have been recut, mutilated and altered against their wishes). Ambient light The natural light (usually soft) or surrounding light around a subject in a scene; similar to background lighting. Anamorphic Refers to a method of intentionally distorting and creating a wide screen image with standard film, an anamorphic image usually appears "squished" horizontally, while retaining its full vertical resolution. Antagonist The main character, person, group, society, nature, force, spirit world, bad guy, or villain of a film or script who is in adversarial conflict with the film's hero, lead character or protagonist. Anthology film A multi-part or multi-segmented film with a collection or series of various tales or short stories sometimes linked together by some theme; often the stories are directed by different directors or scripted by various screenwriters. Ad lib When the actor improvises a scene or dialogue that is not in the actual script. Anthropomorphism The tendency in animated films to give creatures or objects human qualities, abilities, and characteristics. Arc shot A shot in which the subject(s) is shot by an encircling or moving camera, usually a 180-degree motion. Art-house A niche motion picture theatre that shows foreign, low-budget, or non-mainstream independent films, often refers to films that are considered high-brow or 'art' films. Artificial light Lighting which is not a natural part of the scene, created via a mix of lighting techniques to either light the subject, mimic existing light or enhance the mood of a scene. Aside Occurs when a character in a film breaks the 'fourth wall' and directly addresses the audience with a comment. Aspect ratio A term for how the image appears on the screen based on the ratio of width (horizontal or top) to height (vertical or side) of a frame, image or screen; traditional TV screens being at 4:3 while cinema films tends to be at 16:9. Assembly The first stage or step of editing, in which all the shots are arranged in script order. Audio bridge Refers to an outgoing sound (either dialogue or sound effects) in one scene that continues over into a new image or shot - in this case, the soundtrack, not a visual image, connects the two shots or scenes. Available light The naturally existing light on location; a film's realism is enhanced by using available or natural light rather than having artificial light. Avant-garde Refers to an experimental, abstract, or highly independent, non-independent film that is often the forerunner of a new artistic genre or art form; avant-garde films self-consciously emphasize technique over substance; also loosely applies to a group of French and German filmmakers in the early 20th century. A.D.R The technical term for 'dubbing', which is an addition or substitute to the existing location sound. A.D.R stands for Automated Dialog Recording. Aperture A small opening in the camera lens which controls the amount of light that passes through. Apple Box A thick wooden box used to set up extra-large camera equipment or for the camera-person to stand up on, also used by grips to elevate actors, build, rig and more. Above-the-line (costs) The list of individuals who guide and influence the creative direction, process, and voice of a given narrative in a film and related expenditures. These roles include but are not limited to the screenwriter, producer, director, and actors. ‘A’ camera When shooting with 2 or more cameras, the main camera is referred to as “‘A’ Camera”. Ace A 1k or 1000-Watt light. Ambient noise Also known as Room Tone. This is a recording of the sound in a room to use as an underlying audio track in editing. Room Tone or Ambient Noise is generally recorded after completing a scene in a location before moving on to the next. Animatronics Special effects that deals with remote controlled puppetry of various things, from creatures to robots. ARRI The largest manufacturer of professional motion picture equipment in the world. Art director The art director is generally second in command in the art department and reports directly to the Production Designer. Assistant director (A.D.) The right hand of the director and the person that keeps the crew moving. Associate producer The Associate Producer is sometimes hard to define but this credit is generally given to someone who has had a hand in producing an aspect of a production, but not fully considered a producer. Auteur This term is used in reference to a Director that is a true author of their film. It stems from the “Auteur Theory” created by French critics in the 60s and was given to directors such as Kurosawa and Hitchcock. The theory states that a film reflects the true creative vision of a director. Actuality film The actuality film is a non-fiction film genre that, like the documentary film, uses footage of real events, places, and things, yet unlike the documentary is not structured into a larger argument, picture of the phenomenon or coherent whole. In practice, actuality films preceded the emergence of the documentary. Axis of action An imaginary or invisible line (or axis) that passes through two main subjects being filmed in a scene, who face each other (one is left, the other is right); conventionally, the camera must maintain that left-right relationship or orientation in order to avoid disorienting or distracting the viewer.