The movement of characters or drawings in a movie. There are many ways of making characters and drawings move, such as drawing directly on the film or preparing drawings on sheets to be photographed.
$Animator$
The person who draws characters, objects and background art on film.
$Art director$
The person in charge of coordinating the artistic style of the movie. The art director works closely with the director in order to determine how the movie is going to look. For example, if the movie is set in New York City in the 1940's, the art director's responsibility is to make sure that the costumes and set design reflect this time period and location throughout the entire movie.
$Best boy$
The person, male or female, who works as an electrician on a movie set. A best boy's responsibilities include hooking up lights and other equipment to power sources.
$Camera$
The instrument used to record moving visual images onto film.
$Cameraman$
The person, male or female, who operates the camera.
$Cinematographer$
Also called the Director of Photography. This person works closely with the director to design camera angles and lighting techniques for shooting a scene.
$Climax$
The turning point in the plot of a story. Events in a story usually build up to or lead towards this point. Using "The Wizard of Oz" as an example, the climax occurs when Dorothy confronts the Wizard and finds out that he is not what she expected.
$Continuity$
Making sure that props, set design, makeup, and the location of actors are consistent from shot to shot in a movie. In order for a movie to run smoothly from one shot to the next, there has to be consistency of every small detail, from an actor's hair style to the placement of furniture. Usually, there is at least one person in charge of making sure that these items are consistent throughout the entire film.
$Cut$
Two shots edited together by connecting two pieces of film. This creates an immediate transition from one shot to the next, in contrast to fades or dissolves, which are more gradual.
$Dailies$
Also called "rushes." Unedited footage is delivered from the lab every day during the shooting period so that the director and cinematographer can look at what has been shot so far. Dailies show the director such things as how lighting is working out and how characters actually appear in make-up and costume.
$Denouement$
The outcome or final event of the movie. The denouement follows the climax of the story and ties up any loose ends. In "The Wizard of Oz" the denouement occurs when Dorothy wakes up and finds herself back in Kansas.
$Dubbing$
Recording new sound, such as dialogue or music, over the originally recorded sound. For example, if the originally recorded voice does not sound clear enough, that voice can be re-recorded in a studio and added to the sound track.
$Director$
The person who guides the entire process of making a movie. The director is in charge of working with the actors and rehearsing the dialogue and action. The director coordinates with the art director to make sure the movie has the desired look. The director also works closely with the cinematographer to decide the lighting and camera angles for each shot.
$Dissolve$
A visual effect in which one shot seems to disappear while another appears over it. For example, if the first shot is of a family eating dinner and the second is of several kids at a playground, the image of the family would slowly disappear and in its place the playground image would gradually appear. A dissolve provides a smooth transition from one shot to the next whereas a cut provides a sharp transition.
$Fade$
A visual effect in which a shot slowly appears out of darkness (fade in) or gradually disappears into darkness (fade out). A fade provides a smooth transition from one shot to the next whereas a cut provides a very sharp transition.
$"In the can"$
An expression meaning the movie is entirely completed. This expression comes from the idea that the final edited film footage has been placed in the film canister and is ready to ship.
$Lighting$
Setting up the lights for a scene in a way that achieves the effect desired by the director and cinematographer. A balance of light and shadow determines how the actors and sets will look and where the viewer's eyes will be drawn.
$Microphone$
An instrument used for recording sound.
$Mixing$
The process of combining the sound from several sources and recording them onto a single track for a movie. Mixing requires balancing voices, sound effects and music.
$Outtakes$
Shots or takes that are not used in the final version of the movie. Often a director wants to do several takes of the same shot in order to look at all of them later and decide which is the best. The outtakes are important, even though they are not used, because comparing different takes helps the director figure out which one will work best in the scene.
$Pan$
The side-to-side movement of the camera head on the tripod. For example, the director will have the camera pan to follow a moving actor.
$Plot$
The main storyline of a script. The plot usually consists of the rising action, the climax, and the denouement.
$Producer$
The person who finances and supervises the making of a movie. Often the producer is the person who will read a treatment and decide whether or not it would make a good movie. The producer also often acts as a creative editor of the script before the director even starts filming. Once the director has begun filming, the producer may act as a financial manager of the production.
$Rising action$
Events which lead up to the climax of the plot of the movie. In "The Wizard of Oz" the frightening scenes between Dorothy and the Wicked Witch of the East are part of the rising action of the story.
$Scene$
A segment of a script that describes activity within a single time period in a given location. A scene in a film can consist of a single shot or several shots that fit together.
$Script$
A written version of the dialogue, action and sound of the entire movie, scene by scene.
$Scriptwriter$
The person who writes the script for the movie. Often scripts are revised many times before filming takes place. The scriptwriter will sometimes work with the producer or director in rewriting the script.
$Shot$
A particular camera position to shoot a scene or part of a scene. Several different shots in a scene offer different views of the scene. For instance, in a scene where two people are talking, the director might film an establishing shot of both people, another close shot of just one person, and a third shot of the other person. The director will edit these shots together to make a complete scene.
$Slate$
A board photographed at the beginning or end of each take for identification. The slate includes the scene, the shot number, the take, the production title, and the names of the director and cinematographer.
$Sound editor$
The person who edits the dialogue, music, and sound effects of a movie. The sound editor is responsible for matching the sound track with the edited film.
$Sound effects (SFX)$
Sounds created for a movie which imitate real life sounds. A thunder clap or automobile tires screeching are examples of sound effects.
$Special effects$
Visual effects added to a movie for emphasis or dramatization. For example, a fiery explosion or life-sized dinosaurs in a high school gymnasium are special effects.
$Storyboard$
A series of drawings which represent the action in each shot. Dialogue, music, and effects appear below the pictures. The storyboard allows the director to visualize the action of the movie, shot by shot, before filming.
$Take$
Recording a scene, or part of a scene, with a camera from start to stop. Several takes may be done of each shot until the director and cinematographer are satisfied with the result.
$Time code$
A system of matching picture and sound by recording a code onto the film and soundtrack. Codes are sometimes written out as year, month, day, hour, minute, and second.
$Treatment$
A written summary of an idea for a film before a script is developed. Treatments need to be written with persuasion in mind. Unless the producer and director think the story is exciting and would make a great movie, the treatment may never move on to the script stage.
$Wipe$
A visual effect between two shots in which the second shot replaces the first by wiping across the image like a paper towel wipes across a window. There are several kinds of wipes: across the screen, up or down the screen, or in a circular motion.
$Zoom$
A camera effect which makes the character or object on screen appear to get closer (zoom in) or further away (zoom out).
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