hc4. cinematography, editing, and do the right thing

Introduction to Hollywood Cinema:Cinematography, Editing, and Do the Right Thing

Prof. Julia LeydaMay 1, 2023

quiz

• What does the title of the movie mean? Do you think Mookie does the right thing? Explain.

(ten minutes)

I. black and white (b/w) and color

• black and white– early film– today gives “old” or documentary look– vary contrast levels and lighting for softer or harder

looks• color– early film tinting and toning, hand coloring– Technicolor, processing variations; also digital– color filters or gelatins over the lens

II. framing

• framing as visual metaphor• inclusion and exclusion, separation• use of cinematic frame• use of other frames within mise-en-scene

(windows, doorways, other lines and borders)

framing

III. camera distance and shot scale (38)

• distance from the camera to the (human) subject• close, medium, long and variations on them• often helps to convey meaning:– extreme long shot is often first in new scene (called

establishing shot)– long shot shows bigger movements and gestures– medium shots often show interaction or conversation– close-up shows more intimacy or emotion– extreme close-up shows significant detail

extreme long shot (ELS)

long shot (LS)

medium long shot (MLS) or plan americain

medium shot (MS)

medium close-up (MCU)

close-up (CU)

extreme close-up (ECU)

IV. lens and focal length

• wide-angle or short lens– DTRT uses short lenses more than most films

• middle or normal lens• telephoto or long lens• zoom lens– zooming in or out

V. focus and deep space

• creating illusion of depth by showing objects in foreground, medium ground, and background at the same time

• different uses of focus can show which elements are important

• sometimes also achieved by using deep focus lenses

• racking: changing focal point without cutting

deep space

VI. camera angles

• point of view (POV) and eyeline shots• high angle• low angle• canted frame or Dutch angle

eyeline shot

high angle shot

low angle shot

canted frame or Dutch angle shot

VIII. camera movements

• panning (from panorama): speed varies, including swish pan

• tilting• handheld and Steadicam • dollying and tracking: DTRT’s handheld dolly • craning

swish pan

long take, zoom out, crane

VIII. other cinematographic tools

• long take • mobile framing• special effects• aspect ratio• iris and masking

editing concepts (42-49)

I. 5 types of editsII. cross-cutting or parallel editingIII. editing and timeIV. continuity editing

I. 5 types of edits

1. cut: 1st shot ends cleanly and 2nd shot begins (unless it’s a jump cut)

2. dissolve: end of 1st shot and beginning of 2nd shot overlap briefly

3. fade: -in or -out, often to black 4. wipe: boundary line replaces 1st shot with 2nd 5. iris: -in or -out, circle opens or closes frame

cut and jump cut

dissolve: implies brief passage of time, flashback, or flashforward

fade: implies longer passage of time, often at the end of a movie

wipe: vertical, horizontal, or diagonal; often implies change of place

II. cross-cutting or parallel editing

• shows two or more actions happening at the same time in different locations

cutaway shota brief shot that interrupts a continuously-filmed action, by inserting another related action, object, or person, followed by a cutback to the original shot

III. continuity and time

• making shots and scenes flow smoothly to establish a sense of story

• to achieve logic, smoothness, sequential flow, and the temporal and spatial orientation of viewers

• piecing together partial fragments of time into comprehensible temporal experience

shot / reverse shota common sequence of shots in which the camera switches between shots of different characters– usually in conversation or other interaction – usually shows the shoulder and back of the other’s head

shot / reverse shota common sequence of shots in which the camera switches between shots of different characters – usually in conversation or other interaction – usually shows the shoulder and back of the other’s head

shot / reverse shota common sequence of shots in which the camera switches between shots of different characters– usually in conversation or other interaction – usually shows the shoulder and back of the other’s head

180-degree rule• camera usually stays on one side of 180° axis to

preserve viewer’s sense of space

180-degree rule

camera usually stays on one side of 180° axis to preserve viewer’s sense of space

match on action

two shots joined by following action from the first into the next

point of view editing• editing of subjective shots that show exactly what the

character sees• different from eyeline match cut as it shows the character’s

POV, whereas eyeline match cut shows what the character is seeing objectively (9)

eyeline match

joins shot A of a person looking off-screen in one direction, and shot B, an objective shot of whatever the person sees (again reverse order here)

eyeline match

joins shot A of a person looking off-screen in one direction, and shot B, an objective shot of whatever the person sees (or in this case, the object then the person looking)

montagecompresses time by showing a series of brief shots, sometimes accompanied by shots of maps, newspapers, or calendars

discussion questions

1. Classical Hollywood cinema doesn’t want you to notice most techniques. What elements of cinematography and editing did you notice in DTRT? Why do you think those were most noticeable?

2. How does the cinematography in DTRT support the meanings and themes of the movie?

3. Why do you think director Spike Lee and DP Ernest Dickerson used so many wide and high/low angles and canted frames? So many two-shots and so few shot / reverse shots?

hc4. cinematography, editing, and do the right thing

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