The Filmmaker's Glossary

The primary footage that tells the main story, such as interviews or dialogue scenes.

Supplemental or alternative footage intercut with the main shot.

The aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image.

An informal term for when a protagonist gradually transforms into an antagonist.

Visual content created using computer software.

A dramatic principle that every element introduced in a story must serve the plot.

The post-production process of altering and enhancing the color of a motion picture or video.

Sound whose source is visible on the screen or whose source is implied to be present by the action of the film.

A camera shot where the camera is tilted to one side, so the horizon is not level.

A technique using a large depth of field so that the foreground, middle-ground, and background are all in sharp focus.

A hidden message, image, or feature within a film.

A wide shot, typically at the beginning of a scene, that establishes the context for the scene.

The reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to films in post-production.

The imaginary barrier between the actors in a film or play and the audience.

An abrupt transition from one shot to another within the same scene.

An editing principle showing that meaning emerges from the juxtaposition of two shots more than from either shot alone.

A recurrent musical theme associated with a particular person, place, or idea.

An object, device, or event that drives the plot but is itself unimportant.

The arrangement of everything that appears in the framing — actors, lighting, décor, props, costume.

A technique in film editing in which a series of short shots are sequenced to condense space, time, and information.

A cut from one shot to another in which the two shots match in action, subject, or graphic composition.

Special effects produced physically on set rather than added in post-production with computer graphics.

A composition guideline that places the subject along the imaginary thirds of the frame rather than at the center.

A shot where the camera moves through the scene, often following a subject.

The unsettled feeling triggered by computer-generated humans that are nearly, but not quite, photoreal.

Darkening (or lightening) of the corners of an image to draw attention to the center.

A stock sound effect of a man screaming that has been used in over 400 films and television shows.

Changing the focal length of the lens during a shot to make the subject appear closer or further away.