There are quite a few different types of lighting in the film making of Hollywood. Three point, high key, low key, and star lighting are some of them. Three point lighting is the most common lighting setup in Hollywood. It’s called three point lighting because the three points refer to the three dominant sources of illumination. Each source can contain as many lights as needed, not just one light from each point. The three points of light are termed the key light, fill light, and back light. An example of this setup would be that the key light is directly in front of the person, really lighting up their face, the back light shines from behind them, and the fill light comes in at a diagonal on the side and is right next to the camera shining on the front and back. This setup establishes overall lighting directionality. The lighting setup is not always the same though, it depends on location or setting specified in the script.
The most common lighting effects that three point lighting produces when manipulated is high key and low key lighting. These don’t describe the position of the light, but the ratio of fill light to key light. In high-key lighting, that ratio is very high. That means that the amount of fill light is extremely high to reduce shadows from the key light. The light is then evenly distributed. When you think of when high key-lighting, it tends to be used in upbeat genres such as comedies and musicals.
Low-key lighting is the opposite of high-key lighting. The ratio of fill to key light is low now. The shadows produced by the key light are not completely filled in therefore, there is an uneven distribution of light. Low-key lighting is most commonly found in downbeat genres, such as mysteries, thrillers, horror films, and with films noirs.
Start lighting highlights certain features of the major performers and makes the expression on major performers faces readable. It singles out the chief figures in a scene by giving them their own special lighting system, so the focus is on the important performers. The light draws the audience to what is important. The light appears to come from within who it’s shining on. It can also bring the charismatic presence out more with some performers.
In conclusion, every scene in a Hollywood film combines realistic, directional, motivated lighting with unrealistic star lighting. And audiences never seem to be bothered by the apparent contradiction(p. 57 Belton).
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Blog # 2--- Option 1
There are many elements of the Hollywood style in film making. Some of the major elements are invisible editing, Hollywood narrative of telling a motion picture story, equilibrium and disruption, various problem solving techniques used in Hollywood film and character centered cinema. These things are what makes Hollywood special and able to make such great films.
The Hollywood film industry became a narrative machine when making their films. During the 1910s and 1920s Hollywood began to tell stories in their films that were highly efficient. Now the producers wanted to tell a smooth narrative in their films as smoothly as possible. It was meant to have a narrative magically come from the screen spontaneously creating itself for the audience to consume and enjoy. Most movies after the 1920s were all narratives
Invisible editing was a huge breakthrough n the film industry. This is when there are cuts throughout the movie but they make it so the audience can’t see the editing. This means that there were really no pauses in the movie. The camera and the sound recording should never call attention to themselves. The editors goal is to make his work invisible. This is by not letting the viewer notice any cuts, and the shots flowing together naturally. This is also one of the key elements that helped the narrative machine happen. One type of this editing is organizing a movie in a purely linear fashion like in Some like It Hot.
The way a narrative process works is that there is an initial state of affairs introduced in the beginning of the film and then all of the sudden something disturbs it therefore, the equilibrium is off due to the disruption. Then, there are many events that follow, usually trying to restore the original introduction. This takes up most of the movie. In the end almost all equilibriums are restored and everything is good. An example of this is in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. The introduction meets the status quo and characters are introduced. Then all of the sudden the equilibrium is disrupted by a quarrel between two lovers and a woman screaming from across the way. Then the rest of the film the couple is trying to solve their conflict and trying to get proof that the woman they heard was murdered. Once the conflicts are solved the equilibrium is back to normal and the new status quo is revealed. This makes narrative motion very interesting and keeps the audiences attention.
There are various problem solving techniques in Hollywood films. A lot of times in the films, the characters have a hard time achieving their goals. During the film, they usually overcome their problems that stand in their way; things such as beating the villain, triumph over adverse circumstances, and transcend their own limitations such as fears. The film will then end with the characters triumph or failure, with the resolution to the problem, and with the attainment of the goal. An example of this is the movie Vertigo. There’s a man who has to overcome his fear of heights to solve a crime. This kind of technique has the audience trying to solve the problem themselves while watching the movie.
Character centered cinema is also a major element in the Hollywood Films. The characters are more or less stable, knowable, and psychologically coherent individuals who possess clearly defined, specific goals(p.25 Belton). The films are very focused on the main characters in the film and what happens in the movie revolves around the them. The entire movie will evolve around the character which makes the audience think and feel as if they know the character.
The Hollywood film industry became a narrative machine when making their films. During the 1910s and 1920s Hollywood began to tell stories in their films that were highly efficient. Now the producers wanted to tell a smooth narrative in their films as smoothly as possible. It was meant to have a narrative magically come from the screen spontaneously creating itself for the audience to consume and enjoy. Most movies after the 1920s were all narratives
Invisible editing was a huge breakthrough n the film industry. This is when there are cuts throughout the movie but they make it so the audience can’t see the editing. This means that there were really no pauses in the movie. The camera and the sound recording should never call attention to themselves. The editors goal is to make his work invisible. This is by not letting the viewer notice any cuts, and the shots flowing together naturally. This is also one of the key elements that helped the narrative machine happen. One type of this editing is organizing a movie in a purely linear fashion like in Some like It Hot.
The way a narrative process works is that there is an initial state of affairs introduced in the beginning of the film and then all of the sudden something disturbs it therefore, the equilibrium is off due to the disruption. Then, there are many events that follow, usually trying to restore the original introduction. This takes up most of the movie. In the end almost all equilibriums are restored and everything is good. An example of this is in Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. The introduction meets the status quo and characters are introduced. Then all of the sudden the equilibrium is disrupted by a quarrel between two lovers and a woman screaming from across the way. Then the rest of the film the couple is trying to solve their conflict and trying to get proof that the woman they heard was murdered. Once the conflicts are solved the equilibrium is back to normal and the new status quo is revealed. This makes narrative motion very interesting and keeps the audiences attention.
There are various problem solving techniques in Hollywood films. A lot of times in the films, the characters have a hard time achieving their goals. During the film, they usually overcome their problems that stand in their way; things such as beating the villain, triumph over adverse circumstances, and transcend their own limitations such as fears. The film will then end with the characters triumph or failure, with the resolution to the problem, and with the attainment of the goal. An example of this is the movie Vertigo. There’s a man who has to overcome his fear of heights to solve a crime. This kind of technique has the audience trying to solve the problem themselves while watching the movie.
Character centered cinema is also a major element in the Hollywood Films. The characters are more or less stable, knowable, and psychologically coherent individuals who possess clearly defined, specific goals(p.25 Belton). The films are very focused on the main characters in the film and what happens in the movie revolves around the them. The entire movie will evolve around the character which makes the audience think and feel as if they know the character.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Blog # 1---Option 1
The film The Great Train Robbery is the first silent film I have ever seen. I was amazed at how short in length it was. The main characters in the movie were the robbers.They are the ones that robbed the train and then got shot to death in the end. I think there were three of the them. They don't act very smart because when they were being chased, they just stopped in the middle of no where and started counting their money. The narrative is told by having the motion picture go in a sequential order of what's happening. The conflict within the film is that that there are three robbers killing people on the train so they can steal money from the train. In the end, they almost got away with the money, but foolishly got off their horses to count the money while being chased by the good guys. I guess it wasn't a happy ending for them, but it was for the good guys.. The illustration and detail was pretty good for being from 1903, although the stunt dummy was kind of cheesy. It could have been more realistic. The parallel action and minor camera movement made the movie better though.
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