1. Settings and props
The settings used in a film are very rarely just backgrounds to the
characters' dialogue, they are more detailed and a great time and effort is put
into this. Filmmakers can choose to build a setting from scratch using the bare
walls and floors of a studio set or they can hire a location manager who will
find an appropriate setting that already exists. This location will then most
likely be altered to reflect what the filmmaker wants to convey.
Props are the objects within a setting which play a part in the action,
rather than just being part of the background. They can also help define a movie's identity such as the Chainsaw from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise.
Costume, hair and make up
Costume is an important part of mise-en-scene because it can be an instant
indicator to the audience about a character's personality, social status and
job. It can tell us which era a film is set in, what culture/society the film is
trying to convey and also it may foreshadow the action that character will play
in the film. Some costumes are stereotypically identified with certain genres of
film. Masks in horror have helped create iconic brand, such as the Halloween mask here
from the highly successful 70s franchise.
Make up was originally used to highlight facial features as the film would've
been shot in black and white.
Expressions and camera shots
Depending on the camera shot, there will be a different emphasis placed on facial
expressions and body language because of the range of distances. We understand that
facial expression are a clear indicator as to how someone is feeling and how small
changes can send out totally different signals. Eyes give particularly important signals to
the audience as we follow the direction of their sight so the filmmaker can draw attention to
something in the frame more easily.
The way in which we move our bodies also indicates how we are thinking and feeling and
as with facial expressions, there are some elements of body language that the audience
will recognise. Some films use a more realistic approach to body language, such as
crying, whereas others will use unrealistic types of behaviour that the audience accept
regardless, such as bursting into song. This iconic scene from Paranormal Activity (2007)
indicates her possession.
Lighting and colour
Lighting can aim to give a scene a realistic look or to bring out the dramatic nature of it and
we associate these different lighting styles with different genres. Lighting can be used to
create a variety of effects, such as highlighting characters or objects within a frame to draw
attention to them using a bright light source, to make a character look mysterious by
shading sections of their body/face or even alternating bright and dark light to reflect a
character's confused state of mind. The audience tends to associate certain colours with

2. certain genres and they can easily influence the mood of a scene. In The Ring (2004) in
post production colour was filtered out to help create literally a "darker world".
Positioning of characters and objects within a frame
There are various ways in which filmmakers can use positioning in a scene.
For example, if the filmmaker chooses to position a character or an object in the
foreground, we know that it is significant as the mise-en-scene has been used to direct our
attention towards them, whereas if an object or a character is in the background, it is likely
to have less significance.
A moving body against a stationary background will draw our attention to them as well.
If characters or objects are positioned evenly within the frame, the shot will feel balanced,
whereas if all the figures were on one side it would cause an imbalance for the eye. The
spacing within a shot can be used to make the audience feel settled or unsettled and
therefore involve them in the action.
Also, if the positioning of the figures draws our attention to the diagonal lines of a frame it
can imbalance the eye and once again make us feel uncomfortable.
The filmmaker can use positioning to indicate relationships as well. Hitchcock went to
great lengths with his shower scene in Psycho (1960) creating a shower with removable
walls so he could carefully place Marion Crane to create a realistic death sequence.