2-shot An image frame containing two principal characters. A Top acousmêtre This is a term of Michel Chion's meaning "acoustical being". A character who appears in a film only or mostly as a disembodied voice but is diegetic (different from a non-diegetic narrator doing a voice-over). audio dissolve When diegetic accompaniment becomes non-diegetic or is "sweetened" by non-diegetic elements. Rick Altman's term. C Top counterpoint Counterpoint is a musical term that is used in film contexts in two different ways. Eisenstein (as explained by Royal S. Brown) uses counterpoint to mean the conveying of a similar idea, expression, or sentiment through the two different senses of sight and sound. What is significant for him is that the two are not synchronized, but yet still work together to express something. Buhler and Neumeyer use the term counterpoint to mean when the visual and the audio are at odds with each other, either because of poor film-making technique or deliberately to create emotional distance. In the Buhler and Neumeyer definition, counterpoint can also be called anempathetic. D Top dialogue Speech delivered by or between characters. One of three components of the soundtrack (dialogue, music, sound effects). diegesis Story or narrative world of film. diegetic / non-diegetic Diegetic sound can be heard by the characters. Non-diegetic sound cannot be heard by the characters. dissolve A transitional device in which one shot fades out as another fades in. E Top establishing shot A general view of the physical space to begin a scene. establishing sound Sound used to establish a physical space at the beginning of a scene (Rick Altman's term). F Top Foley Named after Jack Foley, Foley refers to the production of everyday sounds added to film in post-production to enhance the audio track (creaking leather, clicking heels in an empty hallway etc.) H Top hard cut Transition from one shot to another accomplished by an abrupt shift in both image and sound. harmony The combination of musical tones simultaneously to produce a chord or a series of chords. I Top informational prologue Voice-over narration at beginning of film to provide background for the narrative of the film. M Top medievalism An investigation of the influence or appearance of the medieval in a later period, and of attitudes towards and meanings of the medieval in all areas of culture. melody A melody is a tune or a musical line made up of a series of pitches (or notes or tones). It's the part of music you might find yourself singing, or humming, or whistling. montage sequence A type of editing. Involves a series of shots, in which any individual shot is only understood in relation to the others. Often used to show the compression of time. Often uses music as a sound bridge to link the images into a single unit. music One of the three components of a sound track (dialogue, music, sound effects). musical convention A musical stereotype such as a rising, leaping, driving melody play.

1. 2-shot
An image frame containing two principal characters.
A
Top
acousmêtre
This is a term of Michel Chion's meaning "acoustical being". A
character who appears in a film only or mostly as a disembodied
voice but is diegetic (different from a non-diegetic narrator
doing a voice-over).
audio dissolve
When diegetic accompaniment becomes non-diegetic or is
"sweetened" by non-diegetic elements. Rick Altman's term.
C
Top
counterpoint
Counterpoint is a musical term that is used in film contexts in
two different ways. Eisenstein (as explained by Royal S.
Brown) uses counterpoint to mean the conveying of a similar
idea, expression, or sentiment through the two different senses
of sight and sound. What is significant for him is that the two
are not synchronized, but yet still work together to express
something. Buhler and Neumeyer use the term counterpoint to
mean when the visual and the audio are at odds with each other,
either because of poor film-making technique or deliberately to
create emotional distance. In the Buhler and Neumeyer
definition, counterpoint can also be called anempathetic.
D
Top
dialogue
Speech delivered by or between characters. One of three
components of the soundtrack (dialogue, music, sound effects).
diegesis
Story or narrative world of film.
diegetic / non-diegetic

2. Diegetic sound can be heard by the characters. Non-diegetic
sound cannot be heard by the characters.
dissolve
A transitional device in which one shot fades out as another
fades in.
E
Top
establishing shot
A general view of the physical space to begin a scene.
establishing sound
Sound used to establish a physical space at the beginning of a
scene (Rick Altman's term).
F
Top
Foley
Named after Jack Foley, Foley refers to the production of
everyday sounds added to film in post-production to enhance
the audio track (creaking leather, clicking heels in an empty
hallway etc.)
H
Top
hard cut
Transition from one shot to another accomplished by an abrupt
shift in both image and sound.
harmony
The combination of musical tones simultaneously to produce a
chord or a series of chords.
I
Top
informational prologue
Voice-over narration at beginning of film to provide background
for the narrative of the film.
M
Top
medievalism
An investigation of the influence or appearance of the medieval

3. in a later period, and of attitudes towards and meanings of the
medieval in all areas of culture.
melody
A melody is a tune or a musical line made up of a series of
pitches (or notes or tones). It's the part of music you might find
yourself singing, or humming, or whistling.
montage sequence
A type of editing. Involves a series of shots, in which any
individual shot is only understood in relation to the others.
Often used to show the compression of time. Often uses music
as a sound bridge to link the images into a single unit.
music
One of the three components of a sound track (dialogue, music,
sound effects).
musical convention
A musical stereotype such as a rising, leaping, driving melody
played on the trombone being associated with heroism.
O
Top
onscreen/offscreen
Onscreen is the part of the world of the film that is within the
camera's frame, while offscreen is what we know is there in the
film's world but that is not within the camera's frame.
P
Top
point-of-view shot
A point-of-view shot is when the audience sees through the
character's eyes.
R
Top
rhythm
An arrangement of musical sounds according to duration and
stress.
S
Top
Scene

4. A number of shots (or very occasionally a single very long shot)
brought together for narrative purposes, unifying time and
space.
Sequence
A series of scenes related as a narrative unit. Sometimes used to
refer to any series of shots that are related.
shot
A single take (or single strip of film); could be seconds or
minutes.
sound advance
A sound is heard before its associated image appears; this
technique can be used in a cut or dissolve.
sound bridge
Sound (music, dialogue or sounds effects) create a smooth
transition between two shots (and/or scenes).
sound effects
All sound that isn't music or dialogue/speech. See also Foley.
sound lag
A transition in which the sound from one scene continues
through to the beginning of the next scene (less common than a
sound advance).
sound link
A sound bridge between otherwise unrelated cuts.
sound match
A transition in which the sound belonging to one scene is
followed by a similar or identical sound belonging to the next
scene.
soundtrack
All audio in a film, although people often use the term to refer
to the music soundtrack.
stinger
A sudden and sharp sharp accent, such as a cymbal crash, but
can also be applied to speech (a scream or cry) or to sound
effects (door slamming).
synchronization
Synchronization refers to a close relationship between the audio

5. and visual elements in a film or in a scene. Close
synchronization is also referred to as empathetic.
T
Top
timbre
The character or quality of a musical sound or voice. Terms
people use to describe timbre include grainy, tinny, pure, gritty,
reedy, bright, warm, thin, harsh, gentle, wooden, ringing etc.
tonality
In western music, a system revolving around a single pitch or
chord, which functions as a centre of gravity.
U
Top
underscore
Non-diegetic music. Sometimes called the accompaniment or
scoring.
V
Top
voice-over
When an unseen person, a narrator, speaks directly to the
viewer.
W
Top
wipe
A type of transition in which a boundary line (or shape)
replaces one shot with another (often from side to side, or from
top to bottom, or bottom to top).
Extended vocabulary for describing musical phenomena
Aural / oral

6. Aural icon
Oral transmission, oral history
Genre /
Style
Melody Rhythm /
Metre
Tempo Timbre Dynamics +
articulation
Texture Harmony
Rock music
(electric guitar
shredding)
Classical (piano,
string quartet,
instrumental
without vocals)
Jazz (saxophones,
trumpets,
improvisation)
Folk music
(banjo, fiddle,
acoustic guitar,
harmonica,
lyrics)
Blues (12-bar
blues – chord
progression,

7. Modal
Tonal
• Major
• minor
Atonal
(Teleological)
Rhythmic
Arhythmic
Metric
Ametric
fast
quick
slow
accelerando
(gradually
gets faster)
ritardando
(gradually
gets slower)
Bright/dull
Warm/cold
Reedy
Gritty
Raspy

8. Speech-like
Whiny
Nasal
Monotone
Dolce
Sweet
Clear
Fluttery
Controlled
Twangy
breathy
loud / soft
really loud
really soft
crescendo
(gradually
getting
louder)
decrescendo
or
diminuendo
(gradually
getting
softer)
legato
(smooth)
Solo

9. Group
Monophonic
Unison
Sing in
harmony
Melody and
accompaniment
Chorale-style
Hymn-style
Homophonic
Fugal
Contrapuntal
tonal
modal
consonant
dissonant
(crunchy)

10. harmonica, slide
guitar, singing)
Rap
Techno/electronic
Hiphop
House music
Soul
Oompah – polka
Pop
Ska
Doowop / swing
Afrobeats
Country
Hymn
Salsa
Celtic
staccato
(detached)
Vocal
polyphony

11. Polyphony
180-Degree Rule
The 180-degree rule of shooting and editing keeps the camera
on one side of the action.
3-D Film
3-D film has a three-dimensional, stereoscopic form, creating
the illusion of depth.
A
Aerial Shot
An aerial shot is typically made from a helicopter or created
with miniatures (today, digitally), showing a location from high
overhead.
Aspect Ratio
Aspect ratio refers to how the image appears on the screen
based on how it was shot–the ratio of width (horizontal or top)
to height (vertical or side) of a film frame, image, or screen.
B
Black-and-White Film
Black-and-white film contains an emulsion that, when
processed, changes colors into various shades of gray.
C
Camera Angle
Camera angle refers to where the camera is placed in relation to
the subject of the image.
Camera Movement
Camera movement refers to the actual or perceived physical
movement of the camera apparatus through space.
Canted Angle (Dutch Angle)

12. A canted angle is when the camera is tilted, usually to suggest
imbalance, transition, or instability.
Celluloid
Cellulose nitrate was the original transparent material used as a
base for film, which was then coated with light-sensitive
emulsion.
Chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro refers to strong contrasts between light and dark.
Cinema Verité
Cinema verité is a French term that means "true cinema" or
"cinema truth."
Cinematography
Derived from the French word cinématographe, cinematography
literally means "writing in movement" and is generally
understood as the art and process of capturing visual images
with a camera for cinema.
Cinerama
Cinerama is a process of simultaneous filming by three cameras.
The cameras are pointed at different angles and are then
projected by three synchronized projectors and shown on a
curved screen.
Circular Pan
A circular pan is a shot in which the camera rotates 360 degrees
around a fixed axis.
Clapboard (Slateboard)
Before each take, a clapboard appears in front of the camera,
with the number of the take written on it.
Close-Up
A close-up is a shot in which a person’s face fills most of the
screen, although the term can also refer to any shot that appears
to have been taken at close range (or through a telephoto lens),
and in which an object appears relatively large and in detail.
Color Film
Color film has been a possibility since the beginning of cinema.
Technical problems and economic circumstances early on meant
that it was not until the 1950s that color was viable in the film

13. industry.
Crane Shot
A crane shot is achieved by a camera mounted on a platform,
which is connected to a mechanical arm that can lift the
platform up, bring it down, or move it laterally across space.
D
Day for Night
Day for night refers to the creation of a night effect while
shooting during the day, through the manipulation of filters,
underexposure, or printing.
Deep Focus
Deep focus is a style or technique of cinematography and
staging with great depth of field, using relatively wide-angle
lenses and small lens apertures to render in sharp focus near and
distant planes simultaneously.
Depth of Field
Depth of field is the area, range of distance, or field (between
the nearest and farthest planes) in which the elements captured
in a camera image appear in sharp focus.
Dialogue
Dialogue is speech delivered by or between characters.
Diegesis
From the ancient Greek for “recounted story,” diegesis is a term
used in film studies to refer to the story (or narrative) world of
a film.
Diegetic Sound
Diegetic sound is any sound that emanates from the story (or
narrative) world of a film, which is referred to in film studies as
diegesis.
Dissolve
A dissolve is a transitional device in which one shot fades out
while the next shot fades in, so it is briefly superimposed over
the first and then replaces it altogether.
Dolly (Dolly Shot)
A dolly is a mobile platform on wheels with a camera, which

14. can be driven or pushed by a dolly pusher or dolly grip.
Double (Multiple) Exposure
Double exposure is the superimposition of two images, one over
the other, which results from exposing the same film twice.
E
Editing
Editing is the process of putting a film together–the selection
and arrangement of shots and scenes.
Establishing Shot
An establishing shot is a long shot at the start of a scene (or
sequence) that shows things from a distance.
Exposure
Exposure is the act of making film available to light so that an
image is formed in the emulsion.
Eye-Line Match
Eye-line match is a method of continuity editing whereby a cut
between two shots creates the illusion of the character (in the
first shot) looking at an object (in the second shot).
F
Fade
The fade is a means of gradually beginning or ending a scene,
and is achieved in the camera by opening or closing the
aperture; in an optical printer, this is achieved when the
exposure light is increased or decreased.
Fisheye Lens
A fisheye lens is a wide-angle lens that takes in a nearly 180-
degree field of view.
Frames-per-Second
Frames-per-second is the rate at which film is exposed in a
camera.
Freeze-Frame
Freeze-frame is achieved when a single frame is repeatedly
printed on a duplicate copy of the film.
H

15. Handheld Shot
A handheld shot is one in which the cameraman or -woman
holds the camera and moves through space while filming.
High-Angle Shot
A high-angle shot is one in which the camera is placed above
eye level, creating a frame that looks down at the subject. Early
examples of high-angle shots represent the point of view of a
distant onlooker, as in James Williamson’s Attack on a Chinese
Mission Station (1901) and Frank Mottershaw’s influential early
crime film, Daring Daylight Burglary (1903).
The consistent use of high angle objective, expressive shots
taken from close to the subject emerges in France in the 1920s
with films such as Jean Epstein’s l’Auberge (1923) and
Maurice L’Herbier’s L’inhumaine (1924).
Depending on the stylistic language established by the
filmmaker, a high-angle shot may suggest that a character has
lower status or is needier than another character.
CLIP proposed: Wild River (1960) dialog between Montgomery
Clift and Lee Remick
It is tempting but inaccurate to read high angle shots
consistently through an easy literal metaphor: in “looking
down” on a subject, a high angle confers vulnerability and low
status. If this were true, Hitchcock’s use of high angles would
be illegible when, for example, in North by Northwest(1959),
Van Damm decides to murder his mistress by pushing her out of
an airplane.
Extreme high-angles can suggest surveillance, such as in the
following shot from The Conversation (1974):
CLIP proposed: (Last shot of Conversation)
High-angle shots can imbue a sub-human character to a subject,
as in this shot from Taxi Driver (1976):
CLIP: (Shot of Travis walking into diner)
A high angle shot may reframe authority, as in this shot from
Ousmane Sembene’s Moolaadé, where Collé defies village
traditionalists who seek to circumcise girls in her protection:

16. CLIP: (Shot of Village in stand-off.)
I
Iris Shot
The iris shot is a shot masked in a circular form.
J
Jump Cut
A jump cut is an editing technique in which some frames are
taken out of a sequence.
L
Lighting
Lighting is responsible for the quality of a film’s images and
often a film’s dramatic effect.
Long Shot
A long shot shows characters in their entirety, as well as some
of the surrounding environment.
Long Take
The long take is a shot of some duration.
Low-Angle Shot
A low-angle shot is achieved when the camera is placed below
eye level.
M
Medium Shot
A medium shot is one that can include several characters in a
frame, usually showing a character from the waist up.
Mise-en-Scène
Mise-en-scène originated in the theater and is used in film to
refer to everything that goes into the composition of a shot--
framing, movement of the camera and characters, lighting, set
design and the visual environment, and sound.
Montage
At the core of montage is the idea that a single shot has
meaning only in relation to another shot.

17. N
Non-Diegetic Sound
Non-diegetic sound is sound whose origin is from outside the
story world.
P
Pan Shot
A pan shot is achieved with a camera mounted on a swivel head
so that the camera body can turn from a fixed position.
Parallel Editing
Parallel editing is a technique whereby cutting occurs between
two or more related actions occurring at the same time in two
separate locations or different points in time.
Point of View
With POV, the audience is, in effect, looking through the
character’s eye.
R
Rear Projection
Rear projection involves the projection of either a still or a
moving picture onto the back of a translucent screen.
S
Shot, Scene, and Sequence
A shot consists of a single take. A scene is composed of several
shots. A sequence is composed of scenes.
Slow Motion
Slow motion is typically achieved by shooting at a fast speed
and then projecting at a normal speed.
Sound
Sound is the audio portion of a film.
Soundtrack
Soundtrack refers to all the audio elements of a film–dialogue,
music, sound effects, etc.
Split Screen

18. Split screen is the combination of two or more scenes films
separately which appear in the same frame.
Steadicam Shot
A Steadicam shot employs a kind of special hydraulic harness
that smoothes out the bumps and jerkiness associated with the
typical handheld style.
Superimposition
Superimposition is when two or more image are placed over
each other in the frame.
Swish Pan
A swish pan looks like a blur as one scene changes to another–
the camera appears to be moving rapidly from right to left or
left to right.
T
Take
A take is one run of the camera, recording a single shot
Tracking (Trucking) Shot
A tracking, or trucking, shot is one in which a camera is
mounted on some kind of conveyance (car, ship, airplane, etc.)
and films while moving through space.
V
Virtual Camera Movement
Virtual camera movement refers to the creation of the
perceptual sense of movement through space by the
manipulation of focal length or by more irregular techniques.
Voice-Over
Voice-over is dialogue, usually narration, that comes from an
unseen, offscreen voice, character, or narrator.
W
Wide-Angle Lens
A wide-angle lens has a short focal length, which exaggerates
the relative size of objects within field of view.
Wide-Angle Shot

19. A shot with a greater horizontal plane of action and greater
depth of field is known as a wide-angle shot.
Wipe
Wipes allow one scene to effectively erase the previous scene
and replace it.
Z
Zoom Shot
A zoom shot is one that permits the cinematographer to change
the distance between the camera and the object being filmed
without actually moving the camera.
Western Medievalism in Film
• Summary of first four classes
Discussion of: what do we think of when we think of the Middle
Ages? And what sounds
and/or music do we think of?
From individual elements (people, things, ideas), we came up
with some broader themes
of how the Middle Ages is represented:
• Grime and disease (the plague)
• Hierarchical systems (political, social)
• Fantasy (magic, fantastical creatures, witchcraft)
• Town formation
• Pastoral (small farms, farm animals)
• War (knights, armour)

20. • Chivalry
• Religion (monks, nuns, monasteries, cathedrals)
• Learnedness (universities, Latin)
Three approaches to medievalism in film and television:
• Focus on specific medieval figure or event
• Medieval fantasy world
• Uses medieval trope/theme but in different setting
Three kinds of sound in film:
• Dialogue
• Music
• Sound effects
Viewed a film clip and discussed relationships amongst the
sound, the action, and
the visual elements, reviewing and introducing terminology:
Opening of Princess of Thieves (2001) - up to the cow-
milking/Latin lesson scene
• Opens with mountains and mist (visual icon or convention for
the medieval or the
distant past)
• Voice-over (non-diegetic narrator) introduces the narrative
(informational
prologue) with a long, anticipatory drone in the underscore and
the sound of birds
to place the outdoor scene (establishing sound)

21. • Heroic theme in underscore (Fr. Horn, leaping and rising
melody with dotted
rhythm) with horse and rider galloping through the forest;
“pastoral” setting
emphasized with the sound of the horse’s hooves and splashing
water
• Dark interior scene and cold stone walls in castle fit with
foreboding music (low,
drawn-out string drones and dissonant chords); Sherriff of
Nottingham and his
men express violent ways (“price on the infant’s head”), and
misogynistic attitude
(“a girl” + evil cackle)
• Dissolve to image of infant with diegetic off-screen voices of
mother and child’s
protector
• Rooster cawing establishes the place (confirmed by simple
interior)
• Montage sequence - musical underscore provides continuity as
time is
compressed and we see Robin Hood’s daughter, Gwyn, growing
up; underscore
uses harp and celtic flute with alternating chords to establish
gentle, protective
and historical setting (medieval or distant past)
• Sound lag bridges to outdoor scene of cow-milking and Latin
lesson (Latin, so we
know it’s the Middle Ages) with a young monk or novice

22. Terminology:
• diegetic / non-diegetic
• diegesis – story or narrative of film
• voice-over
• underscore
• soundtrack – all audio in a film (often refers to the music)
• montage (single shot has meaning only in relation to another
shot)
• shot – single take (seconds, minutes)
• scene – several shots
• sequence – several scenes
Review of 5 general categories of music in the Middle Ages:
• Chant
• Vernacular song (Troubadours and Trouvères)
• Instrumental fanfares
• Dance music
• Vocal polyphony
Viewing and discussion of Alexander Nevsky (1938)
• Discussion of Brown 1994 and close collaboration between
Eisenstein and
Prokofiev
• Representation of the medieval through sound and image,
while simultaneously
promoting communist ideals under Stalin: men fishing together
collectively,
music is worker’s song sung in unison, all men (including
Alexander) dressed in

23. simple fisherman’s clothing
• Sounds of the medieval: war (clashing of swords, horses);
church (bells, organ,
droning music)
• Meaning of the film in 1938: pre-war, Soviet Union fearing
German invasion and
recalled an earlier Russian national hero, Alexander Nevsky
from the thirteenth
century
• non-aggression pact in 1939 – film pulled from circulation;
June 22, 1941,
Operation Barbarossa: Germany abandoned pact and invaded
Russia
Weekly Film Responses
FILM 2016 / MUSC 2016
Aims:
• To keep you on track with required film viewings
• To encourage you to think about the films in preparation for
class discussion
• To give you practice writing about sound (music, sound
effects, and dialogue) in film
Requirements:

24. You have to submit 4 responses over the course of the semester,
choosing one film from each
numbered pair (choose 1a or 1b; choose 2a or 2b; etc.). Late
submissions are not accepted.
Content:
You do not have to do external research for the weekly
responses, although you are welcome to
incorporate readings and earlier class discussions. If you
include external sources, simply include a
bibliography.
Your response should be about 250 words.
For each response you should consider one or more of the
following questions, being sure to address
aspects of sound (music, sound effects, and dialogue):
1. What does the film tell us about the Middle Ages, and how is
that achieved? Does the “Middle
Ages” portrayed fall into one of Umberto Eco’s “ten little
Middle Ages”?
2. What does the film tell us about particular social or cultural
conditions or events during the time
in which it was produced, and how is that achieved?
3. Discuss the genre of the film (you can define genre however
you want – documentary vs.
fiction, detective film vs. rom-com, children’s vs. adult film,
etc.). What are the key features of
the film that make you categorize the film this way and how

25. does the genre relate to the
medieval aspect of the film?
4. Provide specific detail about the use of diegetic music in the
film and how it intersects with
other aesthetic elements (mise-en-scène, cinematography,
editing, or narrative structure). Does
the diegetic music sound medieval? Does it try to evoke the
medieval in a more conceptual
way?
5. Provide specific detail about the use of non-diegetic music in
the film and how it intersects with
other aesthetic elements (mise-en-scène, cinematography,
editing, or narrative structure). Does
the non-diegetic music sound medieval in any way? Does the
non-diegetic music relate to other
films in the genre it represents?
Assessment:
You will get a single letter grade on each response. Marks will
evaluate insight into and depth of
engagement with the film. Grammar, structure, and spelling will
not be marked separately, but a
response may lose a grade increment if the writing is
particularly poor.
All responses are due at noon on the date indicated below. For
film details, see the syllabus.

26. January 23, Response 1a on The Seventh Seal
January 30, Response 1b on Saladin
February 6, Response 2a on Robin Hood
February 25, Response 2b on Monty Python and the Holy Grail
March 4, Response 3a on The Princess Bride
March 18, Response 3b on The Canterbury Tales
March 25, Response 4a on Vision aus dem Leben der Hildegard
von Bingen
April 1, Response 4b on Game of Thrones, Season 1, episode 1