1. Learning
Materials – Film
Analysis UNIT

2. Table of Contents:
LEARNING MATERIALS
1. What are narrative elements?
2. Discussion points: narrative elements in Vincent (1982).
3. What are mise-en-scene elements?
4. Discussion points: German Expressionist mise-en-scene elements in Vincent
(1982).
5. What cinematic styles and genres referenced in Vincent (1982)?
o German Expressionism (artistic style)
o German Expressionist elements in film
o Examples of German Expressionist films
o Gothic-horror poetry and narratives
o Gothic art (symbolism)
o Gothic-horror visual themes (motifs)

3. NARRATIVE
ELEMENTS
• Genre
• Character
• Themes
• Setting
• Narrative
• Point of view

4. GENREFrench word meaning “kind” or
“sort”
Genres are formed by conventions
and sought to categorise artistic
works
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Elements slide

5. THEMEA unifying or dominant idea central
to a text
In moving text (film) theme is
sometimes conveyed through visual
motifs
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Narrative
Elements slide

6. CHARACTERCharacter: a person in the story who has certain characteristics.
Some characters might be:
• central to the story’s action like a protagonist and or
antagonist
• and some may be static - no change or
development by the end of the story).
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Narrative
Elements slide

7. SETTINGSetting is a geographic location in
which a story takes place, and
helps create the main backdrop
and mood for the story.
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Elements slide

8. NARRATIVE
Derives from the Latin verb narrare which
means “to tell”
A spoken or written account of connected
events; a story.
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Narrative
Elements slide

9. POV
Point of View
In film, point-of-view refers narrative
point-of-view, which determines
through whose perspective the story
is viewed.
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Narrative
Elements slide

10. Key aspects of mise-en-scene
Décor
Lighting
Costume
Space

11. Key aspects of mise-en-scene
Décor
An important element of ‘putting in the scene’ is décor, the placement of
objects and the setting of a scene. Décor can be used to amplify character,
emotion or the dominant mood of a film.

12. Key aspects of mise-en-scene
Lighting
The intensity, direction and quality of lighting
have a profound effect on the way an image is
perceived. Light affects the way colours are
rendered, both in terms of hue and depth, and
can focus attention on particular elements of
the composition.

13. Key aspects of mise-en-scene
Space
The representation of space affects the reading
of a film. Depth, proximity, size and
proportions of the places and objects in a film
can be manipulated through camera placement
and lens, lighting and décor, effectively
determining mood or relations between
elements in the

14. Key aspects of mise-en-scene
Costume
Costume simply refers to the clothes that
characters wear. Using certain colours or
designs, costume is used in narrative cinema to
signify characters or make clear distinctions
between characters.

15. Mise-en-scene and German
Expressionism
Formal elements of German Expressionist films
According to Nancy West from the University of Missouri,
Columbia, the formal elements of German Expressionist film
include, but are not limited to, the following:
• Chiaroscuro lighting: lighting that employs extreme
contrasts of light and dark, thus creating dramatic shadows
• a preoccupation with mirrors, glass, and other reflective
surfaces
• the use of anthropomorphism, which is the attribution of a
human form, human characteristics, or human behaviour to
non-human things
• an interest in abstractionism, which is a style of art that
privileges internal form over pictorial representation

16. Lighting in expressionist films
Expressionist films use simple lighting from the
front and sides, illuminating the scene flatly and
evenly to stress the links between the figures
and the décor. In some notable cases, shadows
are used to create additional distortion (see
chiaroscuro lighting). ---Bordwell and Thompson

17. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Chiaroscuro lighting
lighting that employs
extreme contrasts of
light and dark, thus
creating dramatic
shadows

18. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Chiaroscuro lightinglighting that employs
extreme contrasts of light
and dark, thus creating
dramatic shadows

19. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Chiaroscuro lighting
lighting that employs extreme
contrasts of light and dark, thus
creating dramatic shadows

20. A preoccupation
with mirrors, glass,
and other reflective
surfaces
Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Preoccupation with
reflective surfaces

21. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Preoccupation with reflective
surfaces

22. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Preoccupation with reflective
surfaces
A preoccupation with
mirrors, glass, and
other reflective
surfaces

23. The use of
anthropomorphism
anthropomorphism
is the attribution of a
human form, human
characteristics, or
human behaviour to
non-human things
Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Anthropomorphism

24. The use of
anthropomorphism
anthropomorphism
is the attribution of a
human form, human
characteristics, or
human behaviour to
non-human things
Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Anthropomorphism

25. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Anthropomorphism
The use of
anthropomorphism
anthropomorphism
is the attribution of a
human form, human
characteristics, or
human behaviour to
non-human things

26. Formal Elements of German Expressionist Film
Anthropomorphism
The use of
anthropomorphism
anthropomorphism
is the attribution of a
human form, human
characteristics, or
human behaviour to
non-human things

27. Glossary of terms
mise-en-scene
French word meaning “placing on stage” or “put in
the scene”
When applied to the cinema, mise-en-scène refers to everything that
appears before the camera and its arrangement—composition, sets,
props, actors, costumes, sounds, and lighting.
The “mise-en-scène”, along with the editing of a film, influence the
realness of a film in the eyes of its viewers
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Objective Slide
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Aspects of Mise-en-scene
Slide

28. Glossary of terms
MOTIF
In narrative, a motif is any recurring element
that has symbolic significance in a story.
Through its repetition, a motif can help produce
other narrative (or literary) aspects such as
theme or mood.
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‘Gothic-Horror
Slide’

29. Glossary of terms
Characterisation
Characterisation : information that is given
about a character
This information can be given explicitly (told
directly) or implicitly (told indirectly).
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‘Characterisation
slide’

30. Glossary of terms
Multimodal
More than one
Way of Communicating
information
Therefore, a multimodal text is a text that uses more than one system of
communication. Multimodal texts often employ systems of visual, audial and
textual communications, because they (when working together) increase
audiences level of engagement and interest.
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Assessment Slide
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Objectives Slide