The Essential Media Studies Guide - terms

1. The
Essential
Media
Studies
Guide

2. Key concepts in Media Studies
Media audiences Who is watching? How audiences are
identified, constructed,
addressed and reached;
how audiences find,
choose, consume and
respond to media texts.
Media technologies How do they do that? What kinds of
technologies are
available to whom, how
to use them, the
differences they make to
the production process as
well as the final product.
Media agencies/
ownership
Who made /owns what? Who produces the text;
roles in production
process, media
institutions, economics
and ideologies,
intentions and results.
Media languages How do they convey
meaning?
Film Language; codes
and conventions;
narrative structure.
Media categories What is it? Different media
(television, radio, cinema
etc); forms
(documentary,
advertising etc); genres,
other ways of
categorising text; how
categorisation relates to
understanding.
Media representation How are things, places
and people portrayed
(shown) in the media?
The relation between
media texts and the
actual places, people,
events, ideas;
stereotyping and its
consequences.

3. Introduction to Media
Key Media Terms
Sound
Diegetic Sounds which can be seen and heard by the characters
Non diegetic A sound that does not exist in the ‘real world’ of the film, for
example, soundtrack which the characters cannot hear
Sound effects Sounds added during post-production to build up mood or to
reinforce action eg gun shot
Sound bridge When sound carries on from one scene to another or when we hear
a sound and then cut to the scene where the sound comes from
Dialogue Conversations between characters
Voice over When the audience can hear a character speaking over the top of a
scene, often telling us what they think or feel
Soundtrack A complete audio component of a film to include all sounds,
specifically the music track
Incidental music Background music. It adds atmosphere to the action
Ambient sound Sound that is natural to the setting. It can be added in at the
editing stage
Camera Shots
Establishing shot The opening shot in a scene that establishes the location,
where people are in the location and the mood of the scene
Close up A shot showing a person from their shoulder up – often used to
show emotion
Mid shot A shot of the subject from the waist up – often used to show
relationships between people and/or objects
Wide shot A shot that shows a location and the people in it
Long Shot A shot that shows a person from the top of their head to their
feet and we can see the location that they are in and how the
feel about the location
Birds eye view shot A shot directed vertically downwards towards the subject
Point of View Shot A shot from the perspective of the character from the scene
Over the shoulder
shot
A shot in which the subject of the shot is filmed from behind
a person’s head and shoulders

4. Camera Angles
High angle Shot taken from a higher level than the subject and angled
down towards them to give the effect of making the subject,
look weak
Low angle Shot taken from a lower level and angled up towards the
subject in order to give the effect of power and authority of
the subject
Canted angle A shot taken at an angle so that horizontal and vertical
surfaces appear diagonal. It can be used to show that
something is wrong or strange or that a character has a
troubled mind.
Birds eye view shot A shot directed vertically downwards towards the subject. It
is used to emphasis the scale of things.
Camera Movements
Pan A horizontal movement of the camera from left to right or
right to left on a fixed axis
Tilt A camera movement up or down on a horizontal axis
Track Movement typically used to follow a character or object in
motion. The camera may move along a track. Can move left and
right or in and out.
Crane A Crane shot is where the camera, mounted on a crane, moves
around at a distance above ground level.
Steadicam Used on a harness with a system of weights and balances to
minimise unwanted movement when filming hand-held
Handheld cam Movements of a camera that is not mounted and usually held by
the cameraperson
Editing
Transition Any kind of editing from one shot to another
Cut One image is suddenly replaced by another.
Graphic match Objects with common characteristics of shape or colour are
used in successive shots

5. Action match When an action that begins in one shot is continued or
completed in the next eg opening a door.
Crosscutting/Parallel
Editing
Jumping between different scenes in order to create a link
between them
Dissolve One images changes into another
Fade in A shot gradually and smoothly appears on the screen
Fade out A shot gradually and smoothly disappears from the screen and is
usually followed by black.
Long take A shot of long duration (time)
Short take A shot of short duration (time)
Fast Paced When shots are short in length (duration). It can make the
audience feel anxious, or add to the speed of the action
Slow Paced When shots are long in length (duration). This may make the
scene feel more relaxed and the audience relaxes
Slow motion The action on screen is reduced in speed
Special Effect Technology that has been used to create some kind of illusion
Mise en scene
Costume, Hair and
Make up
What the character is wearing and how they have been made to
look. It can tell us a lot about their personality
Setting and Props The location of the scene (and time period) and all the objects
we can see in the location.
Facial Expressions
and Body Language
The feelings expressed on a person’s face and what their body
is doing. It can tell us a lot about how they feel and what they
think of other people
Lighting and Colour Light can be used to highlight a special object or tell us about a
person eg dark lighting means that a person is bad.
Certain colours also make us think of certain things eg red could
mean blood, white means innocent
Position of object in
the frame
Where objects/people are placed in the shot. If they are in the
middle it often shows they are important

6. Track Left Track Right
Crane Up Crane Down

7. Editing Techniques
Montage
+ + =
Rocky is getting stronger and stronger for a fight.