FILM LANGUAGE AND ELEMENTS OF STYLE

When I was a kid, I thought that movies were made in an hour and a half and that they were shot in
sequence. I was vaguely aware that there had to be a camera, but I imagined that it could change setups
instantaneously. . . . It took a long time for me to realize that movies are made. I had to step back even
further to notice that they are made of shots, that each shot is a unit in itself as well as part of the whole,
and that it is possible for the way a film is shot to convey its meaning.
— Bruce F. Kawin, How Movies Work

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 CHAPTER 1

THREE �
�
Scope & Sequence �
A fundamental principle of The Story of Movies is that film is more than an industry, more than a showcase for stars.
Film is a language. In this chapter, students understand that visual images can be “read” like other texts. They learn that
the composition of a shot as well as camera distance, angle, lighting, and the placement of a shot in a sequence all affect
how a person interprets the moving image.
Because a film is a whole made up of many parts, lesson 1 begins with the smallest part — the frame. Students tap prior
knowledge and gain new knowledge of key principles of art composition, which they then apply to reading visual texts from
To Kill a Mockingbird. In subsequent lessons, students study basic science principles of lighting and apply that to understand
how a cinematographer creates various visual effects. By the end of the chapter, students will have acquired a vocabulary of
film terms, including types of shots and editing techniques, and will be prepared to analyze multiple shots within a single scene.

Lesson 1 Understanding Composition

Activity A The Frame
Activity B Camera Distances and Angles

Lesson 2 Capturing Light and Movement on the Screen

Activity A Properties of Light
Activity B Creating Contrast, Depth, and Texture
Activity C Camera Mounts and Movements

Lesson 3 Editing To Kill a Mockingbird

Activity A Making a Scene
Activity B Understanding Continuity
Activity C How Music Communicates
Activity D Sound Effects

Lesson 4 Putting It All Together — Analyzing a Scene

Activity A Cinematic Points of View
Activity B Explicit and Implicit Information
Activity C Mise-en-Scène

Film Study Standards

1.0 Film Language. Students learn to read and interpret visual text by developing a film vocabulary, identifying editing
techniques, and analyzing film elements within selected scenes.
5.0 Cross-Curricular Connections. Students first tap their knowledge of other disciplines to study a film. They then apply
what they have learned about film to other disciplines, making connections between film and literature/language arts,
film and history/social studies, film and other arts, and film and sciences.

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 Lesson 1 Understanding Composition
Teacher Overview
A filmmaker is more than a good technician who understands how to operate a camera and control lights. A filmmaker must
also have an artistic understanding of what makes a good composition. In this lesson, students learn basic principles of art
composition, specifically the content and thoughtful arrangement of elements within a frame to suggest meaning.
Activity A begins with a discussion of Watson and the Shark, a famous work of art from the 18th century by American painter
John Singleton Copley. Through a guided discussion by the teacher, students discuss the painting’s narrative elements and
then identify visual symbols the artist used to suggest this narrative. They then complete a similar interpretation of a frame
from the trial scene of To Kill a Mockingbird, again identifying elements of composition that communicate meaning.
Activity B presents six different types of shots, each dependent on the position of the camera in relation to the subject within
the frame. Camera distances and angles are among the filmmaker’s communication tools, and the use of these tools determines
how the audience will interpret the visual text.

Learning Outcomes
Students will:
define composition;
understand that every frame, or movie still, has a “point of emphasis” or center of interest;
explain how the arrangement of objects or people within the frame creates meaning;
identify four camera distance shots — long shot, medium, close-up, and extreme close-up;
define perspective and explain how high-angle and low-angle shots change perspective.

Key Terms
(Note: Most terms are defined within the activity text that follows. You may also refer to the glossary.)
frame, composition, point of emphasis, close-up, extreme close-up, medium shot, long shot, establishing shot,
high-angle shot, low-angle shot

Lesson 1 Materials
Activity Print DVD
Activity A Visual-Thinking Activity 3-1: Watson and Still 3-1: Watson and the Shark
The Frame the Shark

Visual-Thinking Activity 3-2: What’s in a Still 3-2: Mayella on the

Frame? Witness Stand

Activity B Graphic Organizer 3-1: Camera-to-Subject

Camera Distances Distances
and Angles
Graphic Organizer 3-2: Camera-to-Subject
Angles

Graphic Organizer 3-3: Multiple Cameras =

One Shot

Visual-Thinking Activity 3-3: Shots and Stills 3-3, A–F: Shots and
Significance Significance

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Concept
1
The composition, or arrangement of elements, of a single frame of film communicates
meaning. �
�
Engage �
Display Still 3-1: Watson and the Shark, a painting completed in 1778 by
American artist John Singleton Copley, which is on permanent exhibit in the National
Gallery in Washington, D.C. Watson and the Shark is based on a true story. Students can
learn more about this story and the painting by logging on to The Story of Movies Web site. The painting is narrative because
it suggests conflict as well as action that has occurred and is yet to occur. First, ask students to provide single words that
describe the painting. Record these words on the chalkboard or overhead projector. These may include but are not limited to
danger, death, shark, heroes, suspense.
Distribute Visual-Thinking Activity 3-1: Watson and the Shark. Discuss students’ observations as recorded on their
activity sheets. Recommended answers are below.

1. What is the first thing that catches your attention in this painting? Answers will vary; some may say the figure
with the boat hook, but most are likely to say the young man in the water and the men reaching for him. This is not
accidental. Explain that this area is the foreground of the painting. It has more brightness than the area just to the
right or left. As a result, more details are visible. Emphasize that the two men reaching down also draws the eye to
what they are reaching for.

2. Identify three different actions captured in this single image. The rescuers reaching for the young man in the
water, the man thrusting the boat hook, the shark swimming with open jaws toward the young man.

3. Did you have difficulty at first seeing the shark in the foreground (or lower half) of the painting? If so, why
do you think this was the case? The lower right corner is dark compared to the left side of the frame.

4. Why didn’t the painter show the whole shark in bright light? Answers will vary. One interpretation may be that
the shark is mysterious and a creature of the deep. Others may respond that the painter wanted the people viewing
the painting to wonder at first what is happening before they actually saw and then understood the situation, thereby
creating suspense. Also, by putting the shark’s back part in darkness, its front end is more visible by contrast and
appears more menacing.

5. What is in the background (or upper portion) of the frame? A harbor scene. Point out that the background is
placid or calm compared to the turbulent action in the foreground.

6. What has happened in the moments prior to this one captured on canvas? Answers will vary. The young man
somehow fell into the water and lost his clothes. There may be a larger boat somewhere outside the frame from
which these rescuers have come. It is unlikely that they were on shore and responded to the youth’s cries for help.

7. What will happen next? We cannot know just by looking at the painting, but students may discover the fate of the
young man by participating in the Take 2 Web activity, “Who Was Watson?”

Explain & Explore

Define composition and share this information about composition with students:
Composition is the arrangement of all the elements that contribute to the appearance of a picture. The elements work together
to create meaning.
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 Watson and the Shark is a painting, and so its composition is static. That means no matter how long you stare at it, nothing
is going to change. In this one picture, the young man will never be rescued. Composition in motion pictures works along the
same principles of design as composition in a painting. However, a motion picture image is not static. It is dynamic. That
means it is always changing.

Emphasize the importance of composition in telling a story visually. Scenes are made up of shots, and shots are made
up of single images called frames. Composition is part of how the filmmaker tells
the story. Learning to identify elements of composition, therefore, is an important
visual-literacy skill.

Display Still 3-2: Mayella on the Witness Stand. While this image is
displayed, define frame and point of emphasis. A frame is a single photograph on
a strip of motion-picture film. Identifying elements within a single frame is the first
step in learning how to read moving images. The point of emphasis is the object or
person that is most important. It is the thing the photographer/cinematographer
wants the audience to notice.

Distribute Visual-Thinking Activity 3-2: What’s in a Frame? The questions on this worksheet relate to Still 3-2:
Mayella on the Witness Stand. Discuss the questions. Recommended answers are below.

Answer Key for Visual-Thinking Activity 3-2:

What’s in a Frame?

Identifying Details
1. What do you see in this frame? List all people, objects or props, and other details. The courtroom scene shows
the judge behind Mayella, who is on the witness stand. Atticus and Tom Robinson are at the defense table to the left.
Behind them are the people who have come to see the trial. To the left is the jury box with members of the jury. To
the right is the prosecutor and his table, and behind the bar is Bob Ewell. Objects include an American flag, Atticus’s
briefcase and papers, a calendar on the wall. To the judge’s left is another flag, which some students might correctly
guess is the flag of Alabama.

Analyzing Details
2. Where has the director placed the camera in order to get this shot? The camera is above the people and to the
rear, slightly angled, so most likely it is in the rear of the balcony.
3. Who, if anyone, is the point of emphasis in this shot? The judge and Mayella are the only characters facing
forward. Everyone else is looking at them, or more specifically, at Mayella. This emphasizes her and the importance
of her testimony, which is about to begin.
4. What is the purpose of this shot? To provide an overview of the courtroom. Emphasize, however, that those sitting
in the balcony would be African Americans and the children, and so the camera is showing the courtroom from their
point of view.

Emphasize this important detail about composition: Every composition has a point of emphasis, or center of interest. In
Watson and the Shark, the point of emphasis is the attempted rescue, that is, the young man in the water and the two men
reaching for him. In the frame of Mayella on the witness stand, as discussed above, the point of emphasis is Mayella. Even
though she appears small, her testimony will determine Tom Robinson’s fate.

View Still 3-1: Watson and the Shark again. This time ask students to identify some of the lines within the painting.
These include the diagonal line of the boat hook in the upper right of the frame, the diagonal line of what appears to be
the boat oar in the middle left of the frame, and the vertical lines of the ships’ masts in the background. Note also the
black man’s arm, which leads the eye down to the body.

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 Share this information with students:
Lines are elements of composition. The human eye tends to follow lines. A painter or photographer uses lines to guide the
viewer’s eye around a composition. In Watson and the Shark, for example, the boat hook draws our attention down to
the water, where we see the shark that we may not at first have noticed. The line that is the oar directs us to the rescuers
reaching for the boy. Even the boy’s arm, reaching upward, is a type of line. The arm directs our attention to the man with
the boat hook. In this way the painter controls what the person viewing the painting sees. The same is true in moving-image 1
composition. The cinematographer uses lines to control what the audience sees. �
�
Display Still 3-2: Mayella on the Witness Stand again. Ask students to identify the lines at work in this
composition. These include the horizontal lines of the bench rails and the diagonal rail in front of the jury that directs �
our eye toward Mayella and the judge behind her.

Close
Share this statement from director Douglas Trumbull with students and ask them to explain, either through class discussion
or through a short freewriting activity, what he means:
A movie is a series of still photographs shown in rapid succession. When you understand what you can do with one
photograph, you can then understand what you can do with the rest of the film.

Who Was Watson?

The painting Watson and the Shark is based on a true story. Learn
whether the young man survived his ordeal at sea, as well as more
about the composition of the painting by going to The Story of Movies
Web site at www.storyofmovies.org.

Concept
Filmmakers use camera distances and angles to direct the viewers’ attention to the object of greatest significance within the
frame or shot and to suggest meaning.

Engage
Remind students that the title of this chapter includes the term film language. Ask them to respond to this question: How do
you communicate different ideas using a camera? Teachers need not explore the question in detail, but should touch upon
the main idea that the camera selects what the audience sees and how. That includes angles and distances.

Explain & Explore

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-1: Camera-to-Subject Distances. Ask students to explain why the
word subject on the graphic organizer appears larger as the camera moves closer. Define distance as the size and closeness
of the subject. Distances range from extreme close-up to long shot. Review three kinds of shots on the graphic organizer
as suggested below.
Close-Up Shot
A close-up allows the cinematographer to focus the audience’s attention on a specific detail. This detail fills the entire
frame. Faces, hands, or individual objects are often shown in close-up or extreme close-up. Filmmakers use a close-
up or extreme close-up shot for a reason and not just to play with the zoom lens! The close-up provides what the
filmmaker believes is necessary or meaningful information for the audience.

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 Medium Shot
A medium shot reveals more of the subject. If the subject is a person, a medium shot usually shows that person from
the waist up.
Long Shot
A long shot is often called an establishing shot because it shows the subject in its surroundings and establishes the
setting. In long shots, the subject generally appears small in relation to the surroundings.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-2: Camera-to-Subject Angles. Define angle as the way the camera
views the subject. Angles range from high to low. Filmmakers use angles to create interest but also to suggest meaning
or relationships. Review the types of angles on the graphic organizer as suggested below.

High-Angle Shot
In a high-angle shot, the camera is above the subject and looks down. This can make the subject appear small, weak,
or unimportant.
Low-Angle Shot
A low-angle shot looks up at the subject and can make the subject seem large or impressive.
Eye-Level Shot
This shot looks at the subject on approximately the same level as the subject.

Ask: How are camera angles different from camera distances? Explain that both angles (high to low) and distances (near to
far) create different types of visual effects. The placement of the camera is critical in creating these effects.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-3: Multiple Cameras = One Shot. Review the graphic organizer to
emphasize the following important point about filmmaking during production: Often the director films a scene from
multiple angles and distances and then later, in post-production, decides which shots are the best. Explain that the left
side of the graphic, “On the Set,” illustrates the different placements of three cameras in relationship to the subject. The
right side of the graphic, “In the Studio,” illustrates the editing process.

Share this information with students:

A single camera captures a single image. Shooting a film, however, involves more than placing actors on a stage and recording
their performance. When filming a movie, the director generally uses multiple cameras to capture the same action from different
distances and angles. The editor selects the best shots from one or more of the cameras. The decision of which footage from
which camera to use depends in part on the quality of the camerawork and lighting, the quality of the acting performance,
and the overall meaning of the shot.

Distribute Visual-Thinking Activity 3-3: Shots and Significance. Students will use this sheet while analyzing
camera distances and angles for movie stills displayed on the DVD.

Display Stills 3-3, A–F: Shots and Significance to illustrate camera distances and angles. Explain that distances and
angles give filmmakers ways to draw attention to the object of greatest significance in the frame. Allow students time to
record their responses to each still before moving on to the next. Recommended answers follow.

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 1
�
�

A B C �

D E F

Answer Key for Visual-Thinking Activity 3-3:

Shots and Significance

Still Type of Shot Object of Greatest Significance

A Medium, low-angle Tom Robinson, because he is in the foreground; Atticus is smaller, and the
people in the balcony are even smaller.

B High-angle, medium shot Dill and Scout crouching. By photographing them from above, the cinematog-
rapher makes them appear somewhat smaller, and this suggests vulnerability.

C High-angle Jem and Scout, because they are in a somewhat vulnerable position in the
Radley yard.

D Eye-level, medium Bob Ewell’s hand, which seemingly reaches out toward Atticus’s children inside
the car. Right in front of the viewer, it seems most menacing.

E Close-up The spelling bee medal in Jem’s hand is the only thing the viewer sees. The
CU is the cinematographer’s way of saying to the audience, “Notice this!
It’s important.”

F Long shot No one thing is emphasized except the emptiness of the street. Jem is alone.

Close
Ask students to make a connection between the information they learned in this activity and television commercials. How
can they apply what they have learned about camera angles and distances to the commercials they may see on television?

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 Lesson 2 Capturing Light and Movement on the Screen
Teacher Overview
In this lesson, students focus on two additional elements of composition — light and movement. Both light and movement create
meaning and can trigger audience responses. Light draws attention to key, or principal, areas within the frame. The careful control
of light can produce shadows that conceal details and create moods, suggest realism, and direct the audience’s attention to points
of emphasis. Activity A begins with a simple in-class science activity in which students manipulate light from an ordinary table
lamp. In this way they begin to understand basic properties of light that all cinematographers know. They then use this
knowledge to identify ways cinematographers control light and, thereby, what the audience sees. Activity B presents additional
information about visual elements, specifically how cinematographers create contrast and the illusion of depth and texture.
Likewise, movement — either of the camera or of the subject within the frame — is also significant and never accidental. For
example, movement toward the camera can create a sense of power and dominance. Movement away from the camera creates
emotional distance. Movement of a subject from the light into shadow might suggest a character’s shift into a troubled state of
mind or a frightening situation. In activity C, students identify types of movements and then practice interpreting the meaning
of those movements.
Learning Outcomes
Students will:
define three principles of lighting a frame — direction, intensity, and quality of light;
distinguish between high-key lighting and low-key lighting;
distinguish between contrast, depth, and texture in black-and-white images;
understand that movement in a shot both conveys information and draws the audience’s attention to important details;
identify and analyze movement in a shot.
Key Terms
(Note: Most terms are defined within the activity text that follows. You may also refer to the glossary.)
light source, key light, high-key lighting, low-key lighting, direction of light, backlighting, under lighting, side lighting, front lighting,
intensity of light, quality of light, diffuse light, hard light, soft light, medium light, contrast, depth, texture, fixed camera, pan, tilt, zoom,
mobile camera, dolly, tracking shot, crane

Lesson 2 Materials
Activity Print DVD
Activity A Group Activity 3-4: Properties of Light
Properties of Light
Graphic Organizer 3-4: What Is Light
Intensity?
Graphic Organizer 3-5: Three Ways to
Control Light
Visual-Thinking Activity 3-5: Light and Stills 3-4, A –D: Light and
Shadow Shadow

Activity B Graphic Organizer 3-6: What Is Contrast? Still 3-5: Putting Scout to Bed
Creating Contrast,
Graphic Organizer 3-7: What Are Depth and
Depth, and Texture
Texture?

Activity C Graphic Organizer 3-8: Camera Movements

Camera Mounts and
Screening Sheet 3-1: What’s in Motion, the Film Clip 3-1: What’s in
Movements
Camera or the Subject? Motion, the Camera or the
Subject?
Group Activity 3-6, Enrichment: Movement
as Language

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Concept 1
Light draws attention to key, or principal, areas in the frame. Light and shadows are never accidental but are used by the �
director as conscious decisions to control what the audience sees. �
�
Engage
Ask students to describe the light in their classroom. Ask: From where is the light in this room coming? What is the intensity of the
electric lights in this room? Is the light harsh or soft or balanced? Depending on your classroom, the answers will vary. Most likely
the light source is overhead fluorescent fixtures.
Next, turn off the lights. Ask students to describe the lighting in the room now. If there is natural lighting, where is its source
— the windows? The hallway? Ask students to describe the intensity and quality of the natural lighting in the room. Compare
it to the electric lights. What is the difference in quality? Emphasize this critical point: The use of light helps us to see. In
motion pictures, the use of light controls not only what we see but also how we see people, places, and objects.

Explain & Explore

Distribute Group Activity 3-4: Properties of Light. The three simple activities on this sheet illustrate a few basic
principles of light. Students will work with a partner and record their observations on the activity sheet. You may stop
after each activity, or allow students to complete all three before discussing their observations. Students’ descriptions will
vary; accept all reasonable responses. Then explain the basic scientific principles provided below.
Science Principle in Activity A
Light radiates, or spreads out in all directions, from its source. The lampshade controls the way the light radiates.
Cinematographers understand this basic principle and know how to control the direction of light from its source.
Science Principle in Activity B
Light travels in a straight path unless something changes its course. The ball is opaque, and so light cannot travel through
it. As a result, the ball blocks some but not all of the light and creates a shadow. As the object moves farther away
from the light source, the amount of light radiation increases and the depth of the shadow created by the ball
decreases. Cinematographers understand this as well. When photographing a shot for a film, they plan the layout
of the shot so that the light will strike certain objects but not others, creating shadows.
Science Principle in Activity C
The intensity, or quantity, of light creates different visual effects. The lower-wattage bulb creates a less sharp shadow than
the higher-wattage bulb.
(Note: Teachers can extend this activity to explore quality of light by repeating the steps in the activity using two
different-colored bulbs — pink and yellow, each of which will create slightly different visual effects.)

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-4: What Is Light Intensity? Explain that key light is the motivating
source of light in a shot, meaning it is the major source of light. The sun, a window, or a lamp are each examples. Review
additional concepts on the graphic organizer as suggested below.
High-Key Lighting
High-key lighting is a brightly lit shot in which more visual detail is obvious. The mood is more upbeat, cheerful.
Low-Key Lighting
Low-key lighting means less light is used, therefore the audience sees less visual detail. The shadows and high
contrast create a mysterious or secretive mood or atmosphere.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-5: Three Ways to Control Light. Now that students understand basic
principles of light, they can apply this knowledge to moving-picture images. By controlling the direction of the light and
its intensity and quality, cinematographers create various visual effects. Discuss the three key points on the graphic
organizer as suggested below.
Direction of Light
The angle of the light creates different effects. Backlighting, for example, can minimize shadows or, if bright enough,
can create a silhouette. Under lighting of a subject, from the bottom up, or side lighting creates different types of
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 shadows across the subject, which in turn affects how the audience sees it. Front lighting is placing the light source
in front of the subject.
Intensity of Light
By controlling the amount of light, a cinematographer can control what the audience sees. Light intensity can focus
attention on details of most importance while obscuring other, less-significant details. Sometimes, however, the
cinematographer wants to direct the audience’s attention to the darkness. A person standing in shadows, for
example, may suggest the person’s dark or mysterious intentions.
Quality of Light
A cinematographer can create a soft lighting effect by diffusing the light so that it doesn’t strike the subject directly.
Hard beams of light, on the other hand, strike the subject directly and result in a harsh, even glaring effect. For clari-
fication, ask students whether candlelight would be hard or soft, whether sunlight at noon on a cloudless day would
be hard or soft. Encourage students to provide additional examples.

Distribute Visual-Thinking Activity 3-5: Light and Shadow. Explain that

by controlling the direction, intensity, and quality of light, the cinematographer
tells a story visually. Stills 3-4, A – D go with this activity.

Display Stills 3-4, A – D: Light and Shadow and discuss the questions.
Recommended answers are below.
A

B C D

Answer Key for Visual-Thinking Activity 3-5: Light and Shadow

Still Type of Light Light Source and Direction

A Low-key
The light source appears to be front and to the right because the children’s
faces are illuminated, not in shadow. The area around the children,
however, is in darkness, and less visual detail is seen. The low-key light
and the shadows of bushes on their faces underscore the fact that they are
spying on Atticus.

B Low-key The light source is to the right. Note the shadow of the lamp, the railing,
and Atticus’s chair on the jail wall. A light is directly on Atticus and as a
result, he is the point of emphasis and the amount of visual detail is greater.

C Low-key
Ewell’s face is half in shadow, indicating side lighting on his face. Scout’s
face is also illuminated. That means the light source is different for each
character, one light coming from the right and the other from the left,
allowing us to focus on both of them. Partially shadowing Ewell’s face
controls how the audience sees him. He is not clearly revealed, and that
underlines his intentions in this scene — unclear. Does he mean to harm
the children or not?

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 Still Type of Light Light Source and Direction
1
D High-key Since we are inside the courthouse and it would be lit by overhead lamps,
the lighting is bright, allowing the audience to see a great deal of visual �
detail, from the balcony to the ground floor. Foreground and background are �
equally lit so we can get a full grasp of the setting. There are few shadows.
�

Close
Ask: Why would a filmmaker want to control what the audience sees? Focus discussion on the main idea that by controlling the
light, the filmmaker can convey certain meanings, such as a character’s state of mind or the danger or mysteriousness of a
setting or situation. Controlling light, therefore, is a critical element of composition.

Concept
Contrast, depth, and texture are three design elements a cinematographer may use to communicate with the audience,
including creating points of emphasis and realistic detail.

Engage
Hold up two sheets of colored construction paper, one black and the other a different color — red or green, or yellow.
Ask students which of the two sheets are devoid of color. Most students are likely to say that the black sheet has no color.
Challenge their thinking by asking Is black a color? Is white a color? Are there different shades of black? of white?
Explain that filming in black and white does not mean the absence of color. A black-and-white palette has its own range of
shades that contribute to meaningful and artistic images. That palette is limited to a variety of gray tones. Also, filming in
black and white requires the careful use of light and camera angles. The characteristics or qualities associated with both color
and black-and-white film include the following — contrast, depth, and texture.

Explain & Explore

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-6: What Is Contrast? to introduce students to this basic principle of
art. Review the concept on the graphic organizer as suggested below.
Contrast
In photography, contrast is the difference between light and dark areas. Illustrate this concept by placing the red,
green, or yellow sheet of construction paper flat but slightly angled on top of the black sheet. Contrast creates edges
and lines. Whether diagonal, horizontal, vertical, or curved, lines focus the eye on points of emphasis. A cinematog-
rapher understands contrast and uses it to create points of emphasis within the movie frame.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-7: What Are Depth and Texture? to introduce students to these two
additional art concepts. Review the terms as suggested below.
Depth
In photography, depth is distance, or rather the illusion of distance. Illustrate this by folding the bottom third of the
black sheet of paper onto itself. Black against black creates no contrast and no depth. A cinematographer understands
principles of depth and creates the illusion of depth in a variety of ways. These include using lines to suggest distance,
using lighting that casts shadows, and placing objects or people in the foreground, mid-ground, or background of a
frame. Movement of objects within the frame also creates a sense of depth. An object becomes smaller when moving
from foreground to background or larger when moving from background to foreground.

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 Texture
Texture is what something feels like when you touch it. Again, use the construction paper to illustrate the concept.
Both sheets of construction paper are flat and smooth. Smoothness is a texture. In real life, a person could pick up
a rock and feel its roughness, slip a hand into water and feel its silkiness. In photography, however, texture must
be suggested through visual design or close focus. The reason is that a rock is a three-dimensional object but a
photograph or movie screen is, like the construction paper, two-dimensional. In photography, texture is the
graininess of an image. Grain creates patterns and shapes that give the illusion of a variety of textures.

Emphasize that both depth and texture create realism in composition, so that the
audience members forget they are looking at a flat movie screen and instead feel as
if the image on the screen is three-dimensional.

Display Still 3-5: Putting Scout to Bed to illustrate the three key concepts of
contrast, depth, and texture. Discuss the photograph as suggested below.

Still 3-5 : Putting Scout to Bed

Contrast: Light in the left side of the frame is focused on Atticus. He is in the background and smaller than Calpurnia, who
is in the foreground, just outside the door. But his dark suit against the light hallway focuses attention on him. Although Cal
is mostly in shadow, the way the light falls on her skirt, collar, and hat creates contrast.

Depth: The placement of Atticus in the background, making him smaller, and Calpurnia in the foreground, making her larger,
creates depth, as does the brightness of the light fixture in the hall. Also, the larger door in the foreground framing the smaller
door in the background adds depth.

Texture: Clapboards and shadows create texture, but so does the fabric of Cal’s skirt and the wooden grate across the screen
door. The screen itself creates a sort of fuzzy graininess that is textural.

Close
Ask students why a director might choose to film in black and white. Share with students this information: In 1961, when
this film was made, most movies (but not all) were filmed in color. Director Robert Mulligan has said that he could not
imagine filming this particular story, To Kill a Mockingbird, in color, in part because the use of black and white worked so well
to communicate the dramatic themes of the film, including the mystery of Boo Radley and the racism of Maycomb. In addition,
he felt black and white conveys a sense of realism. Ask students to suggest other reasons that directors would choose to use
black and white, such as to portray good versus evil.

Concept
Movement creates the illusion of three dimensions, introduces information to the audience, and often draws attention to
important details within the frame.

Engage
Share this information about movement with students:
Just as camera angles and distances and lighting are visual elements in composition, so, too, is movement. Movement creates
the illusion of three dimensions, allows the director to tell a story from multiple viewpoints, and adds visual interest. Movement
introduces information about the subject and allows the cinematographer to show action from multiple points of view. Motion
of a figure (either human or object) within the frame can also direct our attention to an important detail and create suspense.

64
Explain & Explore
Explain that there are two basic methods of capturing movement on film:
1. Filming the subject as it moves within the frame while the camera remains in a stationary position
2. Moving the camera itself to follow the subject 1
Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-8: Camera Movements. Review key points on the graphic organizer as �
suggested below. �
Fixed Camera �
The camera is stationary, in that it is mounted in one place. The camera itself, however, can pan, meaning it moves
from side to side; tilt, meaning it moves up and down; or zoom, meaning it moves forward or backward.
Mobile Camera
The camera is mounted on a platform that can move around the set. A number of devices enable the camera to move
forward, backward, to circle, or to sweep. A dolly is a type of platform with wheels. It allows the camera to move
throughout the set. A tracking shot allows the camera to move along with the subject at various speeds. The film
crew actually lays rails to allow the camera to roll smoothly. The camera operator may ride on the platform with
the camera, or the crew may operate the camera by means of remote control. A crane shot is one where the camera
is mounted on a boom or a mechanical arm and so can move through the air. Cinematographers often use this
mechanical means for getting an overhead, or high-angle, shot of a large crowd, such as at concerts or rallies.

Distribute Screening Sheet 3-1: What’s in Motion, the Camera or the Subject? Review the directions. Encourage
students to jot their observations while viewing the clips.

View Film Clip 3-1: What’s in Motion, the Camera or the Subject? Discuss students’ observations. Answers
are below.

Answer Key for Screening Sheet 3-1:

What’s in Motion, the Camera or the Subject?

Shot Describe the movement. Fixed or Mobile Camera?

The staircase A man runs down many flights of stairs and then part- Mobile and fixed. The camera follows the
from The way up again. man’s actions, slowly moving downward
Cameraman as he descends the stairs, stopping, then
moving upward as he climbs back up.

The chariot A man is driving a chariot in a race. He is moving within Mobile and fixed. The mobile camera is
race from the frame. Then he is filling the frame. At one point, the one that moves with the chariot drivers,
Ben Hur chariot seems to roll over the camera on the ground. keeping pace with them. The fixed cam-
era shots are those where the horses and
chariots pass into and out of the frame.

Shots of the There are two types of movements here — overhead Mobile. The camera, positioned over-
city from movement, as if a plane is flying over the city, and the head, moves slowly in all shots. In the
West Side movements of cars on the bridge and in the streets and of final shot, the camera is fixed but zooms
Story children playing in a playground. to a close up of the teenage boy who is
snapping his fingers.

The shadow Jem crawls on the porch, and a shadow enters the frame Fixed. In each shot, the camera remains
from To Kill a then moves out of the frame in the same position.
Mockingbird

65
 Emphasize this key point: Movement of a figure within the frame can focus the viewer’s attention on an important detail.
For example, in the scene where Jem, Scout, and Dill are spying on Boo, Jem is staring through the window. He at first
does not see — but the audience does — the movement of a shadow into the frame. Movement within the frame allows
the audience to see what the character does not and so creates suspense. In that same scene, when the shadow moves
away and out of the frame, the audience knows that the immediate danger has passed.

Enrichment
Explain the assignment by sharing the information below with students.
Now that you understand basic camera movements and have practiced identifying movements in shots, you are ready to search
for and identify examples of movement in To Kill a Mockingbird. In this activity you will work in a group to select two shots
from the film to analyze. You will make a presentation to the class, first explaining the use of movement and then screening
the shots.
(Note: Some teachers may wish to adapt this assignment by allowing students to select scenes from films other than To Kill
a Mockingbird. In this way, they will apply what they have learned to other viewing experiences.)

Distribute Group Activity 3-6, Enrichment: Movement as Language. Teachers may wish to conduct this activity
with small groups in class or assign this as independent screening. The activity requires the use of a DVD player and a
DVD copy of To Kill a Mockingbird. While examples of movement from this film will vary with each group, depending on
the scenes they select, below are recommended scenes that provide excellent examples of movement.

DVD chapter 6 Atticus’s Watch (Camera moves through the window into Scout’s room.)

DVD chapter 8 Boo Radley’s House (Subjects move within the frame.)

DVD chapter 15 The Best Shot in This County (Subjects move within the frame.)

DVD chapter 16 At the Robinsons’ (Camera moves as the car drives away.)

Close
Emphasize that movement within a frame is never accidental but an intentional decision of the director and the cinematographer
as a means of communicating to the audience.

Testing Light Sources and Positions

Conduct an experiment that tests this statement: The intensity of
light and the position of the light source create different visual effects.
Find out how to proceed by going to The Story of Movies Web site
at www.storyofmovies.org.

66
Teacher Overview
Just as the cinematographer controls the camera, telling the audience where to look, so too does the film editor shape what
and how the audience sees. This lesson presents the final two elements of film composition — editing and sound. Editing is
all about choice. To create from streams of raw footage a story that progresses logically and maintains the audience’s interest,
the editor considers three things — the intended meaning of the scene, pacing, and continuity. In activities A and B, students
learn that pacing involves the duration of a shot or scene, and that continuity is piecing together the shots and scenes so that
a logical chronology emerges. Both are necessary not only for a story to make sense but also to create suspense and keep the
audience engaged.
In activities C and D, students review basic characteristics of sound and use that knowledge to better understand how music
and sound contribute to the overall meaning of the film. Music and sound convey information and affect the response of the
audience. To achieve this effect requires careful planning or designing of the soundtrack. Too many sounds heard
simultaneously will confuse the audience and just revert to noise.

Learning Outcomes
Students will:
define basic terms associated with editing techniques, including montage;
explain the meaning of continuity in a scene;
identify transitional devices the editor uses to move smoothly from one scene to another;
define four principles of music: rhythm, pitch, dynamics, and tone;
understand that sound, like music, has volume and pitch and must be carefully controlled in order to convey
information or affect audience response;
distinguish between visible, or on-screen, and invisible, or off-screen, sounds.

Key Terms
(Note: Most terms are defined within the activity text that follows. You may also refer to the glossary.)
rough cut, pacing, reel time, real time, transition, montage, continuity, sequence, cut, fade in, fade out, dissolve, rhythm, dynamics,
pitch, tone, amplitude, sound editing, sound editor

Lesson 3 Materials
Activity Print DVD
Activity A Graphic Organizer 3-9: Editing Decisions None
Making a Scene

Activity B Group Activity 3-7: Time, Continuity, and None

Understanding Meaning
Continuity

Activity C Graphic Organizer 3-10: What Is Music

How Music Composition?
Communicates Screening Sheet 3-2: Musical Options for Film Clip 3-2: Musical Options
Lawrence of Arabia for Lawrence of Arabia

Activity D Graphic Organizer 3-11: What Is Sound?

Sound Effects Graphic Organizer 3-12: Visible and
Invisible Sounds
Screening Sheet 3-3: Sound Bytes Film Clip 3-3: Sound Bytes

67
Concept
The film editor works with shots. He or she links shots together to form sequences and scenes. A number of factors
determine which shots the editor will select and the order in which they will play in the final film.

Engage
Share the following quotation from director Elia Kazan with students, then use the guided discussion to test their listening
and critical-thinking skills.
Climaxes in life go clickety-click and they’re over. When a film director comes to a crucially important moment, he can stretch
it, go from one close-up to another, to the people who are dramatically involved or to the people who are watching the action,
back and forth, back and forth. In this way time is stretched for dramatic emphasis.
Guided Discussion
1. What do you think the director means when he says climaxes in life go “clickety-click and they’re over”?
They happen quickly.
2. How does a director stretch time, in other words, slow it down, during really important scenes in a film?
By using close-up shots of the people involved in the action or watching the action.
3. Why would a director want to slow down the time? Why not let the dramatic moments on the screen go
“clickety-click”? To build suspense and get the audience wondering what will happen next, and also to emphasize
and perhaps to savor the moment.

Explain & Explore

Review, if necessary, the film editor’s role. (See chapter 2, lesson 4.)

Share with students this information about what an editor does in the studio during post-production:
A feature-length film of approximately 2 hours running time may generate 20 to 40 hours of raw footage. It is from this raw
material that the director and film editor select the shots they think work best to tell the story. Then they assemble them into a
rough cut. The rough cut is still not the final film. The director and editor may tighten the pace still more or reshoot a shot or
scene. It is all part of the process of telling the story visually, using the best images, the best transitions, and best sound possible.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-9: Editing Decisions to illustrate how the editor, working with the director,
makes decisions about assembling the final film. Review the key concepts on the graphic organizer as suggested below.
Meaning
Poorly lit or poorly acted shots may be easily discarded on the cutting-room floor. But the editor is not just looking
at film quality or fine acting when deciding which shots to use. Remind students that a director may shoot the same
scene multiple times and may use multiple cameras in different positions. Each camera records the action from a
different angle. In the editing room, the director selects which shots to use based on his intended meaning. He or
she may decide, for example, to show a reaction shot (see glossary or review if necessary definition as presented in
chapter 2, lesson 3, activity B) to convey to the audience that a character is frightened. Or the director may decide
to show a long shot at the beginning so that the audience understands just where the action is taking place.
Continuity
Continuity creates the impression that events flow smoothly in sequence, one after the other. Remind students that
a director usually does not photograph a movie in sequence. That task of selecting and combining shots in a logical
order happens in the studio. (Students will study continuity in more detail in activity B.)
Pacing
Pacing is the overall rhythm of the scene. If a scene runs too long, the audience will become bored. If the scene runs
too quickly, the audience may not take in all the information the director provides. Either way, the director’s intended
meaning and effect may fail. Two tools the film editor uses to create a well-paced movie are reel time and transitions.
Reel time is the compression or expansion of time. Most movies, though not all, alter time. In some instances, multiple
shots and scenes compress time, or shorten it, so that an hour or a month or even years occur on the screen in minutes.
68
 In other instances, the shots and scenes may extend time, drawing it out for emphasis and suspense. Filmmakers
create reel time in the editing room. They may slow time down by adding shots. They may speed time up by using
many images cut together, suggesting the passage of time.
Transitions are visual effects that bridge one shot or scene and another. One use of transitions is to compress real
time into reel time. A montage, for example, is a series of shots spliced together using transitions. Events that in real 1
time might take weeks can be compressed into seconds or minutes on screen.
�
A second use of transitions is to move smoothly from one shot to another, one scene to another. Transitional devices
�
include cuts, where one shot or scene ends abruptly and another begins; fades, where the image evenly appears —
fades in — from a black screen or disappears — fades out — to a black screen, and dissolves, where one image slowly �
fades out while another image gradually fades in, or appears.

Close
Share this information with students:
The editor’s job of assembling shots into scenes, and scenes into a well-paced story may take as much as three months. At this
point, the film is called a rough cut, because even then it is not complete. The final cut may take additional months.

Concept
Continuity is the arrangement of shots to suggest sequential action.

Engage
First, write the word continuity on the chalkboard or overhead projector and ask students to write a definition of the word in
their notebooks. Do not provide any prompts. After a minute or so, add this second word to the board or projector screen —
continuous. Ask students to define this word as well. Once they have finished, ask which word was more familiar and therefore
easier for them to define. Continuous means uninterrupted in time. Although continuity is related in meaning, in film it refers
to the order in which images are arranged. The activity that follows will help students understand film continuity.

Explain & Explore

On the chalkboard or overhead projector, write these three shots:

Jem tells Scout he’s got to Scout waits for Jem, A shotgun blast shatters
go back for his pants. counting to 10. the silence.

Ask students if they recall this scene in the film. It occurs early in act 2, after Jem, Scout, and Dill have been spying on
Boo Radley in the Radley backyard. As they escape, Jem’s pants get snagged on the wire fencing and he wiggles out of
them. Ask what happens next. The answer is that Jem joins Scout and then scurries back to get his pants, returns with his
pants, and hurriedly puts them on. For a brief moment, however, between the gunshot and Jem’s reappearance unharmed,
neither Scout nor the audience knows what has happened to Jem.

Now, rearrange the order of the shots and ask students how ordering the shots in this way would change the meaning of
the scene.

A shotgun blast shatters Jem tells Scout he’s got to Scout waits for Jem,
the silence. go back for his pants. counting to 10.

Ask which arrangement is more suspenseful and why. If the shot occurs before Jem goes for his pants, then the audience
doesn’t worry that he is the one shot.

69
 Distribute Group Activity 3-7: Time, Continuity, and Meaning. Allow time for students to complete the activity
of arranging shots in two different orders to alter meaning. Then, as a class, discuss their arrangements. Some students
may frame the scene with the image of the grandfather clock, for example. The clock images, however, need not open
and close the sequence. The long shot of the empty street at night may either open or close the sequence. The man may
sit up in bed at the sound of the baby crying, which suggests one meaning; or the man may sit up in bed at the sound of
the rock smashing the window, which would suggest a slightly different situation. Students may also discuss whose hand
— the intruder’s or the man’s — is on the doorknob.

Close
Explain that continuity also involves making sure that information dovetails with what was presented previously. A lot of “bloop-
ers” are errors in continuity. For example, a character is wearing a red hat in one scene and then suddenly it switches to blue.

Concept
A function of film music is to communicate relationships among the characters and to stimulate emotional response in
the audience.

Engage
Write this question on the chalkboard or an overhead projector: What is music? Encourage students to express their ideas,
prompting them as needed with additional questions, such as: Are the sounds animals make music? Is humming music? Is the
sound of traffic music?
Assign students to one of five groups. Each group will attempt to answer one of the five questions below. Allow students
10 minutes to brainstorm their questions and formulate answers with other members of their group.
What is the purpose of music?
Why do people listen to music?
What type of music is pleasant?
What type of music is unpleasant or upsetting?
How is music different from other environmental sounds or noises?
Discuss student responses, one group at a time. Most likely, responses will vary not only within the individual groups but
also among the groups. For example, not all students will agree on the type of music that is pleasing (or upsetting). Likewise,
most students may not agree on a basic definition of what music is. Encourage all reasonable responses.

Explain & Explore

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-10: What Is Music Composition? to introduce students to the four
basic principles of music. Review each concept on the graphic organizer as suggested below.
Rhythm
Rhythm, or beat, is the pattern and duration of sound.
Dynamics
Dynamics is the strength of sound, the degree of volume, the loudness or softness of sound in relation to the mood
being communicated. What moods do you associate with loud music? with soft music?
Pitch
Pitch is the highness or lowness of sound. A melody, for example, may move upward or downward in pitch or stay
the same.

70
 Tone
Tone is also called timbre. It is the “color” or quality of sound, the resonance, determined by the type of instrument
being played. For example, the sound of a string being plucked resonates differently than the strumming sound of an
electric guitar, even though they might be playing the same note. Likewise the ring of a bell makes a different sound
than the blare of a trumpet. Tone might be harsh or soft, tinny or clacking, murmurous or trilling, buzzing or dinging.
1
Introduce the screening activity. This film clip is from a film released in theaters during the same year as To Kill a �
Mockingbird. The title is Lawrence of Arabia, and it tells the true story of a British officer, T. E. Lawrence, who fought
�
against Turkey in World War I. The film won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1962. Students may be interested
in knowing that To Kill a Mockingbird was also nominated for Best Picture. �

Distribute Screening Sheet 3-2: Musical Options for Lawrence of Arabia. The film clip has three segments. Each
segment shows the same shot but with different audio effects. First, the shot plays without any soundtrack at all. Next,
the shot plays with three different types of music score. Finally, the shot plays with the original soundtrack. The segments
are quite short, less than two minutes each. Teachers should pause the DVD after each segment to allow students time to
complete the chart.

View Film Clip 3-2: Musical Options for Lawrence of Arabia. Discuss student observations after each segment.
Answers will vary. Recommended responses are below.

Describe the mood or emotion this scene

Describe what you see.
At first, it is unclear what is being shown. After a
few moments, however, students will recognize that
this is a wide expanse of sky and desert and two
riders are approaching one another on camels. Each
raises their whips. They are riding toward, then passing
one another.
suggests. Provide a reason for your answer.
Identifying the mood is difficult, in part, because there
is no soundtrack. Some students may recognize this.
Others may attempt to describe the mood as happy or
exciting if they interpret the two riders as relieved or
anxious to see one another. Others may describe the
mood as suspenseful, fearful, or threatening if they
perceive the riders to be charging one another.

Musical Option 1: Musical Option 2: Musical Option 3:

A Waltz
The first is a 19th-century waltz.
It is graceful, even restful. The
emotional response might be
peaceful or relaxing. You feel as
if you’re sailing over the sand to
the rhythm of the camel.
Banjo
The second type of music has a
more cheerful tone created by the
banjo. Its rhythm is more lively,
quicker-paced than the waltz.
Again, the emotional responses
will vary. Some students may
cite humorous, happy, or goofy.
The music makes you notice
the gawky, bouncing gait of
the camel.
The Orchestra
The third type of music actually
comes from the soundtrack for
Jaws. The pitch and tempo
suggest suspense or danger. The
music swells dramatically as the
riders near one another.
Emotional responses might
include fearful, suspenseful,
mysterious. The music drives you
forward and makes you anticipate
the moment of meeting.

71

What emotion does the music suggest?
Identifying the mood is easier when the music under-
scores the images. In this case, the mood is neither
relaxing nor cheerfully bouncy nor mysterious. It is
instead inspiring, heroic, sweeping, climactic.
How is this music score different from the
other scores you just heard?
The original soundtrack differs from the other types of
music in part 2 in that it is more gallant or dramatic.
The music has layers of instruments, and the dynamics
grow to a climax.

Close
Explain that sometimes a composer creates an original score for a soundtrack. Other times, the composer researches music
that has already been composed. This is especially true when a film is set in a particular historical period. A film set during
World War II, for example, might use music popular during that time to help the audience feel as if they are actually back
in the 1940s. If someone were to make a film about the life of a famous rock-’n’-roll star, the star’s music would likely be
featured in the soundtrack.

Concept
The soundtrack of a film communicates to the audience in one of two ways — by conveying information and by creating a
mood or an emotional response in the audience.

Engage
Sound effects in a movie soundtrack are not always what they appear to be. Share these two examples with students:
In the opening shot of Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones is running for his life. No one is chasing him, but something is
— a huge boulder. The sound that boulder makes on-screen is not from a boulder at all. It was made by the sound editor’s car,
a Honda Civic, rolling down his driveway!
In the film Star Wars, Luke Skywalker travels by land cruiser. Because this is a science fiction movie, there were no real land
cruisers to record for the film’s soundtrack. The sound editor or designer created the unique sound by recording through a
vacuum-cleaner pipe the traffic on a Los Angeles freeway!

Explain & Explore

List the following words on the chalkboard or overhead projector and ask students which, if any, are sound effects.
Dog barking Wind Silence
Breathing Car horn “Who’s there?”
Flute melody Clock ticking Cat hissing

Explain that on a film soundtrack there are three kinds of sounds — dialogue, music, and sound effects. Of the items
listed above, “Who’s there?” would not be a sound effect but, rather, dialogue. Likewise, the flute melody would be music
and not a sound effect. The absence of sound, or silence, is also a carefully planned part of a soundtrack when it occurs.

72
Explore with students how sound is both similar to and different from music. Share this information:
Both sound and music are vibrations. A vibrating object pulses or moves, and in moving, it creates sound waves that travel
through the air. A vibrating object might be a plucked string, as on a guitar, or a hammer plunked against a wire, as in a
piano. A vibrating object can also be a bat cracked against a baseball, chalk pressed and dragged across a chalkboard, a fist
pressing down upon an eggshell, and so on. 1
Like music, sound also has rhythm, dynamics, pitch, and tone. Also like music, sound’s purpose in a film is to convey �
information and to trigger an emotional response in the audience.
�
Explain that sound can have both literal and figurative meanings. Whether a dog barking is just a dog barking or a warning of �
danger or of an intruder will depend, in part, on the context of the sound. Ask students to suggest possible figurative meanings
for the items listed on the chalkboard or overhead projector. What might wind symbolize, for example? Some students may
suggest it depends on the type of wind — is it howling, is it gently blowing, is it roaring as a tornado might? Discussion along
these lines will introduce students to the complexity of sound and the various visual associations we make with sound.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-11: What Is Sound? Explain that sound is a vibration that travels
through the air. Sound can be compared to a wave. Review with students the following characteristics of sound as
suggested on the graphic organizer.
Wavelength
This is the distance between any point on the wave and the same point on the next wave. Wavelength determines
the quality or tone of music. A pleasant sound has a regular wave pattern. The pattern is repeated over and over.
Noise, however, has an irregular wave pattern.
Amplitude
This is the strength or power of a wave. The more energy the sound wave has, the louder the sound will be.
Intense sound is loud. Lower-energy waves result in softer sounds.
Frequency
Frequency is the number of times the wavelength occurs in one second. The faster the sound source vibrates, the
higher the frequency. Frequency determines pitch. A lion’s roar has a slower frequency than a bird’s chirp.
As a result, the lion’s roar is a low-pitched sound. The bird’s chirp is a high-pitched sound.

Emphasize this important point about sound editing: A soundtrack may include many different types of sounds. However, three
or four sounds playing at the same amplitude and frequency at the same time is just noise. The sound editor carefully controls or
orchestrates all sounds on the soundtrack.

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-12: Visible and Invisible Sounds. Discuss the key concepts on the
graphic organizer as suggested below.
Visible Sounds
These are sounds that relate directly to action on the screen. For example, a character slams a door. If the slamming
sound is missing from the soundtrack, the audience will notice.
Invisible Sounds
These are sounds that are heard but not seen. Such sounds add credibility to a scene — crickets “singing” on a sum-
mer night, traffic roaring outside an office window, wind howling through trees. Invisible sound creates the illusion
of a real world beyond the boundaries of the frame.
Effects
The effect of sound effects are varied — to create mood and atmosphere and to create realism so that the audience
experiences what the characters experience. Not all film sound effects are natural or realistic, however. Sound editors
at times exaggerate a sound for emphasis or invent a sound to meet a director’s particular need. Whatever its source,
sound in general adds levels of meaning to a scene and may influence the audience’s attitude or emotional response.

Distribute Screening Sheet 3-3: Sound Bytes. Review the key sections on the sheet to ensure students understand
what they are to observe during the activity.

View Film Clip 3-3: Sound Bytes. Depending on the ability of the class, teachers may play one segment, then stop
the DVD to allow students to record and discuss their observations before continuing to the next segment. Recommended
answers follow.

73
 Answer Key for Screening Sheet 3-3: Sound Bytes

Film Clip Describe the type of sounds, then Describe the intended effect of
identify each as visible or invisible. these sounds on the audience.
A. Scout and Footsteps — visible; slamming screen door — visible; To add realism to the scene
Atticus on the voices — visible; birds chirping — invisible
porch swing

B. Children Footsteps and shuffling — visible; voices — visible; To add realism

in the Dill bumping against door — visible; voices inside
courthouse courtroom — invisible; music — invisible

C. Children at Children’s footsteps — visible; door opening — To build suspense and to trigger audience
the fence invisible; clunk or bump — invisible; swing creaking reaction
— invisible, then visible; crickets — invisible

D. Jem Train in distance — invisible; Jem scuffling over To add realism (e.g., screen door opening to
returning the porch rail and brushing against bushes — suggest Atticus has stepped outside to look for
for his visible; busted fence board swinging — visible; the kids) and to build suspense (e.g., shotgun)
pants crickets — invisible; screen door opening and
closing — invisible; Atticus’s voice — invisible;
shotgun blast — invisible; dog barking — invisible

E. Jem alone at Music — invisible; branches scraping — invisible;
night bird cries — invisible; Jem’s voice — visible;
footsteps on sidewalk — visible; wind — invisible;
porch swing hitting the house — invisible and then
visible
Branches, wind, and banging of the swing add
suspense. The bird cry adds levels of meaning.
The call is sudden, startling. We’ve not heard
it at all throughout the film until this point. It
reflects Jem’s fears. Some students may also
suggest it triggers a reaction in the audience.

Close
What is a sound cliché? A cliché is a word or phrase repeated so often it becomes boring. Tall, dark, and handsome is a cliché,
as is this opening sentence for a mystery novel: It was a dark and stormy night. Sounds and images can also be clichés. Share
the examples below with your students, then encourage them to provide other examples they might have observed in movies
or on television.

The dog always snarls at the villain.

On a dark night in the woods, a wolf howls.

Bombs always have beeping timers.

74
 Lesson 4 Putting It All Together–Analyzing a Scene
We are storytellers, and we don’t do it just with words.
— Conrad Hall, cinematographer

Teacher Overview
In activities A and B, students learn the meaning of objective and subjective points of view and how the camera captures these
points of view. Then they practice distinguishing between explicit and implicit information. In activity C, students apply what
they have learned about six elements of film composition by analyzing those elements in a single scene.

The final screening activity of the chapter is challenging. Rather than isolate specific elements in shots, students now view
an entire scene from beginning to end. Multiple things happen at once on the screen and should be noticeable — camera
angles and distances, use of light and shadow, movement, cuts from one shot to another, pacing and continuity, point-of-view
shots and reaction shots, and sound. As students have progressed through the curriculum chapters, they have become more
fluent in film language. Therefore, they should use the film-specific terms in their discussions and written analysis on the
Screening Sheets.

Learning Outcomes
Students will:
explain the difference between two cinematic points of view — objective and subjective;
identify explicit information in the scene;
make inferences about implicit information, based on film composition;
analyze elements of composition in a single scene;
use film language to describe and interpret the scene.

Key Terms
(Note: Most terms are defined within the activity text that follows. You may also refer to the glossary.)
objective point of view, subjective point of view, juxtaposition of images, mise-en-scène

Lesson 4 Materials
Activity Print DVD
Activity A Graphic Organizer 3-13: Point of View
Cinematic Points of (POV)
View
Screening Sheet 3-4: Jem and Bob Ewell Film Clip 3-4: Jem and Bob Ewell

Activity B Screening Sheet 3-5: The Hole in the Old Film Clip 3-5: The Hole in the
Explicit and Implicit Tree Trunk Old Tree Trunk
Information

Activity C Screening Sheet 3-6: The Longest Journey Film Clip 3-6: The Longest
Mise-en-Scène Journey

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Concept
By means of cinematic point of view, the filmmaker not only controls what the viewer sees but how.

Engage
Ask a student to stand up and describe what he or she sees in the classroom. This is likely to include the backs of students’
heads, the chalkboard, and the teacher looking at the class. Next, invite the student to come to the front of the room and sit
at the teacher’s desk or stand just behind the teacher at the desk. The teacher might ask the student: Do you see what I see? Ask
the student how his or her view of the classroom has changed in this new position.
Make a link between this simple experiment and the position of a camera when photographing a shot. Students have already
learned that camera distances and angles can change how we view a scene. The position of the camera in relationship to the
subject also influences not only what we see but how.

Explain & Explore

Distribute and display Graphic Organizer 3-13: Point of View (POV). Explain that cinematic point of view (POV)
differs from literary point of view in a significant way: In film, POV refers to the position of the camera. The camera may
shift from objective to subjective POV depending on the dramatic situation and the filmmaker’s creative style and intended
meaning. As a result, the viewer at times is an observer and at times a participant, seeing the action through the eyes of
one of the characters. Review key concepts, as suggested below.
Objective Point of View
The position of the camera suggests an emotional distance from the action. The audience views the action as if
through a window.
Subjective Point of View
The position of the camera suggests an emotional link to a character. The audience sees the action through the eyes
of a character.

Ensure that students understand subjective POV by asking them to explain the difference between a close-up shot and a
subjective point-of-view shot. A close-up can be objective. The camera moves close to the subject to focus the audience’s
attention on a specific detail that the filmmaker believes is important. A subjective POV shot, on the other hand, positions
the camera so that the audience sees the action from the perspective of one of the characters. Share these two examples of
subjective POV with students:
A shot of a pitcher on the mound, as seen from the crouching position of the catcher: The audience doesn’t see the catcher, but

is subjective POV.
A shot of the ball in the pitcher’s hand, showing the placement of his fingers on the ball, is a close-up. If the camera is in the
position of a high-angle, suggesting the pitcher is looking down at the ball in his hand, then that CU would be subjective.

Add this final piece of information:

Very often POV cannot be determined by examining a single frame or shot. POV is often communicated through the
juxtaposition of images — how one shot precedes or follows another. Example: A shot shows the pitcher looking down at his
glove (objective). The next shot shows a CU of the ball in the pitcher’s hand from the angle of the pitcher’s eyes (subjective).
The first shot suggests the pitcher is looking down. The second shot implies this is what the pitcher is looking at.

Distribute Screening Sheet 3-4: Jem and Bob Ewell. Review the Screening Sheet, including the questions, so that
students understand what they are to observe and record. Have students work with a partner.

View Film Clip 3-4: Jem and Bob Ewell. Discuss students’ observations. Recommended answers follow.

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 Answer Key for Screening Sheet 3-4: Jem and Bob Ewell

1. When the scene begins, the camera shows Scout asleep. Where is the camera, and what is the point of view?
The camera is on the audience’s side of the car, looking in. We know this because Scout is in the upper portion of the 1
frame and we see the car. This is objective POV. �
2. When David and Jem wave at each other, where is the camera, and what is the point of view? The camera is �
behind David, as if in the Robinsons’ front yard. This is objective POV because the audience sees both boys interacting. �
3. When Bob Ewell appears, the audience sees him from Jem’s subjective point of view. How do you know this?
This happens in part through editing. The camera shows Jem looking at something, then the next shot shows Ewell
approaching the car. The audience infers through editing that what Jem was looking at was Ewell. The subjective POV
is also evident because it is shot from inside the car. The audience sees what Jem sees through the windows — Ewell’s
face and hands pressed against the glass.
4. Identify a shot from Bob Ewell’s point of view. Who is he looking at? How do you know this is Bob Ewell’s
point of view? Emphasize that although the camera shows Ewell looking at Scout and then Jem, the subjective POV
doesn’t happen until Atticus comes outside. Then the audience sees Atticus from an angle slightly below and as if
through a blurry pinhole. This is Ewell’s POV. The suggestion here from Ewell’s staggering behavior is that he is
intoxicated, and thus the blurry pinhole is Ewell trying to focus on his enemy, Atticus.
5. When the car pulls away, the audience sees Bob Ewell staggering in the roadway with fist raised. What point
of view is this — objective or subjective? Provide a reason for your answer. Again this occurs in part through
editing. First the audience sees the car pulling away, with Jem looking out the back window. The next shot shows the
audience what Jem sees from that window — Ewell in the road, swearing, growing smaller as the car pulls away. The
POV is subjective.

Emphasize an important aspect of point of view and movement: In this last shot, as described in question 5 above,
movement helps to communicate the point of view. If Ewell did not grow smaller, then the camera would be fixed and
simply showing Ewell standing there on the road. By moving the camera back, the audience understands that this is what
Jem sees as Atticus drives away. It also conveys information about what Jem is thinking — he is frightened by what has
happened, and that is why he continues to stare at Ewell.

Close
Ask students to comment on the quote below by producer Alan Pakula. Specifically, ask students to explain what is meant by
“child’s point of view.”
The child’s point of view makes it terrifying. If it had been shot with just a great big close-up of Ewell, it would not have had
any of the power of seeing it through the windshield from Jem’s point of view.

Concept
Filmmakers tell stories with both explicit and implicit information. Filmmakers create implicit information through editing,
in the juxtaposition or sequence of images and sounds.

Engage
Remind students that all the lessons in this chapter focus on film language. Film language is all the techniques filmmakers use
to tell a story on the screen — including camera distance, angle, and movement; editing; and sound. These elements allow
filmmakers to tell a story in a variety of ways. How the filmmaker tells the story is called style. In this activity, students will
analyze how a filmmaker uses these elements to create both explicit and implicit meaning in a scene from To Kill a Mockingbird.

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Explain & Explore
Define explicit and implicit information.
Explicit information
Explicit information is directly stated or shown. The composition of a frame can clearly reveal explicit information.
For example, rain running down a windowpane is explicit because the audience can see the rain.

Implicit information
Implicit information is implied through visual or sound details. For example, an image of a person whose clothes are
wet and who is holding an umbrella suggests that it is raining, even though the audience does not actually see the
rain. A rooster crowing off-screen implies that it is dawn. Implicit information is also suggested through a sequence
of shots edited one after the other. For example, in To Kill a Mockingbird, Jem finds a medal in the hollow of the tree
trunk. He looks up, and the next shot shows the Radley house. The suggestion is that someone in the Radley house
placed the medal in the tree trunk.

Distribute Screening Sheet 3-5: The Hole in the Old Tree Trunk. Review the Screening Sheet, including the
questions, to ensure students understand what they are to observe and record. You may need to show this clip twice.
Give students time after the screening to complete the Think More About It section.

View Film Clip 3-5: The Hole in the Old Tree Trunk. Discuss students’ observations. Recommended answers
are below.

Answer Key for Screening Sheet 3-5:

The Hole in the Old Tree Trunk

What do you see and hear in this scene?
A long shot of Jem as he walks like an Egyptian past the
old tree; Scout trying to imitate her brother’s walk; hand
reaching into the hole in the tree and retrieving the carved
wooden figures; Mr. Radley cementing the hole in the tree.
What do you not see or hear?
You don’t see the person who placed the carved figures
into the tree hole. You also don’t see the cars or birds
that you hear.

What is explicit in this scene? What is implicit?

It is daytime. Jem tells Scout what he learned in school
that day. Scout discovers something in the tree. The
children believe the carved figures look just like them-
selves. Mr. Radley wishes to fill in the hole.
Boo has carved the figures and placed them in the tree.
Some students may extend this further, suggesting Boo
has been watching the children and wants them to find
the carved figures. Also implicit is Mr. Radley’s annoy-
ance with the children (he scowls at them) and perhaps
even with his son Boo. He probably wishes the children
would not interact with Boo, suggested by his actions of
filling in the hole. The children are afraid of Mr. Radley.

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 Think More About It
1. What do you learn about Mr. Radley that you did not know up to this point? We see what his face looks like 1
for the first time. He apparently knows someone has been leaving odds and ends in the hole in the tree, and he �
wishes to stop that from happening. �
2. Identify a long shot and a close-up in this scene and explain what information these shots present. The �
long shot is of Jem walking up the street and again of Jem helping to arrange Scout’s feet. The long shot allows the
audience to see Scout at the moment she notices something is in the hole. The long shot also includes the Radley
house in the background, so Boo’s presence is suggested by this. There are three close-ups — the figures in the tree,
Mr. Radley’s face, and the hole being plastered. The first suggests a sense of wonder; the other two, meanness.
3. Why does the filmmaker use both objective and subjective POV in this scene? The objective POV is the long
shot of the children. The subjective POVs are the hand reaching into the hole and the close-up of the two carved
figures, as well as the hole being plastered and Mr. Radley’s face. The subjective POVs suggest we are looking
through the eyes of Scout and Jem. Using both POVs conveys necessary information (where we are, what is
happening) but also draws the audience closer to the action and the children’s feelings.

Close
Ask students to answer this question: How does a filmmaker control what the audience may think or feel by controlling the camera?
Discussion should focus on where the camera is placed in relation to the subject, including angles and distances.

Concept
Mise-en-scène is a type of analysis in which the student identifies elements of composition in a single scene, explaining how
the elements work together to communicate mood and meaning.

Engage
On the chalkboard or overhead projector, list elements of composition studied earlier in this chapter to serve as a review and
guide for your students in this activity. These include:
1. Arrangement of objects or people within the frame
2. Camera-to-subject distances and camera-to-subject angles
3. Elements of lighting, including contrast, depth, texture, direction, intensity, and quality
4. Camera movement in relation to the subject — both fixed and mobile
5. Editing shots into a scene, including transitions and emphasis on meaning, pacing, continuity, and point of view
6. Sound elements — both music and sound effects

Explain & Explore

Explain that in this activity, students may work alone or with a partner to analyze a single scene from To Kill a Mockingbird.
In their analysis they will identify as many elements of composition as they can. Tell them that they can use any of their
notes and/or the graphic organizers from this chapter.
(Note: This is a challenging activity that requires students to identify layers of visual and sound symbols. Teachers may
wish to run the film clip more than once, allowing time between the viewings for students to access their notes. To expect
students to complete all answers on the Screening Sheet in one viewing is not recommended.)

Distribute Screening Sheet 3-6: The Longest Journey. Review the Word Builder terms and each section of the sheet
so that students fully understand what they are to observe and record. Remind them that in identifying and analyzing

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elements, they should use wherever possible the film-specific terms they have learned in this chapter. This includes
identifying shots by their film terms, such as close-up, high-angle, high-key lighting, etc.

View Film Clip 3-6: The Longest Journey. Allow students sufficient time to review their notes and graphic
organizers and to complete the Screening Sheets. Either collect the Screening Sheets and assess their understanding,
or review the Screening Sheets as a class. Recommended answers are below.

Answer Key for Screening Sheet 3-6: The Longest Journey

Camera Distances and Angles

1. Identify a long shot and explain what information that shot presents to the audience. Two examples of long shots are:
the opening shot of Jem and Scout (in the ham costume) walking into the woods, and the shot (about mid-way through the
clip) where Jem and Scout come into view in the background.
2. Describe a close-up shot in this scene. Close-ups include Jem’s face and Scout’s eyes through the ham costume.
3. As Jem begins the walk home, he appears nervous. How does the filmmaker suggest this? By showing Jem picking up
a big stick. In addition, a number of shots are close-ups of Jem’s face, revealing his concentration on the sound he thinks he
hears; another CU shows his hand on the top of Scout’s costume, guiding her and, some students may suggest, protecting her.
Lighting
4. Describe the lighting in this scene. What is its intended effect on the audience? Overall the lighting is low-key, to
represent night and danger. Shadows play across the faces of the children throughout the scene and in part obscure the
audience from seeing clearly who the attacker is.
5. Describe the lighting in the shot where Jem has fallen on his stomach and does not move. What does that empha-
size? There is low-key lighting overall but a highlight on his body, emphasizing that he isn’t moving and might be badly hurt.
Camera Movement
6. Describe the camera movement in the attack scene. Does it pan, tilt, and/or zoom? Or is it fixed in one position?
Explain your answer. Overall the camera is stationary but does pan and zoom. Emphasize that the sense of movement is
created not by the camera circling the attacker and his victims but through the use of quick cuts.
Point of View
7. Identify a subjective point of view shot before the attack begins. When Jem thinks he hears something, he stops and
turns. The camera then shifts to what Jem sees — the woods at night and nothing obviously there.
8. In the shots of Jem being attacked, does the camera use objective or subjective point of view? Explain how you can
tell. Mostly objective, because often we can see all the characters. Some shots, however, are subjective, because what we see
seems to be limited in the way that Scout would see through her costume.
Sound
9. Identify at least two invisible sounds. What effect do these sounds have on the audience? Wind, rustling leaves, dog
barking, bird, grunts. Intended effect is to heighten suspense and suggest meaning — the audience must infer from the sounds
as well as the montage of images what is happening.
10. Describe how the music changes during this scene. At the beginning, the music is the theme melody and the mysterious
music associated with the Radley house. The music stops when Jem stops walking and turns around, suggesting a change in
mood and his growing fear. During the attack, the music becomes more melodramatic, urgent, more dynamic, building in
volume and intensity as the storyline builds to a climax.

Implicit and Explicit Meaning

11. What information is directly stated in the scene? The children are walking home alone, they think they hear something,
they are attacked, Jem is hurt, someone saves Scout.
12. What information is implied in this scene? That the children grow fearful; who might be following them; who attacks them;
who saves them.

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 Think More About It 1
1. The filmmaker never clearly shows who the attacker is. Instead, the audience sees shadows and close-ups of hands
and legs and hears grunts. In your opinion, why did the filmmaker decide to shoot this climactic scene from the film �
in this way? Answers will vary. It is in part the director’s style and choice of how to tell the story. He has shown all violent �
action off-screen, including Mr. Radley shooting at the prowler, Tom Robinson’s death, and the actual death of Bob Ewell. It also
�
heightens the confusion and fear to not see explicitly what is happening. He withholds information about what actually happened
until later and in this way builds suspense. If the camera showed Boo attacking Ewell (as seen from Scout’s eyes inside the ham
costume) the suspense would not be quite as intense. Also, the audience has never seen Boo, and if he suddenly appeared on the
screen, they’d wonder Who is that?
2. At the end of the scene, how does the filmmaker indicate that there are two different people fighting? A close-up in
front of Scout in the ham costume shows two hands locked in struggle — the arms are “dressed” differently. Also the action itself
implies struggle and, thus, two different people.

Close
Ask students to list the four most interesting things they learned about film language that they did not know before they
began the activities in this chapter. Then ask them to list four additional things about film language that they would like to
study in greater detail.

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