Film Blend — The Art of Making
Introduction:
CINEMA is a medium that celebrates the amalgamation of art and technology.
What comes to mind when we hear about film, movie or cinema? “Entertainment”, obviously.
Besides entertainment, what impact does cinema create? Ever wondered why the term Motion Picture is used? What is the exact difference between a Movie and a Film?
Before getting into the core topic, let us briefly know the differences between a movie and a film.
Film vs Movie:
The distinction between film and movie isn’t about the budget, scope, or reach of a film but about anything tangible and measurable for that matter. It all comes down to the intention, philosophy, and belief systems of the people making them.
Let’s dive into some specific examples of how films and movies differ.
- A film can be commercial, but it has a larger purpose than just making money. A movie is a commercialized product, and its sole purpose is to make a profit.
- A film is far more concerned with aesthetics, i.e., how movements, light & sound will emotionally engage and intellectually stimulate the audience. A movie is more concerned with the plot and easy answers.
- A film forces the audience to grow in some way and leave the theatre as slightly better humans than before. A movie leaves the audience happy and satisfied but ultimately unchanged. These are the significant differences which separate a Film and a Movie.
Film-makers:
Film directors can uniquely transform written stories and ideas into visual presentations. They handle all aspects of the film development process, including the pre-production, production, and post-production tasks.
Film Making:
Filmmaking involves several complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story or idea. Filmmaking can be divided into seven steps; let’s focus on the writing and development step as it makes a director unique.
Writing and Development:
After getting an overview of the storyline, the director must work on the screenplay writing part, the most important factor that keeps the film engaging. Directors face a tough time writing a screenplay and multiple drafts until they come across an “Acceptable” screenplay.
An “Acceptable” screenplay is exciting to read, tightly written, has great characters, professional, formatted correctly, and is ready to be produced. Most films fail for one simple reason, i.e., Screenplay lag.
Development — It is simply the process of picturization of writing. The technical elements involved in the development process are Camera Shots & Angles, Lighting, Color, Sound or Audio, Editing and Mise-en-Scene.
Camera Shots & Angles — Extreme long shot, long shot, Mid-shot or medium shot, Close-up, Extreme close-up, Bird-eye view angle, High angle and Low angle are the eight major types of camera shots & angles used.
Lighting — There are two major types of lighting, namely Low key and High key lighting.
Colour — The primary reason for using colour in a film might be obvious: to make the images colourful, dynamic, and beautiful. The secondary reason is that the best use of colour tells a story. Colour is a massive part of the overall effect of everything we see in the frame. Colour can affect us emotionally, psychologically, and even physically without becoming aware.
Mise en scene — The setting of a play or film scene. It refers to everything placed on the stage or in front of the camera, including people.
Cinematography — The Art of Photography and Camerawork. Simply put, it combines camera angle, lighting, colour and VFX if needed.
Nolan hates Green Mat, i.e., the use of VFX, and shoots the film with an IMAX camera. This is the reason his cinematography is the best.
Every director has their uniqueness in presenting the picture, which we eventually call “Signature Shots.”
Listed down are some of the directors’ signature shots.
Editing — On its most fundamental level, film editing is the art, technique, and practice of assembling shots into a coherent sequence. An editor must creatively work with the layers of images, story, dialogue, music, pacing, etc. Editing becomes a nightmare if the film involves a non-linear screenplay or the concept of a time loop.
Difference between Series and Films:
Unlike films, series has no time limit. It realistically sets the story and has a slow-paced screenplay till the first one or two seasons. This is essential for character development and creates a comfortable sense of familiarity among the audience. A perfect example would be Breaking Bad, the most remarkable series ever made.
Film is not just a popcorn-grabbing couch entertainer. Some movies are meant to be experienced on big screens. Be it anywhere, great movies never disappoint in entangling the viewer.
So, just feel it and experience it.
