Mise En SceneA presentation by Haaris Hussain

What Does Mise En Scene Mean?

Or more importantly, what is it?

Mise En Scene is the french way of talking about everything on scene. The 6 key points of Mise En Scene are:

Colour

Props&Settings

Characters

Lighting

Costume

Facial expression & Body Language

ColourI have chosen the poster for Alice In Wonderland as my example for expressing how colour describes the setting of a movie mainly because it’s the one poster I have seen over the years where colour is everywhere.

If you focus on the front of the poster, you’ll notice that it’s in a rather strange, yet beautiful area along with a happy looking mad hatter and the famous blue caterpillar on top of one of many giant mushrooms.

However, as you look further back, the colour starts to look bland and leads to a grey looking castle, possibly symbolising strictness and perfection over chaos and fun.

Props and settingProps and settings are what make a movie. When you go to watch a movie, it’s mostly only because the trailer reveals certain content to attract their target audience.

Without props and settings, the movie would look rather pathetic and wouldn’t be able to bring in as many viewers.

props can greatly improve the making of a scene

Iconic CharactersSome characters are so commonly known for their adventures and humor that they manage to become Iconic characters.

If you were to talk about pirate themed movies, chances are Captain Jack Sparrow would be mentioned.

LightingLighting can be used to set the mood for a movie, whether presented in a scene or a poster. It can be used to build up tension and to create dramatic entrances.

The movie poster presented below is a great example of this.

The lighting in the poster seems to project from the top left. Specifically out of a windowsill.

We can make out a house with a gate but nothing else.

This is to show that the movie will be a rather dark themed, horrific tale.

Facial expressions and Body LanguageThe facial expression and body

language of a character or multiple characters can give the audience a good idea about how they are personality wise and what the movie is going to be like.

The 300 poster shows Leonidas as a strong spartan warrior in a pose as if announcing to charge into battle. The expression on his face gives us the impression that he’s looking for vengeance and is out for blood.

The Ace Ventura poster on the other hand, shows a confident Jim Carrey holding his characters job card toward the camera, a dog biting at his trousers to create Irony.

CostumeCostumes show us how a character acts and affects how they are seen in and out of the movie.

Kick-Ass is seen as a rather strange looking super hero and shows bus that the movie he’s in could be rather funny. He also has some sort of batons to go with his costume, suggesting there could be quite a bit of violence. The green on his suit could also symbolise good.

Deadpool however, has a red and black costume with what seems to be white, lifeless eyes. The colour red could symbolise blood and love. The colour black could symbolise death and fear. His body language is interesting as it is aimed toward the audience. He points to himself which indicates that he is also fun loving, funny and not too serious about anything.