Mise-En-Scene

Michael Luton

Setting • Setting creates a sense of place and a mood and it also reflects a

character’s emotional state of mind.• The settings range from different types of films, for example for a horror

film the setting would be dark and gloomy and would most likely be night time.

• Sets are either built from scratch or time is spent to find a set which already exists.

Props • In a movie props make a big impact on a scene, for example in a horror

movie props can make a scene very intense.• In horror movies, some props they may use could be a doll or a rocking

chair.• In a romantic film they may use props such as flowers or a box of

chocolates.

Lighting and Colour• The light in a film can determine what time of day it is when outside.• Editors can adjust the colour of a certain object by using filters.• Bright colours are mostly used in happy scenes and darker colours are

used in more sadder or intense scenes.

Costumes• People wear different clothes in different films, for example in a horror

film the characters might be wearing tattered clothes with blood on them, and in a comedy film some characters could be wearing clothes with bright colours.

• In an old film or a film set in a previous time zone they may use old clothes, such as a world war 2 film, the characters would be wearing soldiers outfits.

Hair and Make Up• In a film hair and make up have a massive part, because in a film set in the

80’s they might have different hair and make up, for example in the film “Grease” they have different hairstyles and make up, so if they had normal hair and makeup nobody would know the time zone the movie is set in.

• Makeup is massively important in a horror film because they might need makeup to transform an actor into a bad guy, for example Freddy Krueger.

Facial Expressions and Body Language

• In a movie, facial expressions and body language can determine how a person feels, for example if a person has a sad look on his face then the audience can tell that he is sad.

• Body language in a movie can tell the audience a lot, for example if a person is slouching then the audience can tell he is tired.

Positioning and Space• In a movie, if two people are close together then that means they know

each other well.• If a character is in the middle of the screen then usually he will be the

most important character in the current scene.

Visual Effects• In a film visual effects are important because if there is a scene where two

characters are but they cannot create a set, they use a green screen.• Or if someone is falling from the sky, they use green screen and a fan to

make it look like someone is falling.