Still and moving images
A photo is one still image. A film is many still images shown quickly. Each one is a frame. Cinema usually shows 24 frames per second (fps); TV and video often use 25 or 30. Our eyes and brain blend the frames into smooth motion.
Below about 12–16 fps, motion looks jerky. Showing more frames than were filmed gives slow motion. A flip book works the same way.
Common audiovisual formats: feature film, short film, documentary, animation, TV series, music video, advertisement and web video. Each has its own length and style.
Film language: shots, angles and movement
Shot size (how much we see):
- Extreme wide / establishing shot: shows where we are.
- Wide (long) shot: whole body plus surroundings.
- Medium shot: waist up; good for talk and action.
- Close-up: the face; shows emotion.
- Extreme close-up: one detail, such as eyes or a key.
Camera angle: eye level (neutral), high angle (looks down; the person seems weak), low angle (looks up; the person seems strong), and Dutch tilt (tilted; feels uneasy).
Camera movement: pan (turn left-right), tilt (turn up-down), tracking/dolly (the camera moves along), zoom (lens change), handheld (shaky, real-feeling).
Mise-en-scène, lighting and sound
Mise-en-scène (French: "put in the scene") means everything placed in front of the camera: setting, props, costume, make-up, actors' movement and lighting.
Lighting: high-key (bright, few shadows; comedy, musicals) and low-key (dark, strong shadows; thrillers, horror). Many scenes use three-point lighting: key light, fill light and back light.
Sound: dialogue, sound effects, music and silence. Diegetic sound comes from inside the story world (a radio playing); non-diegetic sound is added for us (background score, narrator).
Editing: joining shots
Editing chooses and orders shots. The usual join is the cut. Others: fade, dissolve, wipe.
- Continuity editing keeps time and space clear, so the cuts feel invisible.
- The 180° rule: draw an imaginary line between two people talking; keep the camera on one side, so each always faces the same way on screen.
- Shot / reverse shot: cut between two people in a conversation.
- Montage: a series of short shots that shows time passing or builds an idea.
- Cross-cutting: switch between two events happening at the same time.
Fast cutting builds excitement; long takes build calm or tension.
A short history of cinema and its movements
- 1820s–1830s: the first photographs.
- 1895: the Lumière brothers show short films to a paying audience in Paris. Early films are silent, black-and-white.
- 1913: Raja Harishchandra by Dadasaheb Phalke, India's first full-length feature film.
- 1920s: German Expressionism (twisted sets, deep shadows) and Soviet montage (editing creates meaning).
- Late 1920s: synchronised sound arrives. India's first sound film, Alam Ara, comes in 1931.
- 1930s–1950s: the studio era and colour films spread.
- 1940s: Italian Neorealism: real streets, ordinary people, non-actors.
- Late 1950s–1960s: the French New Wave: handheld cameras, jump cuts, personal stories. In India, parallel cinema (for example Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali, 1955) brings realism.
- 1990s–today: digital cameras, computer effects (CGI) and streaming.
Film and life
Films mirror and shape society. They show family, friendship, work and conflict, and they can change how we see others. Films also teach values, spread ideas and build national and regional culture.
Be a careful viewer: films can show stereotypes (fixed, unfair pictures of a group), can sell products, and can glamorise harmful habits. Check age ratings (for example U, U/A, A in India) and ask: who made this, and why?
Film appreciation and criticism
A good review has four parts:
- Describe: title, director, year, genre, a short plot without spoilers.
- Analyse: how shots, light, sound, acting and editing work in one or two key scenes.
- Interpret: what is the film saying? Its theme and message.
- Judge: your opinion, with reasons and evidence from the film.
A genre is a type of film with familiar patterns: comedy, drama, thriller, horror, science fiction, musical, documentary, animation.
Try it
In the 3D, set 4 fps, then 24 fps, and notice the difference. At home: make a 12-page flip book of a bouncing ball. Then film the same person with a phone from a high angle and a low angle, and write one line about how each feels.
Key formulas and definitions
- Standard film speed: 24 frames per second
- Shot sizes: extreme wide → wide → medium → close-up → extreme close-up
- Angles: eye level (neutral), high (weak), low (powerful), Dutch tilt (uneasy)
- Lighting: high-key = bright, low-key = dark and shadowy
- Review: describe → analyse → interpret → judge
Worked examples
1. A film runs at 24 fps. How many frames are in a 2-minute clip?
2 minutes = 120 s. 120 × 24 = 2 880 frames.
2. A scene opens on a whole city from a hill, then shows a girl's teary eyes. Name the two shots and their purpose.
First an extreme wide (establishing) shot, which tells us where we are. Then an extreme close-up, which shows her emotion.
3. A villain is filmed from below in dark light from one side. What does this suggest?
The low angle makes him look powerful and threatening; low-key side lighting adds mystery and fear.
4. Two friends talk at a table. In one shot A is on the left; after a cut A suddenly appears on the right. What went wrong?
The camera crossed the 180° line. Keep the camera on one side of the line between them.
5. Write a one-sentence 'analyse' line for a review of a chase scene.
Example: "Fast cuts between handheld close-ups and wide shots of the market make the chase feel breathless and chaotic."
Common mistakes
- Mixing up zoom (lens change) and tracking (the camera itself moves).
- Thinking a high angle means the camera is far away. Angle is about height; shot size is about distance.
- Writing a review that only tells the story and never explains how the film creates its effects.
- Thinking 'diegetic' sound means dialogue only. It is any sound from inside the story world.