by D. W. Brown
“Clear the lens.” A command to get out of the frame someone or some thing in particular—or everyone and everything in general—that is not meant to be in the shot.
closed: Positioned physically so that the front of the body and face of the actor cannot be clearly seen.
cloth: A large, unframed canvas.
coda: A final scene that wraps things up, often a flash forward.
continuity: The consistent take-to-take positioning of objects and the appearance of costume and the actor’s physicality, as well as the points of vocal and emotional amplitude, so that multiple takes can be intercut and still create the impression of one continuum.
“Copy that.” A declaration in response to a comment or a request that indicates it has been fully understood and will be properly attended to.
coverage: The total shots taken of a scene from various angles.
cowboy: The actors framed from the level of their hips to just above their heads.
Craft Services: People responsible for providing meals and snacks; also, often refers to a given area where snacks are available.
crane: A device for raising and lowering the camera.
crawl: A very slow movement of the camera.
crosscutting: Cutting back and forth from two different scenes as they unfold.
cue: Designated point for an actor to initiate speech or action.
cue card: The place where lines have been written out to be read during a performance.
“Cut!” The signal to stop a scene.
cutaway: A shot of something that can be inserted into the scene so that it can be broken up from one continuous sequence.
dailies (aka rushes): All of the material recorded on a given day.
day of days: A chart indicating what days of a production that specific actors will be working.
depth-of-field: The range from foreground to background in which the camera is in focus.
Director of Photography (aka D.P.): The person in charge of all the departments responsible for all aspects of cinematography (i.e., lighting, camera movement, lens, etc.).
dolly: A device to wheel the camera around.
dress to camera: To position the objects and the performers on a set so as to create the most favorable picture for the camera.
dropping cues: An actor not delivering the proper cue lines to a fellow actor.
Dutch: When the framing of the camera is not parallel with the horizon.
fifty-fifty: A scene where two actors are shot in profile looking directly at each other.
First Team: The actors who will be appearing on camera, as opposed to the “Second Team,” aka their stand ins.
flag: Anything used to prevent light from spreading.
flats: Painted pieces of cloth on frames.
flies: The space above the stage.
fluffing: To stumble over words.
flying in: Applied to a prop or a piece of technical equipment necessary to execute a take that is presently on its way to the set.
foley: Appropriate, atmospheric sounds inserted in postproduction.
French reverse: Shooting a reverse without changing where the camera is placed, but rather having the other actor in the scene go there, perhaps changing the background to support the illusion that it is a different angle. Done to save time.
Gaffer (also a verb: to gaff): The person responsible for the lighting on the set, considered the chief electrician.
gist phrase: A phrase ad-libbed by an actor that represents the main thrust of what their character is saying in essence at this moment; useful to the actor for staying behaviorally on point and not being swayed by the sensibility of the words.
going up (or going dry): Forgetting your lines.
golden time: Working on Sundays or holidays, which for union members means increased pay.
green room: A common area backstage.
Greensman: The person responsible for maintaining plants or imitation plants.
Grip: The person who sets up equipment.
hair in the gate: Something on or near the camera lens creating an imperfection.
hand-held: A camera that is carried.
hero: A location or a large prop that is impressive. It often will be heavily featured in the film and so is usually given extra detail.
honeywagon: The vehicle or trailer that contains dressing rooms for the actors.
hoot: To walk away from the camera with one’s face turned to the side so more of the face can be seen.
hot: Can refer to an individual object or an entire set, and indicates that the placement is exact and should not be tampered with.
insert: A brief shot of a small detail (e.g., the gun in the drawer, the key placed in the shirt pocket).
Jonesy deck: A platform that is constructed for elevating equipment and personnel.
jumping: Skipping sections of text by speaking future lines.
key light: The best light on stage for the face.
“Last looks!” A warning to the involved departments (e.g., make-up, costume, etc.) that they have a limited amount of time before shooting takes place.
lavalier (also lav): A wireless microphone worn by talent.
“Leave room for the scissors.” A request to pause in dialogue or hold a physical action so that an editor’s cut can be made at that moment.
Line Producer: The person responsible for the logistical organization of principal photography.
locked-off: When the camera is meant to remain in a fixed position; to be left alone.
loose: Framed with a degree of surrounding room, enabling an actor to move freely without risking going out of frame.
magic hour (also golden hour): The time of day close to sunset and sunrise when external lighting has a soft quality.
“Make the day.” To shoot everything that was scheduled to be shot for that day.
mark: A spot where an actor should stand during a scene.
martini: The final take of the day or for the entire shoot.
master (also master shot): A wide-angle shot usually only used to give the viewer perspective for where the scene is taking place.
match: Maintaining from take to take the consistent positioning of objects and the appearance of costumes and the actor’s physicality, as well as his or her points of vocal and emotional amplitude, in order to aid continuity.
meal penalty: Money paid to the performer for missing a meal or for not having one provided on schedule as per actor’s union requirements.
MOS: To record the moving image only, without recording any sound (from “motor only shot”).
moving on: Going to a new camera setup.
on the day: When at the location with the materials and personnel present and just about to, or actually doing, the shooting. (Might be used even in reference to later in the same day.)
oner: Meant to be seen in the final film as one continuous shot.
open position: The performer positioned so that the front of his or her body and face can be seen.
OTS: Over the shoulder, a dirty shot with another actor’s shoulder and side of head in the frame.
overcrank: To shoot the film so that when shown it will appear in slow motion (as opposed to “undercrank” for fast motion).
per diem: Money paid for daily expenses.
pick-up: To shoot just part of a scene.
pick-up cues: The early initiation of an actor’s speaking upon receiving delivery of their cue line.
“Places!” The command to take your position immediately prior to “Action!” being called.
post: All the work that will be done after principal photography.
POV: The camera shooting a character’s point-of-view.
practical: An object that actually works (e.g., a light or radio that turns on and off by it’s true switch).
Production Assistant (also P.A.): A general, all-purpose worker.
Production Designer: The person responsible for the overall look of the film.
> production stills: Photographs of the production.
racking: To change the camera’s focus from foreground to background or vice versa.
read: When an object is identifiable or the meaning of a behavior understandable to the audience.
re-shoots: Re-shooting scenes or adding entirely new scenes later as a fix.
reverses: Shooting in the opposite direction (as in getting coverage for the other part of a conversation).
riser: Any platform used to elevate a person or object.
room tone (also buzz track): The sound of a location when no one is speaking, recorded for later use in postproduction.
Script Supervisor (or “Scripty”): The person responsible for maintaining continuity and exact delivery of the written words; as well as notations on what shots have been filmed and their durations.
Second Unit: A crew that shoots footage of locations and action that will be used in the film, but which are usually incidental and often filmed without sound.
setup: A specific placement of the camera and the lighting.
sides: Pages taken from a script to hold just those scenes in hand; often for the purpose of auditioning.
slate (also “Slate!”): The clapper board itself; or that process of marking the sound on the film; what is called out following “Speed!” and prior to “Action!”
soft: Not in perfect focus.
sotto voce: As if in confidence, under one’s breath.
“Speed!” Called out by the Sound Mixer as recording of sound has begun in good order; also may be called for when running good sound, as when a contaminating sound is no longer detected.
squib: An explosive packet used to create the effect of bullets striking objects and people.
stage door: The door at the rear or side exterior of a theater.
stage whisper: A breathy voice, projected loud enough to be completely intelligible, but that indicates intimacy.
Stand In (also Second Team): A person of the same dimensions and coloring as the actor who duplicates the movements to be performed so that technical adjustments (camera, lighting, etc.) may be made in preparation for the actor.
Steadicam: A carried mount for a camera that enables the person holding it to move freely and still maintain a fluid framing for the camera.
stepping on cues: Interrupting the other actor so that they are unable to finish their lines.
sticks: A tripod to hold the camera.
storyboard: Cartoons of the exact shots in the film.
strike: To remove something from the set, which would include the act of dismantling it if necessary.
tableau: Actors holding positions to create a given picture.
take: A filmed version of part or all of a scene.
talent: The actors.
Teleprompter: An electronic display for cue cards.
tight: When the framing is very close to the actor’s body and, because of this, perhaps restricts their movements.
tracking (also trucking): Moving the camera with a dolly.
turn around: Giving less than twelve hours off for an actor before he or she is required to return to work.
turning around: Changing the camera setup to shoot the reverse angle.
Tweeny: A lighting fixture designed specifically to light the eyes.
upstaging: Any behavior that directs audience focus away from one player onto another. (A move upstage by one actor forces the other actors to give the audience the backs of their heads in order to look at this performer.)
video village: A place where monitors are set up to display what’s being seen through the camera, and where personnel gather to watch playback of what’s been shot.
“What’s your twenty?” A request made over the telephone or a walkie-talkie for the listener to state their present location.
wild track: Recording sound without picture to be used by the editor.
Wrangler (usually prefaced by a specific animal species): The person responsible for the handling and performance of an animal or animals.
wrap: The moment at which all shooting for that day, or all shooting for an entire production, is considered finished.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The incomparable Michael Wiese asked me to write this book and it is to him it is dedicated. He published my other two books and, when he heard I was teaching a master class on acting for the camera, we had a conversation about combining what I know on the subject with insights from gifted professionals. This resulted in the interviews with these wonderful people you find collected here, and my heartfelt thanks to all of them. Of course, going back further was my good fortune in having an association with Joanne Baron, generally considered one of the greatest acting teachers of the last hundred years. In addition to being cute, funny, kind, and my wife of thirty years, she’s been willing to share some of her brilliance with me along the way. I’d also like to thank the dedicated instructors who work at our acting studio, along with the staff, including Robert Stallons for his proofreading of this book. Great thanks as well to the entire crew from Michael Wiese Productions, especially the amazingly gifted designer John Brenner for his cover, razor-sharp copyeditor David Wright, and Debbie Berne for her strong design work. More than anyone I have to thank the actors I’ve been privileged to know over the course of my life. They are a brave, impassioned, humane, and vulnerable group of crazy people, and the world is a much better place for them being in it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
D. W. Brown is the author of the acclaimed book You Can Act: A Complete Guide for Actors and 2500 Years of Wisdom. In addition to directing numerous theatrical productions, he wrote and directed the feature film On the Inside (starring Olivia Wilde and Nick Stahl) and the short films One Clean Move, Chloe, The Need for Flowers, and Wrapper. Mr. Brown has personally coached and trained such talent as Robin Wright, Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde, Keanu Reeves, and Sam Raimi, and led seminars with Sean Penn, Sydney Pollack, Anthony Hopkins, Halle Berry, and Susan Sarandon. He is the head instructor of Los Angeles’ premier acting school, The Joanne Baron/DW Brown Studio (www.baronbrown.com), which has been honored by such speakers as Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Dustin Hoffman, Robert DeNiro, and Pulitzer-winning dramatists John Patrick Shanley and David Mamet, as well as many other luminaries. He scuba dives, sculpts, his favorite indoor place is The Louvre, and his favorite outdoor place is Maui.
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