Note:
What is Mise-en-Scène?
- A French term meaning what is put into a scene or frame
- Visual information in front of the camera
- Communicates essential information to the audience
- made up of various elements
Elements of Mise-en-Scène?
- Settings & Props
- Costume, Hair & Make Up
- Facial Expressions & Body Language
- Lighting and Colour
- Positioning of characters/objects within the frame
Research Activity 1
Can you describe how the elements of Mise-en-Scène in the following scenes?
Settings & Props: This short film is filled with chemical equipment to let the viewer know that the story takes place in a chemical laboratory. The animals are probably students.
Costume, Hair & Make Up: The characters all wear goggles, indicating that they are conducting experiments. The female foxes wear halter dresses to distinguish between the sexes.
Facial Expressions & Body Language : The fox in the white coat is concentrating on his experiment. The female fox next to him, however, keeps looking to her left, indicating that there is someone or something she cares about outside the camera.
Lighting and Colour: The light throughout the scene is warm, suggesting that the story taking place in this scene is warm and calm.
Positioning of characters/objects within the frame: The characters all team up and stand at their respective lab tables, indicating their lab teammate relationship.
What role does the shot choice (Cinematography) play in the scene: The fact that the shots move in parallel and are all medium shots shows that each character is equally important.
Research Activity 2
Can you describe the mise-en-scene in this picture? How are the characters placed in the frame?
In this scene, there are two characters, a male and a female. You can tell that the male character is older than the female character from the way they are dressed. Moreover, the male character is relatively relaxed in this scene. From the set up, I can guess that they are in a hotel room based on the disposable slippers, the bed and the lighting in the room.
Research Activity 3
Can you describe the relationship between the characters?
Rebecca was the hostess and Mrs Danvers was the housekeeper. I could tell by the look on the housekeeper’s face that she didn’t seem very enthusiastic. This left Rebecca a bit at a loss.