Mise-en-scène

What is Mise-en-scène?

Mise-en-scène means ‘what is put into the scene or frame’

There are different elements of Mise-en-scène, these are: Settings and props Costume, Hair and make-up Facial expressions and body language Lighting and colour Positioning of characters and objects within a frame

Settings and props

Settings Settings can be used to manipulate an audience, it can

be used to build up a certain expectation, and then the actions in the setting may take a different turn to these expectation, like a horror story taking place in a modern clean house would be more disturbing than a horror story taking place in an old abandoned house.

Settings and props

Props Props are objects in the setting which play a part in the

action. For example, a glass which contains poisoned wine.

Costume, Hair and make-up

Costume Costumes can be an instant indicator of a character's job,

personality or social status. It can also show when the film is set, and may also provide clues to the part the character plays in the action. Certain costumes are identified with specific genres.

Costume, Hair and make-up

Hair Like Make-up and costumes, Hair can help show someone's

social status and personality, and can help get across in some cases the genre.

Make-up In the early day's of film, make-up was used to highlight

facial features as black and white film stock couldn't register detail very well. Make-up in films now is usually used to add to the character's costume, and often, like the costume, is used to show someone's personality, social status and job, as well as further help get across the genre.

Facial expressions and body language Facial expressions Facial Expressions are an indicator of how someone is

feeling. Small changes to facial expressions also help to show how the character feels, if a smile is held for too long for example, it gives the person a more sinister look, and we know that they are up to no good. Eyes play a huge part in reading facial expressions, if the character's eyes avoid looking at a particular person, we know for some reason they can't bare to look at that person for example. Also, The eyes can be used to grab the audience's attention as it is usual for use to follow someone's eyes line to see what they are looking at.

Facial expressions and body language Body language The way in which people move and hold their bodies

indicates how we are feeling and thinking. For example, if a character's fists clench, they turn red, they start shaking, we know that they are angry.

Lighting and colour

Lighting Lighting can be used to give a realistic look or bring out the dramatic

nature of a scene for example, and different lighting styles can be identified with different genres.

Lighting can be used to:

Highlight import characters or objects by drawing our attention towards them with a bright light source

Make a character look mysterious by shading section of their face or body Reflect a character's confused state of mind by alternating bright and dark light in a strobe effect Show the time of day

Lighting and colour

Colour The connotations of colours can influence the mood of a

scene. Red for example can show danger, and so is often used in horror films, while silver can show something is modern, and so if often used in science fiction films.

Positioning of characters and objects within a frame