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Film Basics Trivia Quiz

This is a very basic quiz on filmic elements, from camera technique to genre. Much of this information is garnered from Bordwell and Thompson's 'Film Art'. Enjoy!

A multiple-choice quiz by rj211. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
rj211

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
72,397

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
1861

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Let's begin with a genre question. If a film's objective is to shock, disgust or repel its audience, what genre is it most likely associated with? Hint

gangster

western

musical

horror

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Question 2 of 10

2. Which of the following can generally be used as an example of non-diegetic material? Hint

a main character's monologue

special effects

a film's closing credits

set and costumes

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Question 3 of 10

3. What is the difference between what the term 'long take' and 'long shot' refer to? Hint

Long shot - duration between cuts; long take - distance between camera and subject.

Long take - duration between cuts; long shot - distance between camera and subject.

There is no difference; they both refer to distance between camera and subject.

There is no difference; they both refer to duration between cuts.

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Question 4 of 10

4. Alright, so who the heck is the 'best boy'? Hint

He's the assistant to the gaffer (who is the head electrician).

He's the assistant to the make-up artist, but is particularly concerned with the male lead's needs.

He's a friend of the producer's who hangs out on set but doesn't have a particular responsibility.

He's the overseer of the clapper boy (who operates the clapboard identifying each take).

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Question 5 of 10

5. What is a master shot? Hint

The first take for every shot.

A moving shot that pans the room in 360 degrees, establishing geography and spatial relationships.

The first shot used in a film.

A wide angle or long shot that establishes the spatial relationships of all of the elements in the frame and orients those elements in a particular place.

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which of the following films is NOT paired with the movement it was a part of? Hint

'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' - German Expressionism

'Rules of the Game' - French Impressionism

'Battleship Potemkin' - Soviet Montage

'Umberto D' - Italian Neorealism

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Question 7 of 10

7. What is true of panning or tilting? Hint

In panning, the camera moves up and down and the point of view is mobile.

In panning, the camera is rotated side to side horizontally and the point of view remains the same.

In tilting, the point of view is fixed and the camera is just turned on the horizontal axis.

In tilting, the point of view is mobile and the camera is moved on the horizontal axis.

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Question 8 of 10

8. In three-point lighting, which of the following is NOT one of the lights used? Hint

back

sub

fill

key

9. A theoretical discovery in the 1920's showed that an audience does not perceive individual shots separately from those around it, that in fact there are constant inferences made by the collision of images on the screen. An example of how this might work: a man's face is shown; cut to a shot of a woman storming out of a door with a suitcase; cut back to the exact same shot of the man's face. An audience seeing sequence would infer an emotional situation, probably that the woman is leaving the man (perhaps her husband?) and the audience would believe the man's face to be different the second time they see it even if it is the exact same shot printed twice in the film. What is the name by which this phenomenon is known? Hint

Theory of Inference

Kuleshov Effect

Psyche Interpretation

Eisenstein Principle

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Question 10 of 10

10. What is looping? Hint

The process of re-recording the dialogue for a film.

The act of a camera rotating back on itself to film the space it came from.

The use of wires and harnesses for stunts - literally looping the stars to scaffolding.

The process of setting up the projector for showing a print.

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Let's begin with a genre question. If a film's objective is to shock, disgust or repel its audience, what genre is it most likely associated with?

Answer: horror

The genre of horror is defined by the way it attempts to affect the audience. Westerns are defined by their locale and or theme. Musicals (possibly the most obvious genre to identify) are defined by the use of music in the world of the film. Gangster films are defined by their preoccupation with large-scale urban crime.

2. Which of the following can generally be used as an example of non-diegetic material?

Answer: a film's closing credits

Diegetic material is anything with a source in the story world. Non-diegetic, then, is anything that comes from outside the story world. While I'm sure it could be done, I can't think of any credit sequences for which the credits are actually coming from within the story world. Dialogue and set design, on the other hand, are certainly within the story world. Special effects (like the activation of Leeloo in 'The Fifth Element' or the paths of the bullets in 'The Matrix') also come from within the story world.

3. What is the difference between what the term 'long take' and 'long shot' refer to?

Answer: Long take - duration between cuts; long shot - distance between camera and subject.

Long takes have become more distinctive since MTV popularized rapid-fire editing. Examples of long takes can be found throughout 'Citizen Kane', in the president's mid-coitus stroke scene in 'Dave', and in the scene where Henry Hill and Karen are walking down the stairs into the club in 'Goodfellas'. Long shots, in terms of the human figure, generally include the entire body and the surroundings. Examples of long shots include most of the scene in 'The Shawshank Redemption' when the prison guards search the river for Andy, the shots of Westley chopping wood at the beginning of 'The Princess Bride', and most of the beginning of the cheerleading scene in 'American Beauty' is photographed in long shot.

4. Alright, so who the heck is the 'best boy'?

Answer: He's the assistant to the gaffer (who is the head electrician).

The head electrician (gaffer) is in charge of placing and rigging all of the lights. The best boy is the gaffer's assistant.

5. What is a master shot?

Answer: A wide angle or long shot that establishes the spatial relationships of all of the elements in the frame and orients those elements in a particular place.

While master shots are often the first take for each shot, this is not what defines them. Master shots, or establishing shots, are used to give the audience a sense of where everything is. Then when the filmmaker cuts in to close-ups, we know where the other people and elements are in the space.

A moving shot wouldn't function very well in this role, because a 360 degree pan would probably disorient the audience more than it would orient it, if the space hasn't already been set up.

6. Which of the following films is NOT paired with the movement it was a part of?

Answer: 'Rules of the Game' - French Impressionism

French Impressionism came around 1918-1930. Renoir's 'Rules of the Game' was made in 1939 and embraced Realist film theory more than French Impressionism.

7. What is true of panning or tilting?

Answer: In panning, the camera is rotated side to side horizontally and the point of view remains the same.

In panning, the camera is rotated side to side horizontally and the point of view remains the same. In tilting, the point of view is fixed and the camera is tilted up and down. Both panning and tilting work with static POVs, but panning moves on a horizontal plane and tilting on a vertical one.

8. In three-point lighting, which of the following is NOT one of the lights used?

Answer: sub

The key light faces the subject straight on, the fill light comes in from a side angle, and the back light comes from (you guessed it!) the back. This lighting method was used in most classical Hollywood films. This lighting system can be used to reduce shadows and increase detail throughout the picture.

9. A theoretical discovery in the 1920's showed that an audience does not perceive individual shots separately from those around it, that in fact there are constant inferences made by the collision of images on the screen. An example of how this might work: a man's face is {shown;} cut to a shot of a woman storming out of a door with a {suitcase;} cut back to the exact same shot of the man's face. An audience seeing sequence would infer an emotional situation, probably that the woman is leaving the man (perhaps her husband?) and the audience would believe the man's face to be different the second time they see it even if it is the exact same shot printed twice in the film. What is the name by which this phenomenon is known?

Answer: Kuleshov Effect

Named after Lev Kuleshov, the man who determined A + B = C.

10. What is looping?

Answer: The process of re-recording the dialogue for a film.

Looping is also known as dubbing, and it is usually done in the studio after filming to make sure all of the lines in the film are clearly audible.

Source: Author rj211

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