Rhetorical Analysis of Media
MOVEMENT, SHOTS, AND ANGLES
What is the story being told here?
Mise-En-Scene
 Pronounced
“mees-ahn-sahn” - ick
 Translation:
“put in the scene”
 Everything that goes
into a shot
 NOT editing/postproduction
Let’s see another great example…
 Pay close attention:
 Mise-en-scene
 How does this scene
play out?
 Why?
 What elements help
support the story?
Movement
 Early cameras were fixed, but today they
move.
Zoom
 The movement of an image only through the lens
 The camera doesn’t move, but the lens does.
 Allows the audience to move toward and away from
images.
 Zoom IN & Zoom OUT
Pan versus Tilt
 Each features movement along ONE axis
 PAN: The camera pivots left or right, left to
right, or right to left on a horizontal axis
Pan versus Tilt
 Each features
movement along ONE
axis
 TILT: The camera pivots
up or down on a
vertical axis
Boom or Crane Shot
 The camera moves through the air
 The camera is lifted vertically with a boom or
crane
Shot
 A single length of film produced by
continuous running of the camera
 Can be as short as one frame (example from
The Graduate?) or as long as an entire film!
Time Code
Tracking Shot
 Also known as a “dolly” shot : each named for
the mechanical devices used in filmmaking
Tracking Shot
 Camera follows action through space
 The entire camera moves horizontally with,
toward, or away from the subject
 Subject = focal point (character, object,
landscape, etc.)
Some Famous Tracking Shots
 A Touch of Evil: Orson Welles, 1958
 Boogie Nights: Paul Thomas Anderson, 1997
Two Great Tracking Shots!
2006 - Alfonso Cuaron
(Y tu Mama Tambien, Harry Potter and the
Prisoner of Azkaban)
Shot Size
 Shots are defined by the size of the subject
within the film frame.
 A LOT can happen in one shot.
 The size of a subject can vary within a single
shot.
Long Shot
 Shows the entire figure
Close Up
 Part of the subject takes up much of the
entire screen
Medium Shot
 The midpoint between long and close up
 It shows the body from about the waist up
Extreme Close Up
 Part of the subject takes up all of the entire
screen
Medium Close Up
 Mid-point between Medium shot and Close up
Extreme Long Shot
 Subject is fully seen in the distance of the shot
Camera Angles
 Camera is usually at eye level, but can vary
for particular effect
 Often Objective POV (though can be Subj. or
Indirect-Subj.)
 Offers “normal” view of the world
High Angle
 High angle - taken from above subject
 The Shining (1980)
 What effect does this image have on the
audience?
Low Angle
 Low angle - taken from below subject
 Equilibrium (2002)
 What effect does this image have on the
audience?
Add the word “EXTREME”…
 EXTREME HIGH ANGLE:
 Pink Floyd’s The Wall (1982)
Add the word “EXTREME”…
 EXTREME LOWANGLE:
 The Shining (1980)
The Camera is your FRIEND!
Think about how you can
manipulate it to striking effect
in your own movie!