A

Action Scene 
 Any scene where there is movement of a person, animal, vehicle.

Arc Shot  
When the camera is rotated around the subject in a circular motion

Available Light 
 The amount of natural light that lights a scene.  Such as sunlight, moonlight, or room lamps.  If the available light is not enough to light the subject than outside lights are brought in.

B

Background Light
 The light directed on the background  of a location or backdrop.

B-Camera  
A camera on the set used to record the filmmaking for blocking and editing purposes.  It is also called Camera 2

Belly-Board –
 A small platform used to mount a camera as near to the ground as possible.

C

Candid
A camera shot taken while the actor or person doesn't know they are being photographed

CGI Effects
Computer Generated Image.  CGI effects are what moviemakers use to create situations that would either be too difficult, too fantastic, or too imaginary to create with models or other effects.  CGI effects are becoming more and more common in movies since computers can create more realistic looking images for cheaper.

Clapboard
A board with a stick hinged on top.  The stick is pull up and pushed down onto the board making a loud clap.  Clapboards are used as markers for shots.  The clap creates a noise marker for when the action begins.  After the director says action, traditionally a sethand puts the clapboard in front of the camera, says the scene and
take, then claps the board and runs off screen, starting the scene.  EX: Scene 43, Take 7 (clap)

D

Dialogue
A written or spoken collection of lines between two or more actors.  This is the opposite of a monologue which is just one actor.  Most of your scenes will be dialogues among many characters, but every now and then you may just want one actor taking to the screen, this is a monologue.

Diffuser
Something placed next to or on top of a light to soften it.  Sometimes the lighting in your movie may cause your characters to look washed out or blotchy, try blocking your light with something to make it a little less harsh.  Be careful though, some lights can get quite hot, so never put something flammable over a light.

Dope Sheet
A list of all the shots or takes on a tape. Tapes generally only last about an hour.  So maybe your film will have many tapes or maybe there are just a lot of shots on one tape.  By keeping a dope sheet of all your takes,
organizing which shot is at what time on the tape, you can keep track of what scenes are on what tapes at what
times.  This will speed up your editing and keep you from scanning for hours through your tapes for that cool
scene you got.  It also is good for later movies.  Maybe you made a film about the beach a year ago and need a
shot of waves for a current film, by keeping a dope sheet you can always go back and grab that footage easily.

E

Epic
A long, spectacular film that usually has many characters with many subplots in a grand situation. Star Wars is
an example of an epic.

Evergreen
Used by filmmakers to denote a show or movie that is always popular and timeless.  Cartoons, TV shows, and
other reruns are evergreens because they continue to make money throughout time. 

Extra
An actor who fills out the background.  Extras are persons that have no lines and are used to people the
background of a shot.  Maybe you want to make it look like your two main characters are at a popular park, but
you don't want the people in the background to take away from the dialogue.  You may consider getting some
friends to play ball in the background or eat a picnic, while you film your two main characters.

F

First Cut
The film after its first round or editing and post-production.  It is sometimes called a directors cut or rough cut,
since it is generally compiled by the director, but needs to be reviewed by the producers.

Final Cut
The film when it is completely finished.  The final cut of your movie is it after all pre-production, production, and post-production.  It is your movie in its final form, ready for viewing.  Sometimes filmmakers fight over who gets to make the final cut.  In other words, who says what the final film will look like (does it have this clip or that clip, do we keep this special effect or not, etc). 

Film Noir
A type of filmmaking that is dark and slow with actors frequently stepping out of the scene to talk to the camera.  It was used a lot during crime movies of the 1940's or 1950's.

G

Glamour Shot
A shot that is may be slowed and closed in on an object or person many times using increased lighting.   It is meant to make the object or person stand out and look more beautiful than anything else before or after it.

Good Side
The side of a person or object that is most pleasing for the shot.  Many actors feel they have one side of their face that is more photogenic than another.  A cameraman will set up the shots to match this side.

Green Room
The waiting room for actors who are not on needed for shooting yet.  Trailers can be green rooms.

H

Hold
1)Keeping the camera steady on something. 2) It can also be used to mean stopping shooting for something.  If the director says action, but then there is background noise, he may immediately stop the actors by yelling "Hold!"

"Hitting your mark"
Sometimes a director will want an actor to stand in a certain place during a scene or to deliver lines moving in a certain direction.  This is useful so that it looks well-framed on camera.  This is called an actors mark.  It may be useful to place some tape on these spots, if they can't be seen by the camera, so that the actor knows
exactly where he/she should stand or move.

Hot
Filmmakers will sometimes say that something is hot.  This generally means it is ready for filming.

I

Improvisation
Acting without lines or any other preparation.  It may be useful sometimes to allow your actors to improve in
character.  Improvisation can be fruitful in allowing your actors to become their characters and might lead to
some great dialogue.

Indigenous sound
Sound that matches with the action on screen.  If there is a forest, then maybe the sound should be trees
swaying and birds chirping.  If it is an airplane, then maybe the noise of engines roaring and flight attendant
buttons dinging.  Indigenous sound makes your movie seem more real.

Insurance Shot
Its a good idea to take many shots of the same action or scene. This insures that if one is lost or doesn't come
out right in post-production, there are still a few more insurance shots of the same thing that can cover.

J

Jump Cut
Poor editing.  When a scene changes between many shots.  From a far shot to a close-up and back quickly.  It is
confusing to watch.

K

Key light
The main light for setting the set.  While there may be many other secondary lights to aid in the look of the
scene, a key light is the most powerful and prominent in your lighting.

Kid Vid
An industry term for a children's film or television show created by themselves.

L

Laugh Track
Fake laughter.  The sound of laughter added in to a film or television show to create the illusion that people are
laughing at the action.  It was found that by adding a laugh track, people viewing the movie or television show
would be more likely to laugh.

Lay In
Editing where you add a section of film into another.  Say you have a scene that needs a shot of a dog, but you
forgot it while shooting.  You might go back and film the dog, then lay in the shot in the middle where you
wanted it.

Lens Flare
Where the camera is getting too much light and it looks like a subject is washed out or has a heavenly glow. 
Shooting next to shiny surfaces can cause sun reflections that will result in lens flare.

Linear Editing
Editing using videotape equipment.  Linear editing is very difficult dealing with reels and splicing.  Kid Vids will
generally use nonlinear editing which using computers and digital cameras.  This is much faster.  Much of the
industry today has transferred to nonlinear editing.

M

Magic Hour
The time of day between sundown and nightfall, the twilight.  Shooting at this time of day will give your film a
sense of mystery and beauty.  The camera seems to respond very well to this type of lighting.

Master Scene
The scene in a movie where characters are developed and plot furthered.  The main scene or climax.

Master Shot
In editing a master shot is the one that is returned to throughout the scene.  For example, if two people are
talking, you might have three shots.  One close-up of Actor A, one close-up of Actor B, and one wide shot of
both Actors A and B.  Typically, this final wide shot would be the master shot.  Editing would alternate between
the Actor A close-up and the Actor B close-up, but continually return to the master shot of both A and B in a
wideshot.

N

Narrator
A offscreen speaker who gives guidance to the storyline.  A narrator can be used for artistic reasons or to help
save clarity for a confusing film.

Natural Light
Light that comes from the sun as opposed to lights or other man-made devices

Newsreel
A short film with news topics of the day.  Used a lot in World War II.  

O

On location
On set somewhere other than in a studio or your home.  Refers to going out to film somewhere, rather than
filming in your normal location.  Maybe you go on location to the park or the beach, instead of your backyard.

Outtake
A shot that is not in the final cut.  Many times people will add these at the end of their movie as a blooper.

Overact
To be over the top with a character where they no longer seem real.  If someone is playing a dinosaur and they
start running around and biting everything, they may no longer seem real and just look like a crazy kid. 
Instead, maybe they should take it back a notch and just roar and stomp around.

Overture
Music at the beginning of a movie to give a sense of the story in sound (not picture) before the action even
takes place.  Used a lot in operas or epics.

P

Pan
Movement of the camera from side to side.  When looking across a field, you might pan right to give the
vastness of the area.

Pan and Tilt
A piece that fits of the tripod allowing your camera to pan or tilt.

Parody
A type of film that is satirical, making fun of something.  Also called a spoof or takeoff.

Q

"Quiet on the set!"
Generally yelled before pressing action on the camera so that all the crew know that they are about to start
filming.  Background noise that is unwanted can make it into your film.   If actors or other members of your
crew are talking or moving off camera, you could hear them in your shot.

R

Real Time
Ever watch a movie and they claim there is one-minute before something blows up, but it takes more than two
minutes.  They probably got confused with their times.  Real time is a way of distinguishing the actual time a
scene takes from the camera time (the amount of time filmed as clocked on your camera) or film time (the
amount of time in your final movie).

Rehearsal
Practicing the action before filming. It may be a good idea to do a few practice runs or rehearsals before you
start filming.  This will save you money on tapes and time in the editing process.

Re-shoot
Its possible your first shot didn't come out right.  In this case, you may have to re-shoot or film again.

S

Sequence
A collection of shots that take place in the same place, with the same people, at the same time.  A sequence is
like a tiny movie within your film.  If your movie is about a search for treasure and you go to many locations,
maybe each of these locations is a sequence.  It starts with the arrival to a new place, progresses with a
discovery, and then ends with the characters moving on to another location.

Scale
This refers to the size of an object.  If you are making a movie with toys, you must keep scale in mind.  Bigger
toys will appear bigger in the scene.  Or maybe you want to be talking to the toys.  Remember you are much
bigger than them and will appear like Godzilla.  Try to angle your shots with this in mind or keep your
characters relatively the same size - unless you want something to appear very large or very tiny in comparison.

Shotgun Mike
A microphone used to pick up a wide range of sound coming from one direction. 

Still
A photograph.  If your film freezes on one frame, you will have a photograph or still.

T

Tight Shot
A close-up where only the object or character is in the shot.

Titles
Credits or other words placed on screen.  Titles don't have to be only the title of your film.  Titles can also refer
to any other time words are put up in a movie.

Tripod
A three-legged stand for your camera.  Tripods are useful in steadying your camera so that it doesn't wobble. 
Professional filmmakers almost always have their camera on a tripod.

U

Uncut
Footage that is unaltered.  It can refer to a film before editing.

Unspooling
To screen your film.

Upstage
Background of the set.  If you lay your set out on the ground anything closest the camera will be downstage and
farthest from it will be upstage.

V

Video Dailies
The collection of shots from one day's filming.  If you film for 10 days, then maybe each night you go back over
your film and look at the video dailies to see what was shot that day and what needed to be done the next day

Viewfinder
A pull-out screen on your camera that will allow you to see the picture without looking through the lens.

W

Wigwag
A warning light put on the outside of a sound stage to tell people to not come in because there are cameras
rolling.  Used to make sure no unwanted noise makes it onto the film.

Wrap
Used to call an end to filming either for the day or entirely.  "That's a wrap!"

X

Y
"You're On!"
Said to performers to tell them the camera is rolling

Z

Zoom
Moving in or out on the image.  To zoom in will bring the picture closer, to zoom out will push it away.