Mise en Scéne is a Frecnh term meaning what is put into the scene or frame. What is put in or left out can make a big difference to the signals we, the audience, receive about what sort of film it is and how we are supposed to feel at this point.
A simple shot of a tree can be made to look threatening by stripping it of leaves, adding a vulture and some lightening and shooting it in darkness. The same tree can be given a very different look by having children playing beneath its sunlit branches. As an experienced film audience we are able to read these hidden signals of lighting, colour, props and characters and add these to our understanding of what will happen in the film.
In this way, the elements of mise en scéne are an indicator as to the genre (type) of film we are watching. We have certain expectations of the mise en scéne in different genres of films; e.g. Horror; Dark, creepy, evil.
Comedy; Bright, colourful, lively.
The elements to consider in the mise en scéne are:
a) settings & props
b) costume, hair & make-up
c) facial expressions & body language
d) lighting & colour
e) position ing of characters & objects within a frame
Heres a brief look at each of these in turn;
SETTINGS & PROPS
SETTINGS:
The settings used in a film are very rarely just backgrounds to the characters' dialogue and indeed we will often see shots of places without any action taking place. In this way the setting of a film is far more significant than the setting of a theatre and is almost always infinitely more detailed. Filmmakers can choose to build a setting from scratch using the bare walls and floor of a studio set; alternatively, a great deal of time and effort is put in by a location manager in the initial stages of making a fil;m to find a setting which already exists. Invariably this location will then be altered further to reflect exactly what the filmmaker wants to convery.
Settings can be used to manipulate an audience by building certain expectations and then the action takes a different turn, for instance, a tale of horror set against the familiar background of modern everyday urban life is showhow more disturbing than one set a century ago in a house in the wooods. This can be particularaly effective if the setting goes against what we would expect from this genre of film.
PROPS:
Props is the term we give to objects in the setting which play a part in the action, rather than just being part of the background, for example, the glass containing the poisioned wine.
COSTUME, HAIR & MAKEUP
COSTUME:
Costume plays a large part in the mise en scéne because it can be an instant indicator to us of a character's personality, social status and job. It tells us immediately whether the film is set in the present and what society and/or culture it will centre around. It may also provide a clue as to the part of the caracter will play in the action. Certain types of costume are identified closely with indicidual genres, for instance, the black cloak of the vampire with a horror film.
MAKE UP:
In the early days of cinema, make-up was used to highlight facial features as black and white film stock could not register detail very well. Certain genres traditionally use make-up more than others.
FACIAL EXPESSIONS & BODY LANGUAGE
FACIAL EXPRESSIONS:
When we watch a performance at the theatre we, as the audience, are usually quite a distance away from the stage. On film, the camera can be at a range of distances portraying the actor in extreme close-up or as a dot in the distance of a long shot. This range of distance means that there will be different emphasis placed on facial expressions and body language according to the type of shot.
We are all familiar with facial expressions as being a clear indicator of how someone is feeling and how small changes to someone's face can send out totally different signals; if someone is smiling broadly we assume they are happy, but if this is held for too long we being to worry as this is not normal behaviour. Eyes give particularly important signals to us when we are trying to read someone's expression and it is usual for us to follow the direction of their sight, so if a filmmaker wants to draw attention to a feature s/he can use this to make the audience focus on something or someone in the frame.
BODY LANGUAGE:
The way in which we hold and move our bodies also indicates how we are thinking and feeling. As with facial expression, everyone is different, but there are some things which we all recognise such as curling up into a ball to protect ourselves or shaking a fist at someone to express anger.
Some films will call for a realisitc type of behaviour from the actors but some will rely on the audience's acceptance that in watching a film they will see some patterns of behaviour which don't usally happen in real life - for instance, when a character bursts into song in a musical.
LIGHTING & COLOUR
LIGHTING:
Lighting can aim to give a particular scene a very realistic look or to bring out the dramatic nature of it and we associate these different lighting styles with different genres. It can be used to achieve a variety of a effects, for example;
- To highlight important characters or objects within the frame by drawing our attention towards them with a bright light source.
- To make a character look mysterious by shading sections of the face/body.
- To reflect a character's confused state of mind may be suggested by alternating bright and dark light quickly as in a strobe effect.
The connotations that colour carries with it are an important influence as to the mood of a scene. We tend to associate certain colours with certain genres particularly with reference to film posters and publicity materials which rely on the public quickly being able to identify with a film even from a distance.
POSITIONING OF CHARACTERS & OBJECTS WITHIN A FRAME
There are various ways in which the filmmaker can use positioning within the frame. For instance;
- If the filmmaker chooses to position a character or an object in the foreground of the shot we know that we, as an audience, should attach importance to this character or object; the mise en scéne is being used to direct our attention towards them. Likewise, we recognise that background events have less significance at this particular point in the narrative.
- A moving body or object placed against a stationary background will immediately draw our attention as it would in real life.
- If characters or objects are positioned evenly within the frame this will give a balanced feel ot the shot. If all the figures are at one end of the frame for example, this will create an imbalance for the eye by making the shot feel heavy on one side. These different types of spacing within the shot can be used to make the audience feel settled or unsettled, thus involving them in the action.
- If the positioning of figures and objects draws our atttention to the diagonal lines of the frame, this will help to inbalance the eye, especially if the lines of the background follow horizontal and vertical planes. This can be used to make the audience feel uncomfortable about the action that is taking place.
- The filmmaker can use positioning to indicate relationships between people, for example, if lovers are having an argument they will often be placed at the outside edges of the grame so there is a lot of physical distance between them to reflect the emotional distance they are experiencing at this point.
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