Miss-en-scene

Miss En Scene is a French term meaning "In the scene of frame"

There are five elements of miss en scene, this includes;

1. Settings and Props.
This is where the film is set, for example,
2. Costume, hair and make up.
3. Facial expressions and body language.
4. Lighting and color
5. Positioning of characters and objects in the frame.

The setting is where media takes place, this includes what is around the place and where exactly they are. Props are objects that we see in the setting, e.g a spaceship from a Sci-Fi film.

Costume hair and makeup are what the characters wear and do to themselves, these are very important as it defines the character and makes them who they are.

We all communicate through facial expressions and body language, which is particularly important in media texts with the close up and extreme close up.

Positioning of characters and objects within a frame is very important because if the characters are in a wide open space but the characters are all squashed together it would look odd and the audience would not know where to concentrate. The audience will also be wondering what is happening with the rest of the space. However this can be used in certain examples where the director wants the audience to concentrate on two places at once, or where the audience can choose where to concentrate, this is called deep focus. It enables the audience to choose where to look whether it be foreground, middle ground or back ground.
 E.g The best years of our lives. http://ffilms.org/the-best-years-of-our-lives-1946/

Objects and characters can be in the foreground, middle ground or background. This can emphasize the relative importance of the object or character.


Focus Pulling

Focus pulling is also a technique used where the foreground /middle ground or background is pulled into focus and the foreground/ middle ground or background is pulled out of focus.