Text type: the film still
Practice Flashcards
Flip to reveal answersWhat is a film still?
Track your progress — Sign up free to save your progress and get smart review reminders based on spaced repetition.
All 10 Flashcards — Text type: the film still
Sign up free to track progress and get spaced-repetition review schedules.
Question
What is a film still?
Answer
A single frame from a film, in which everything is deliberately arranged.
Question
What is 'mise-en-scène'?
Answer
Everything arranged in the frame — setting, lighting, costume, props, position.
Question
How does lighting/colour work in a still?
Answer
Warm light feels safe; cold blue or harsh shadow feels tense or sad.
Question
What does a high camera angle suggest?
Answer
The subject looks small, weak or vulnerable.
Question
What does position in the frame show?
Answer
Placement (centre/edge, big/small, high/low) signals power and mood.
Question
Name three film-still elements to analyse.
Answer
Setting/props, lighting/colour, and position of people in the frame.
Question
First question to ask of a film still?
Answer
‘What has the director arranged in this frame, and why?’
Question
What do costume and props reveal?
Answer
Clues to who a character is, their situation and how they feel.
Question
Film still vs photograph?
Answer
Both are composed; a still is a frame from a constructed fiction, rich in mise-en-scène.
Question
Common film-still analysis mistake?
Answer
Describing the scene instead of analysing the arrangement and what it suggests.
Read the notes
Full study notes for Text type: the film still
Topic 2.4 hub
Visual & screen
More from Topic 2.4
All flashcards in this topic
English A Lang & Lit exam skills
Paper structures & tips
Track your progress with spaced repetition
Sign up free — Aimnova tells you exactly which cards to review and when, so you remember everything before your IB exam.
Start Free