Film Terms Glossary: 630 Filmmaking Terms by Department

Every film set has its own language. This glossary explains 630 film terms used by camera, lighting, grip, sound, editorial and production crews, from Apple Box to Zoom Motor. Each term is tagged with the department that uses it most, so you can read the sections that interest you.

New to a set? Start with Everyone Should Know. To learn who does each job, see Film Crew Roles: Who Does What on a Film Set.

Key to the department abbreviations

ALL = All should learn
ANIMATION = Animation
CAM = Related to the motion picture camera
CAM DIR = Camera directions
CREW = Crew responsibilities
EDIT = Editorial
FILM = Film
GRIP = Grip department
LAB = Laboratory procedure
LITE = Lighting department
OP FX = Optical effects
POST = Post production
PROD = Production
SFX = Special effects
SND = Sound department
STG = Stage
TV COMM = TV commercial terms
VIDEO = Video

Read the sections that interest you. Pick a department, or search:

A

Academy Aperture: The standard 35mm frame size set by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1932, giving a 1.37:1 image with room for an optical soundtrack.
Action: (1) The director's call to start the performance once camera and sound are rolling.
(2) Movement or activity within the frame.
(3) In editing, the picture track, as opposed to the sound track.
(4) The events of a story or scene.
(5) Fast-paced sequences such as fights, chases and stunts, as in an action scene or action film.
Anamorphic Lens: A lens that squeezes a wide image horizontally onto the film or sensor; a matching lens or software later unsqueezes it into a widescreen picture, typically 2.39:1.
Angle of View: The width of the scene a lens takes in, measured in degrees; set by the focal length and the size of the film frame or sensor.
Animatics: A rough animated version of a storyboard, with timed still frames and temporary sound, used to test and present a commercial before it is shot.
Answer Print: The first complete print combining picture and sound, color-timed by the lab for the filmmakers' approval before release prints are made. Today a digital master review usually serves this role.
Aperture: (1) The adjustable lens opening, set by the iris, that controls how much light reaches the film or sensor, measured in f-stops or T-stops.
(2) The rectangular opening in a camera's gate that defines the exposed frame.
(3) The matching opening in a projector gate.
(4) The image area format itself, as in Academy aperture or full aperture.
Aperture Plate: The metal plate in a film camera's gate with a rectangular opening that sets the size and shape of each exposed frame.
Apple Box: A sturdy wooden box used on set to raise actors, equipment or furniture; comes in full, half, quarter and pancake sizes.
Arc Light: A powerful lamp that makes light from an electric arc between carbon rods; once standard for strong daylight-balanced light, now largely replaced by HMI and LED fixtures.
Arriflex: A line of motion picture cameras made by the German company Arri, first introduced in 1937; the name has covered both film and digital Arri cameras.
Art Director: The crew member who carries out the production designer's vision, supervising set design, construction and dressing, and managing the art department's budget and schedule.
Artificial Light: Light from man-made sources such as tungsten, HMI, fluorescent or LED fixtures, as opposed to sunlight; film stocks and cameras are balanced for either tungsten or daylight.
Aspect Ratio: The proportion of an image's width to its height, such as 1.85:1 or 2.39:1 for theatrical features and 16:9 for television and online video.
Assemble: The first stage of editing, putting the selected shots in script order to form a rough version of the film before refining timing and performance.
Assistant Cameraman: A camera crew member supporting the operator: the first AC pulls focus and maintains the camera; the second AC loads film or media, slates and keeps camera reports.
Assistant Director: The director's right hand, who builds the shooting schedule, runs the set, manages background actors and keeps the shooting day safe and on time.
Audio: The sound portion of a film or video, including dialogue, music and effects, as distinct from the picture.
Available Light: Light already present at a location, natural or from practical fixtures, used for shooting without adding film lighting units.
Avid: A company whose Media Composer nonlinear editing software is widely used to cut feature films and television; Avid also makes Pro Tools audio software.

B

Baby Plate: A small metal plate with a 5/8-inch pin, screwed to walls, set pieces or apple boxes to mount a light low or in tight spots.
Baby Spot: A small Fresnel spotlight, traditionally 750 to 1,000 watts, used for focused accent, kicker or fill light.
Baby Tripod: A short tripod, also called baby legs, used for low-angle shots where standard tripod legs are too tall.
Back Drop: A large painted or printed cloth hung behind a set to represent a distant view, such as a skyline, sky or landscape.
Background: The area of the frame behind the main subject; also short for background actors, the extras who populate a scene.
Background Action: Movement and activity by extras, vehicles or objects behind the main action, cued by the assistant director to make the scene feel real.
Background Plate: Footage of a background shot separately, without the actors, to be combined later with foreground action through projection or compositing.
Background Projection: Projecting filmed backgrounds onto a screen behind actors so both are photographed together, by rear or front projection. Today often replaced by LED walls or green screen.
Backing: A painted, printed or photographic scene placed outside a set's windows and doors to show what lies beyond, such as a city view.
Back Light: Light placed behind the subject and aimed toward the camera, outlining the head and shoulders to separate the subject from the background.
Back Lot: The outdoor area of a studio with permanent exterior sets, such as city streets or a western town, used for filming.
Barn Doors: Hinged metal flaps on the front of a light that shape the beam and keep light off areas where it is not wanted.
Barney: A padded, insulated cover fitted over a film camera to muffle motor noise, and sometimes to keep the camera warm or shaded.
Base: The clear, flexible support layer of film, usually cellulose acetate or polyester, that carries the light-sensitive emulsion.
Batch: A quantity of film stock made at the same time with the same emulsion number; shooting one batch keeps color and speed consistent.
Battery Belt: A belt with built-in rechargeable battery cells, worn by the operator or assistant to power the camera, common for handheld film work.
Bead Board: A lightweight sheet of white polystyrene foam used as a soft bounce reflector for fill light.
Best Boy: The chief assistant to the gaffer (best boy electric) or the key grip (best boy grip), handling crew scheduling, equipment and paperwork.
Black Limbo: Shooting a subject against a seamless, unlit black background so it seems to float in space with no visible setting.
Blacks: Black fabric drapes, flags or solids used to block light, kill reflections, create negative fill or hide parts of a set or location.
Black Wrap: Heat-resistant black aluminum foil used to shape light, block spill and make quick flags or snoots on lamps.
Blimp: A soundproof housing fitted around a film camera to keep motor and movement noise from reaching the microphone during sync sound filming.
Blocking: Working out the actors' positions and movements, and the camera's moves, for a scene; rehearsed before lighting and shooting.
Blow-Up: An optical enlargement of a whole frame or part of it, or printing a smaller gauge such as 16mm up to 35mm. Today usually done digitally.
Blue-Screen Process: Filming action in front of an evenly lit blue background that is later removed and replaced with another image. Today green screen is more common with digital cameras.
Boom Man: Older name for the boom operator, the sound crew member who holds the microphone boom over the actors, keeping it close but out of frame.
Boom Up: Raising the camera vertically on a crane, jib or dolly arm while shooting; boom down lowers it.
Bounce Card: A white or silver card used to reflect light onto a subject, softly filling in shadows.
Bounce Light: Soft, diffuse light made by aiming a lamp at a ceiling, wall or reflector rather than directly at the subject.
Bracketing: Shooting the same shot at several exposures above and below the metered setting to make sure at least one is correct.
Breakaway: A prop or set piece, such as a bottle, window or chair, made from special materials to break safely on cue.
Breathing: (1) A slight change in image size when focus is pulled, a trait of some lenses.
(2) Film fluttering in the camera gate, making focus drift in and out.
Brightness: The amount of light a surface reflects or gives off as seen by the eye; in video, the overall light level of the image.
Brute: A large carbon arc spotlight, typically 225 amps, used for powerful daylight-balanced light. Today largely replaced by large HMI and LED units.
Buckle Switch: A safety switch in a film camera that stops the motor if the film jams or buckles, preventing damage to the film and camera.
Business: Small physical actions an actor performs, such as pouring coffee or adjusting a tie, to add realism or reveal character.
Busy: Describes a frame or set with too many distracting elements, colors or movements that pull attention from the main subject.
Butterfly: A large frame, often 6x6 to 20x20 feet, stretched with silk, net or solid fabric and set overhead to soften or cut sunlight on actors.

C

Call: The scheduled time cast or crew must report to set or location, listed on the call sheet.
Camera: The device that records moving images on film or a digital sensor, built around a lens, a light-tight body and a recording medium.
Can: A round metal or plastic container that holds a roll of film, keeping it light-tight for storage and shipping.
Car Rigs: Mounts that attach cameras and lights to a vehicle, such as hood mounts, side mounts and suction-cup mounts, for driving shots.
Cat Walk: A narrow elevated walkway above a stage set, letting electricians reach and hang lights from overhead.
Cel: A clear sheet of cellulose acetate on which animation drawings are inked and painted, then photographed over a background.
Cel Animation: Traditional animation in which characters are drawn on transparent cels, layered over painted backgrounds and photographed frame by frame. Today usually done digitally.
Cel Side: The smooth, shiny base side of an animation cel or a piece of film, opposite the side that carries the paint or the emulsion. Knowing which side faces the lens matters when shooting and printing.
Century Stand: A versatile steel stand, usually called a C-stand, with folding staggered legs and a gobo arm, used to hold flags, nets, reflectors and small lights.
Changing Bag: A light-tight fabric bag with elastic arm sleeves, used to load and unload film magazines in daylight.
Cheat: Shifting an actor's or object's position for the camera, away from true continuity, so the shot looks better without the audience noticing.
Chicken Coop: An overhead box light holding several bulbs, often six, with a fabric skirt, hung above a set for soft, even top light.
Circled Takes: Takes the director wants printed or used, marked with a circle on the camera report and the script supervisor's notes.
Clapboard / Sticks: The slate with a hinged clapper, showing scene and take, filmed at the start of each take; the clap gives a sync point for picture and sound.
Claw: The part of a film camera's movement that engages the perforations and pulls each frame into the gate, then retracts while the frame is exposed.
Clean Entrance/Exit: Starting a shot with the frame empty before the actor enters, or holding until the actor fully leaves, giving the editor flexible cut points.
Clip: A short segment of film or video; in nonlinear editing, a media file or a portion of one placed in the timeline.
Close-Up: A shot showing a subject at close range, usually a face from about the shoulders up, to reveal detail or emotion.
Close Down: Reducing the lens aperture to a smaller opening (higher f-stop), letting in less light and increasing depth of field; also called stopping down.
Color Balance: Matching the color response of the film or camera to the color temperature of the light so whites look neutral, using stock choice, filters or white balance.
Color Film: Film stock with several emulsion layers sensitive to red, green and blue light, recording the image in full color.
Color Temperature: A measure of the color of light in degrees Kelvin; tungsten light is about 3200K and warm, daylight about 5600K and bluer.
Composite: An image made by combining two or more separately filmed elements, such as actors and a background, into one frame; also a print with picture and sound together.
Computer Graphics: Images created or altered with computers, from titles and motion graphics to 3D animation and visual effects, often called CG or CGI.
Conforming: Matching the original camera negative or high-resolution media to the final edit, frame for frame, to create the finished master.
Console: The mixing board used to adjust levels, equalization and balance of sound tracks during recording or mixing.
Continuity: Keeping details such as props, costume, hair, positions and action consistent from shot to shot so scenes cut together smoothly.
Continuity Girl: Older name for the script supervisor, who tracks continuity, logs takes and timings, and keeps the notes the editor relies on.
Continuous Action: Action that flows unbroken across several shots or angles, staged and matched so the cuts between them appear seamless.
Contrast: The difference between the brightest and darkest parts of an image; high contrast shows strong blacks and whites, low contrast looks flat.
Contrast Glass: A dark-tinted viewing glass a cinematographer looks through to judge lighting contrast and how the scene will record. Today often replaced by monitors and false color.
Cookie, Cuke: Short for cucoloris, a panel with cut-out shapes placed in front of a light to cast patterned shadows, such as leaves or window shapes.
Core: The plastic hub on which film is wound when not on a spool, used in camera magazines and in the lab.
Coverage: All the shots, angles and takes filmed for a scene beyond the master shot, giving the editor choices.
Covering Power: The size of the image circle a lens projects, which must fully cover the film frame or sensor without dark corners.
Cover Set: A backup interior set or location kept ready so shooting can continue if weather stops the scheduled exterior work.
Cover Shot: A wide shot, usually the master, filmed to cover an entire scene so the editor always has a usable shot; also called a safety shot.
Crab: Moving a dolly sideways or diagonally with all wheels steering together, which crab dollies are built to do.
Craft Service: The crew department that keeps snacks and drinks available on set throughout the day, separate from catered meals.
Crane: A large camera support with a counterweighted arm that lifts the camera, and sometimes the operator, for high, sweeping moves.
Crawl: Titles or credits that move across the screen, usually sideways along the bottom; credits moving up the screen are called a roll.
Crew Call: The time the crew must report to set or location, listed on the call sheet; often earlier than the cast's call.
Cricket Dolly: A small, lightweight camera dolly with a short boom arm, used for raised or lowered moves where larger crane dollies cannot fit.
Cropping: Trimming the edges of an image to change its framing or fit it to a different aspect ratio.
Cross Cutting: Cutting back and forth between two or more scenes happening at the same time in different places, building tension or contrast.
Crystal Motor: A camera motor controlled by a quartz crystal that holds an exact speed, such as 24 frames per second, allowing cableless sync sound.
Crystal Sync: Keeping a film camera and sound recorder in sync by running each at an exact crystal-controlled speed, with no cable between them.
Cue Breakdown: A list of each music or sound effects cue with its start time, end time and length, prepared for the composer or sound editor.
Cue Cards: Large cards with dialogue or prompts held near the camera for performers to read, common in television.
Cut: An instant change from one shot to the next; also the director's call to stop a take, and any version of the edited film.
Cut-Away: A shot of something other than the main action, such as a reaction or detail, used to bridge time or cover an edit.
Cut-In: A closer shot of a detail within the main scene, such as hands or an object, cut into the wider shot.
Cut Back: Returning to a shot or subject shown earlier, after a cutaway or another shot.
Cutter: An older industry term for a film editor, from the days of physically cutting and splicing film; on set, a cutter is also a long, narrow flag.
Cutting: Editing; the process of selecting shots and joining them together, named for cutting and splicing film by hand.
Cutting on Action: Making the cut during a movement so the action carries across the edit and helps hide the transition.
Cutting Room: The room where a film is edited; today an edit suite with nonlinear editing systems.
Cut To: A screenplay transition telling the reader the story jumps instantly from one scene to the next.
Cyclorama Strip: A row of lights in a single strip housing, used to light a cyclorama or backdrop evenly, often in several colors.

D

Dailies: Footage from a day's shooting, synced and reviewed by the director and crew, usually the next day; also called rushes.
Daylight: Natural light from the sun and sky; as a lighting standard, light balanced to about 5600K.
Daylight Color Film: Color film balanced for daylight at about 5500K; used under tungsten light, it needs a blue 80A filter to correct the color.
Degauss: To remove leftover magnetism from tape heads, or erase magnetic tape, with a demagnetizer. Today rarely needed since tape is largely gone.
Density: The darkness of a developed film image, measured by how much light it blocks; more exposure gives a denser negative.
Depth of Field: The range of distance in front of and behind the focus point that looks acceptably sharp; set by aperture, focal length and subject distance.
Developing: The lab process of chemically treating exposed film to make the latent image visible and permanent.
DGA: The Directors Guild of America, the labor union representing film and television directors, assistant directors and unit production managers.
Dialogue: The words spoken by characters in a scene, written in the script and performed by the actors on camera.
Dialogue Track: The sound track holding the spoken words, kept separate from music and effects for editing and mixing.
Diaphragm: The adjustable iris inside a lens, made of overlapping metal blades, that controls the size of the aperture.
Dichroic Filter: A glass filter coated to reflect some wavelengths and pass others; on lights, it is often used to convert tungsten light to daylight color.
Diffuser: Material such as frosted gel, silk or spun glass placed in front of a light, or a filter on the lens, to soften it.
Diffusion: Softening light by passing it through translucent material, or softening the image with a diffusion filter on the lens.
Digital Sound Recording: Recording sound as digital data rather than analog signals, onto memory cards or drives, with no quality loss when copied.
Dimmer: An electrical device that controls a light's intensity; dimming a tungsten light also makes its color warmer.
Diopter Lens: A supplementary close-up lens placed in front of the main lens so it can focus closer than its normal minimum distance.
Direct Cut: A straight cut from one shot to another with no dissolve, fade or other transition effect.
Director: The person who leads the creative interpretation of the script, guides the actors and makes the key decisions on camera, performance and editing.
Director's Cut: The edit the director prefers, delivered after the editor's cut; DGA agreements guarantee directors time to prepare it.
Director's Viewfinder: A handheld optical or digital viewfinder that shows the frame at different focal lengths, used to choose angles and lenses without the camera.
Director of Photography: The head of the camera and lighting departments, responsible for the film's visual look; also called the cinematographer or DP.
Dissolve: A transition in which one shot fades out while the next fades in, overlapping briefly; often used to show passing time.
Dolly: A wheeled platform that carries the camera, and often the operator, for smooth moving shots on track or smooth floors.
Dot: A small round scrim, flag or diffusion piece on a thin stem, used to cut or soften light in a small area.
Double: A wire scrim with two layers of mesh that cuts a light's output by about one stop; usually marked with a red rim.
Double System Sound: Recording sound on a recorder separate from the camera, then syncing picture and sound in post using slates or timecode.
Drop: A large painted or fabric backdrop hung from above to fill the background of a set, such as a sky drop or black drop.
Dubbing Session: A session where sound tracks are mixed, or dialogue is re-recorded and synced to picture; also replacing dialogue in another language.
Dupe: A duplicate copy of film, such as a dupe negative made from an interpositive, used to protect the original or make extra prints.
Dutch Angle: A shot with the camera tilted sideways so the horizon is slanted, used to suggest tension or unease.

E

Eastman Color: Kodak's single-strip color negative and print film introduced in 1950, which became the industry standard for color features.
Editing: Selecting, arranging and trimming shots and sound into a finished film that tells the story clearly.
Editing Bench: A worktable fitted with rewinds, a synchronizer, viewer and splicer for hand editing film. Today replaced by nonlinear editing software.
Effects: Visual or sound elements created to add to or simulate events, such as explosions, rain, gunfire or creatures.
Electronic Compositing: Combining two or more video images electronically into one frame, often using keys such as chroma key.
Emulsion: The light-sensitive coating of silver halide crystals in gelatin, layered on the film base, that records the image.
Exposed: Film that has been struck by light in the camera, holding a latent image that has not yet been developed.
Exposure: The amount of light reaching the film or sensor, controlled by aperture, shutter and frame rate; also the act of exposing it.
Exposure Index: A rating of a film stock's sensitivity to light, also called EI, ASA or ISO, used to set the light meter.
Exposure Meter: A light meter that measures incident or reflected light and calculates the correct aperture for the film speed and shutter.
Exterior: A scene set outdoors, marked EXT. in scripts and schedules. It may be filmed outdoors or on a stage built to look like the outside.
Extra: A background performer who appears on camera without lines, filling crowds, streets and rooms to make scenes believable. Today usually called background actor or background.
Extreme Close-Up: A very tight shot showing only a small detail, such as an eye, a mouth or a fingertip on a trigger. Abbreviated ECU or XCU.
Eye Light: A small, soft light placed near the camera to put a sparkle (catchlight) in an actor's eyes and add life to a close-up.
Eye Piece: The part of the viewfinder the camera operator looks through, usually with an adjustable diopter and a rubber eyecup to block stray light.

F

F-Stop: A number showing how wide the lens aperture is, found by dividing focal length by aperture diameter. Lower numbers let in more light; each full stop doubles or halves it.
Fade: A gradual transition where the picture darkens to black (fade out) or brightens up from black (fade in), often marking a change of time or scene.
Fall-Off: How quickly light loses intensity across a subject or set as distance from the source increases. Fast fall-off creates contrast; slow fall-off gives even light.
Fast Motion: Action that appears faster than normal on screen, created by filming at fewer frames per second than the playback speed (undercranking).
FAY Light: A fixture using 650-watt PAR 36 lamps with dichroic filters that make the light daylight balanced. Often grouped in clusters, such as a 9-light FAY.
Fill Light: A softer light that fills in shadows created by the key light, controlling how dark those shadows look and setting the lighting ratio.
Film Plane: The exact position in the camera where the film (or digital sensor) sits to receive the focused image. Lens focus distances are measured from this point.
Film Running Speed: The rate at which film moves through the camera, given in frames per second. Standard sound speed is 24 fps, which is 90 feet per minute for 35mm.
Filter: A glass or gel element placed in front of or behind the lens to change color, cut light, reduce glare, soften the image or create effects.
Final Cut: The finished, approved edit of a film, locked for release. It can also mean the contractual right to approve that version, often held by the studio or producer.
Fine Cut: A refined edit that follows the rough cut, with tightened timing and polished transitions, getting close to the final version of the film.
Fire Up: The call to turn on a light or lights. Electricians usually announce it ("Striking!") so people don't look into the fixture.
Fish Pole: A lightweight, often telescoping pole that holds the microphone above or below the frame. Today usually called a boom pole.
Flag: An opaque black cloth on a metal frame, mounted on a C-stand, used to block light from hitting part of the set or the lens.
Flare: Stray light striking the lens and scattering inside it, showing up as streaks, spots or a washed-out haze. Prevented with mattes, flags or a lens hood.
Flashing: Exposing film to a small, even amount of light before or after shooting to lower contrast and lift shadow detail. Today usually done digitally in color grading.
Flat Lighting: Even, frontal lighting with very little shadow or contrast. It reveals detail but makes faces and spaces look less three-dimensional.
Fluid Head: A tripod head with fluid-damped pan and tilt movements that give smooth, steady camera moves. The standard head for most film and video work.
Fly: To raise lights, scenery or rigging up into the stage grid or catwalks with ropes or motors so they hang overhead, out of the way of the floor.
Focal Length: The distance, in millimeters, from the lens's optical center to the film plane when focused at infinity. Short focal lengths are wide; long ones are telephoto.
Focal Plane: The plane where a lens forms a sharp image. In a camera it should line up exactly with the film or sensor.
Focus: Adjusting the lens so the subject is sharp on film or sensor. Also describes whether an image is sharp (in focus) or blurry (out of focus).
Focus Pull: Changing focus during a shot to follow a moving subject or shift attention between subjects. Done by the 1st AC, also called the focus puller.
Fog: Atmosphere made with a fog machine to show light beams or create mood. In film stock, fog also means unwanted exposure from light leaks or age.
Fog Filter: A camera filter that scatters light to make highlights glow and lower contrast, imitating real fog or haze. Comes in different strengths.
Fog Machine: A special effects device that heats or vaporizes a fluid to produce fog or smoke on set. Haze machines make a finer, longer-lasting atmosphere.
Follow Focus: A gear unit attached to the lens that lets the focus puller turn focus smoothly and repeat marks. Today often wireless and motor-driven.
Footage Counter: A gauge on a film camera or magazine that shows how many feet of film have been shot, so the crew knows how much is left on the roll.
Foot Candle: A unit of light intensity: the light from one candle falling on a surface one foot away. Used with light meters to set exposure.
Forced Development: Developing film longer than normal to make up for underexposure, also called pushing. It adds contrast and grain. Rare today since most work is digital.
Four Wall Set: A set built with all four walls so the camera can shoot in any direction. Walls are often removable (wild) to make room for the camera.
Frame: A single image on film or video. Also the edges of the picture the camera sees; to frame a shot is to compose what is inside those edges.
Frame Line: The thin line between frames on film, or the guide lines in a viewfinder showing the edges of the recorded picture for a chosen aspect ratio.
Frames per Second: The number of individual images recorded or shown each second, written fps. Film standard is 24 fps; video often uses 25, 30 or 60.
Framing: Composing the shot by deciding what the camera includes, where subjects sit in the picture and how much space surrounds them.
Freeze Frame: An effect where a single frame is held on screen so the action appears to stop. Once done by printing one frame repeatedly; today made in editing software.
French Flag: A small flag on an articulated arm attached to the camera or matte box, used to shade the lens from light and stop flares.
Fresnel: A spotlight with a stepped glass lens that produces a soft-edged beam that can be flooded or spotted. Named after physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel.
Front Light/Back Light: Front light hits the subject from the camera side and shows detail. Back light comes from behind, outlining the subject and separating it from the background.
Front Projection: An effect where a background image is projected along the camera's axis through a beam splitter onto a highly reflective screen behind actors. Today usually replaced by green screen or LED volumes.
Full Aperture: The full image area of the film frame, using the whole width including the space once reserved for a soundtrack. Also means a lens opened to its widest f-stop.
Full Shot: A shot showing a person from head to toe, or a full view of the scene's action. Similar to a wide or long shot.

G

Gaffer: The head of the electrical department, who designs and runs the lighting with the director of photography. Also called chief lighting technician.
Gaffer's Tape: A strong cloth tape with an adhesive that usually removes cleanly, used to secure cables, gels and gear. Not the same as duct tape.
Gag: Any rigged trick or practical effect on set, such as a breakaway, a falling object or a moving prop. Grips and effects crews build and run gags.
Geared Head: A camera head moved by turning two hand wheels for pan and tilt, giving very precise, repeatable moves. Common on large film cameras.
Gel: A thin, heat-resistant colored sheet placed over lights or windows to change color or color temperature, or to correct light to match other sources.
Gelatin Filter: A thin filter once made of dyed gelatin, cut to fit over lights or behind a lens. Today most lighting gels are polyester or polycarbonate.
Generation: How many copying steps a piece of film, tape or video is from the original. Each analog generation loses quality; digital copies don't degrade.
Generator: A portable engine that produces electricity to power lights and equipment on location. Usually placed far from set and run by the electric crew.
Glass Filter: A filter made of optical glass, mounted in front of the lens in a matte box or screw-in ring. More durable than gel filters.
Gobo: Anything placed between a light and the subject to block or shape light. Also a metal or glass pattern in a spotlight that projects shapes like windows or leaves.
Gofer: A crew member who runs errands and handles small tasks ("go for this, go for that"). Today called a production assistant (PA).
Graduated Filter (Grad): A filter that changes from tinted or dark on one side to clear on the other, often used to darken a bright sky while leaving the ground untouched.
Grain: The tiny particles of silver or dye that form a film image, visible as texture on screen. Faster films and pushing usually show more grain.
Gray Card: A card that reflects 18 percent of the light hitting it, used to measure exposure and set a neutral color reference for the lab or colorist.
Grid: The overhead framework of pipes or beams on a stage where lights are hung. Also a honeycomb insert on soft lights that narrows the beam.
Ground Glass Viewfinder: A viewfinder that shows the image formed on a finely etched glass screen at the film plane, letting the operator see exact framing and focus.
Group Shot: A shot that includes several people in the frame together, showing how they relate within the scene.

H

Halation: A glowing halo around bright light sources in the picture, caused by light passing through the film emulsion and reflecting back off the base.
Half Apple: An apple box half the height of a full apple box (4 inches), used to raise actors, furniture or equipment.
Half Scrim: A wire mesh screen that covers half a light's face, reducing intensity on one part of the beam, often to even out light on a subject.
Hand Held: Shooting with the camera held by the operator instead of mounted on a tripod or dolly, giving a loose, moving, personal feel.
Hand Model: A performer hired to appear only as hands on camera, often in insert shots or commercials showing a product being used.
Hand Props: Objects that actors hold or use during a scene, such as phones, cups or weapons. Managed by the prop master.
Head: The tripod head the camera sits on, allowing it to pan and tilt. Common types include fluid heads, geared heads and remote heads.
Head Room: The space between the top of a subject's head and the top of the frame. Too much or too little looks awkward.
Heads-Up: A film roll wound with its beginning (head) on the outside, ready to play or project. On set, "heads up!" also warns people of overhead or moving gear.
Head Slate: A slate shown at the beginning of a shot to identify scene, take and roll, and give a sync point. The usual practice; compare tail slate.
Helicopter Mount: A stabilized rig that attaches a camera to a helicopter for aerial shots, isolating it from vibration. Today often a gyro-stabilized remote head.
High Speed Cinematography: Filming at much higher frame rates than playback speed so action appears in slow motion. Used for effects, sports and science.
Hi Hat: A very low camera mount, about the height of a hat, attached to a board or apple box so the tripod head can sit close to the ground.
HMI: A powerful, efficient light using a metal halide arc lamp that produces daylight-balanced light. It needs a ballast to run; HMI stands for hydrargyrum medium-arc iodide.
Honey Wagon: A trailer on location with restrooms, sometimes also with small dressing rooms for cast and crew.
Hot Set: A set that is dressed and being filmed. Nothing should be moved or touched so continuity is kept between shots and days.
House Lights: The regular overhead work lights on a stage or theater, turned on between setups and off when filming.
Hyperfocal Distance: The closest focus distance at which objects from half that distance to infinity are acceptably sharp, used to get the most depth of field.

I

Image: The picture formed by the lens on film or a sensor, and the visual result seen on screen.
Imaginary Line: An invisible line between characters or along the action that the camera stays on one side of so screen direction stays consistent. Also called the 180-degree line or axis.
Improvise: To make up dialogue or action on the spot instead of following the script exactly. Also crew slang for solving a problem with what is on hand.
In Camera Effects: Effects created while shooting, such as double exposures, forced perspective, speed changes or mirror tricks, instead of in post production.
Incandescent: A light that makes light by heating a filament, such as tungsten bulbs. Usually about 3200K, warm in color. Mostly replaced by LEDs today.
Inching Knob: A knob on a film camera that moves the mechanism slowly by hand, used to check threading and the film path before running.
Incident Light: The light falling on a subject from the light sources, as opposed to light reflected from the subject.
Incident Light Meter: A light meter held at the subject, usually facing the camera, that measures the light falling on it. Readings aren't fooled by dark or bright subjects.
Infinity: The farthest focus setting on a lens, marked with the ∞ symbol, where distant objects such as mountains or horizons are sharp.
In Frame: Inside the visible picture area. Crew and gear must stay out of frame; actors enter or are already in frame.
Inky Dink: A very small Fresnel light, usually 100 to 250 watts, used for small accents, eye lights or lighting tight spaces.
Insert: A close shot of a detail, such as a hand, a letter or a screen, cut into a scene to show information. Often shot later by a second unit.
Insert Car: A specially built vehicle that carries the camera, crew and sometimes a crane while towing or following a picture car for driving scenes.
Insert Stage: A small stage for shooting inserts and simple close-ups, often after main photography, without tying up the main set.
In Sync: When picture and sound line up exactly. Also when cameras or devices run at matching speed or timecode.
Intercut: Cutting back and forth between two or more scenes happening at the same time, such as both sides of a phone call or a chase.
Interior: A scene set inside, marked INT. in scripts and schedules. It may be filmed on location or on a built stage set.
Intermittent Movement: The mechanism in a film camera or projector that moves the film one frame, holds it still for exposure, then moves it again.
Internegative: A negative copy made from an interpositive or original, used to print many release prints while keeping the camera negative safe. Today mostly replaced by digital workflows.
Interpositive: A positive film copy made from the original camera negative, used to make internegatives for printing. Today the role is filled by digital intermediates.
In The Can: A finished shot, scene or film that is complete. Comes from exposed film being stored in cans after shooting.
Iris: The adjustable diaphragm inside the lens that controls how much light passes through, set by f-stop or T-stop. Also an iris-in or iris-out transition.

J

Jam: When film binds or piles up in a camera (a buckle), stopping the shot. In sound and video, jam sync sets timecode to match a master clock.
Jenny: Slang for a generator that powers lights and equipment on location.
Jib Arm: A small crane arm on a tripod or dolly that moves the camera up, down and sideways in smooth sweeps. Balanced with counterweights.
Joystick: A control stick used to move a remote camera head or crane, or to control zoom, from a distance.
Jump Cut: A cut between two shots of the same subject from nearly the same angle, making the action jump forward. Can be a mistake or a deliberate style.
Junior: A 2,000-watt (2K) tungsten Fresnel light. A Baby Junior is a smaller, more compact 2K version.

K

Key Light: The main light on a subject, setting the direction, mood and exposure for the scene. Other lights are balanced against it.
Keystoning: A trapezoid-shaped distortion when the camera or projector isn't square to the surface, making parallel lines converge.
Kicker Light: A light placed behind and to the side of a subject, opposite the key, that rims the cheek or shoulder to add separation.
Kill: The call to turn off a light, such as "kill the baby." Also used to cut sound or remove an item from the set.

L

Lab: The film laboratory that develops exposed film, makes prints and handles color timing. Today many labs also handle scanning and digital work.
Lab Report: A report from the lab after processing film, noting any problems like scratches, fogging or exposure issues found in the negative.
Laid in Music: Music placed into the edit to fit the picture, often temporary or library music used before a final score is ready.
Lamp: The bulb inside a lighting fixture that produces light. Crews often call the whole fixture a lamp too.
Latitude: How much over or under exposure a film stock or sensor can take and still record usable detail. Also called exposure latitude.
Leader: Blank or marked film at the start or end of a reel, used for threading and protection. Countdown leader with numbers helps sync and projection cues.
Lens: The optical system of glass elements that focuses light onto film or a sensor to form the image. Lenses vary by focal length, speed and character.
Lens Aperture: The opening in the lens that lets light through, controlled by the iris and measured in f-stops or T-stops.
Lens Hood: A shade attached to the front of the lens that blocks stray light to prevent flare. Larger setups use a matte box instead.
Lens Mount: The connection between lens and camera body, such as PL, EF or LPL. The lens must match the mount or use an adapter.
Lens Speed: How much light a lens can let in at its widest aperture. A fast lens has a low f-stop (like f/1.4); a slow lens has a higher one.
Lens Support: A bracket on the camera's support rods that holds heavy or long lenses, preventing strain on the lens mount.
Library Shot: A shot taken from an existing film or footage library instead of being filmed for the production. Also called stock footage.
Lighting: Placing and controlling lights to create exposure, mood, depth and style for a shot or scene.
Lighting Balance: The relationship between the brightness of different lights in a scene, such as key, fill and background, to create a desired look.
Lighting Board: A control console that sets dimmer levels and cues for lights. Today usually a digital console sending DMX signals to fixtures.
Lighting Grid: A network of pipes above a stage or studio where lights are hung and powered, letting crews rig overhead without stands.
Lighting Ratio: The difference in brightness between the key-lit and fill-lit sides of a subject, such as 2:1 or 4:1. Higher ratios mean more contrast.
Lighting Stand: An adjustable stand that holds a light at a chosen height. Types include baby stands, C-stands and heavy combo or crank-up stands.
Light Level: How much light falls on a subject or area, measured in foot-candles or lux with a light meter.
Limbo: A setting with a seamless, featureless background so the subject appears in no particular place.
Line Producer: The producer who manages the budget and daily operations of a production, hiring crew and keeping the shoot on time and on budget.
Lip-Sync: When the movements of a performer's mouth match the sound of the dialogue or singing. Also to mime to playback.
Liquid Gate: A printing method where film passes through liquid that fills scratches on the base, hiding them in the copy. Today scratches are usually fixed digitally.
Live Action: Filming real people, places and objects with a camera, as opposed to animation or computer-generated imagery.
Live Sound: Sound recorded at the same time the picture is shot, including dialogue and ambience. Also called production sound or sync sound.
Location: Any real place outside the studio where filming happens, such as a house, street or office.
Location Manager: The crew member who finds, secures and manages filming locations, handling permits, contracts, parking and relations with neighbors.
Location Scout: The person who searches for and photographs possible filming locations to match the script. Also the trip to view locations.
Location Shooting: Filming at real places instead of on a stage. Brings realism but adds challenges with weather, sound, power and permits.
Log Sheet: A written record of each take, roll, lens and setting during filming. Also called a camera report or sound report.
Long Focus Lens: A lens with a long focal length that magnifies distant subjects and compresses space. Commonly called a telephoto lens.
Long Shot: A shot taken from far away, showing the full subject and much of the surroundings. Also called a wide shot.
Looping: Re-recording dialogue in a studio while watching the scene, to replace or improve the original sound. Today usually called ADR (automated dialogue replacement).
Loose Shot: A shot framed with extra space around the subject, giving room for movement or a more relaxed composition.
Lose the Light: When natural daylight is fading or changing so much that shots won't match, forcing the crew to stop or change plans.
Louma Crane: A lightweight, modular camera crane developed in France in the 1970s. The camera sits on a remote head operated from the base while watching a monitor.
Low Angle Shot: A shot taken from below the subject, looking up, which can make the subject seem powerful, large or threatening.
Low Con (Low Contrast) Filter: A filter that lowers contrast by spreading some light into the shadows, softening the image while keeping it sharp.
Low Contrast: An image with a small difference between highlights and shadows, giving a soft, flat or hazy look.
Low Key Lighting: Lighting with lots of shadow, dark areas and high contrast, often used for drama, mystery or horror.
Low Speed Camera: A camera running at fewer frames per second than normal playback, making action appear faster on screen. Used for fast motion and time lapse.
Luminaire: The technical term for a complete lighting fixture, including the lamp, housing, reflector and lens.

M

Macro Lens: A lens designed for focusing very close to small subjects, showing them life-size or larger on the film or sensor.
Mag (Magnetic) Film: Sprocketed film base coated with magnetic oxide, used to record and edit sound in sync with picture. Today sound is recorded and edited digitally.
Mag (Magnetic) Stripe: A narrow strip of magnetic oxide applied along the edge of a film print to carry a soundtrack that can be recorded and played back.
Magazine: A lightproof container that holds unexposed film on a feed side and exposed film on a take-up side, mounting onto a motion picture camera.
Magic Hour: The short period just after sunrise or before sunset when soft, warm, low-angle daylight gives a flattering glow. Also called golden hour.
Magnetic Recording: Recording sound by magnetizing particles on tape or film in patterns that match the audio signal, the standard method before digital recording.
Magnetic Tape Recorder: A machine that records and plays back sound on magnetic tape, such as the reel-to-reel recorders long used for location sound before digital recorders.
Makeup Artist: The crew member who designs and applies makeup to actors, keeps their look consistent between takes, and handles touch-ups on set.
Makeup Call: The scheduled time an actor must report to the makeup department so they are ready before their set call.
Mark It: The call for the camera assistant to clap the slate once camera and sound are rolling, marking the sync point for the take.
Master Shot: A wide continuous shot that covers the whole scene from start to finish, providing the base that closer coverage is cut into.
Match Cut: A cut joining two shots linked by a matching shape, movement, or composition, creating a visual connection between them.
Match Dissolve: A dissolve between two shots whose shapes or compositions line up, so one image appears to transform into the other.
Matching Action: Repeating an actor's movements and timing the same way in every angle so shots can be cut together smoothly on the action.
Matte: A mask that blocks part of the frame so another image can be combined into that area later, as in composites and split screens.
Matte Artist: An artist who creates matte paintings or digital matte environments that extend or replace parts of a shot's background.
Matte Box: A bellows or hood mounted in front of the lens that blocks stray light and holds filters in slots or trays.
Matte Line: A visible outline or edge around a composited element caused by a poorly fitting matte, a common flaw in compositing.
Matte Painting: A painted image of scenery or set extension combined with live action to create locations too costly to build. Today usually done digitally.
Matte Shot: A shot that combines live action with another image, such as a painting or separate footage, using mattes to hide and reveal each part.
Meal Penalty: A payment owed to crew or cast when the production fails to provide a meal break within the time set by union rules, typically six hours.
Meat Axe: A small flag mounted on an extending arm, often clamped to a catwalk or rail, used to cut light from a lamp that is hard to reach.
Mechanical Effects: Physical special effects created on set with rigs and devices, such as breakaway props, rain, wind, smoke, and moving set pieces.
Medium Close-Up: A shot framing a person from about mid-chest to just above the head, closer than a medium shot but wider than a close-up.
Medium Shot: A shot framing a person from about the waist up, showing body language while keeping the face readable.
Microphone: A device that converts sound waves into an electrical signal for recording, chosen by pickup pattern such as omnidirectional, cardioid, or shotgun.
Microphone Boom: A pole or arm that holds a microphone over or near actors, just outside the frame, to record clean dialogue.
Midget: A small Mole-Richardson Fresnel spotlight of about 200 watts, used for small accents and tight spaces.
Mighty: Short for the Mighty Mole, a Mole-Richardson open-face quartz light of about 1,000 watts, used for broad fill, bounce and backgrounds.
Miniature (Model): A scaled-down model of a set, vehicle, or object filmed to look full size, often at high frame rates for realistic motion.
Minimums: Union-required minimum crew sizes, hours, or pay that a production must meet, such as a minimum call of paid hours per day.
Mirror Shutter: A rotating mirrored shutter in a reflex film camera that passes light to the film when open and reflects it to the viewfinder when closed.
Mitchell: A Los Angeles camera maker whose 35mm studio cameras, such as the NC and BNC, were standard in Hollywood for decades.
Mix: In editing, the British term for a dissolve. It also means combining and balancing dialogue, music, and effects tracks into the final soundtrack.
Mixer: The production sound mixer who records and balances sound on set, or the mixing console used to combine audio signals.
Modeling: Lighting that reveals the shape, depth, and texture of a subject through the play of highlights and shadows.
Molevator: A heavy-duty crank-up stand made by Mole-Richardson for raising and lowering large lighting units.
Monitor: A screen that displays the camera or playback image so the director and crew can check framing, performance, and focus.
MOS: A shot filmed without sound recording. The origin of the letters is debated, but the term is used universally on slates and camera reports.
Motion Control: A computer-controlled camera rig that repeats the exact same move multiple times, allowing separate passes to be layered into one shot.
Moviola: An upright film editing machine with a small viewer and sound heads, used for decades to view and cut film. Today editing is done on computer.

N

Nagra: A line of portable audio recorders, originally Swiss reel-to-reel machines, that were the standard for location film sound for many years.
Narration: Spoken commentary delivered by an unseen or onscreen narrator that guides the audience through the story or information.
Natural Light: Light from existing sources such as the sun or sky rather than film lights, often shaped with reflectors and diffusion.
Natural Wipe: A transition where an object or person passing close to the lens fills the frame, hiding the cut to the next shot.
Negative: Film that records an image with tones and colors reversed, which is then printed or scanned to produce a positive image.
Negative Cutting: Cutting and splicing the camera original negative to match the final edited workprint. Today usually replaced by a digital conform.
Net: A frame covered with fine mesh fabric placed in front of a light to reduce its intensity without changing its color or softness much.
Neutral: Usually short for a neutral density filter, which cuts the amount of light reaching the lens evenly without changing color.
Nine Light: A lighting fixture with nine PAR lamps arranged in a three-by-three grid, used as a powerful daylight-balanced fill or long-throw source.
Nodal Point: The optical point within a lens around which the camera can pan or tilt without parallax shift, important for effects and panoramic work.
Non-Sync Sound (Wild): Sound recorded separately from picture without sync, such as wild lines or effects, to be fitted in during editing.
No Print: A take marked not to be printed or used. Today the equivalent is a take not circled on the camera or script report.

O

Obie: A small light mounted on the camera just above the lens to add soft fill and eye light. It was named after actress Merle Oberon.
Objective Camera: A camera viewpoint that observes the action as a neutral onlooker rather than through a character's eyes.
Off Camera: Action or dialogue happening outside the frame, heard or implied but not seen by the camera.
Off Mike: Sound recorded too far from or outside the microphone's pickup pattern, making it sound distant or hollow.
Off Screen: Action, sound, or a character located outside the visible frame, often noted as O.S. in a script.
On Camera: Anything seen within the frame, such as a performer who appears in the shot rather than only being heard.
One-Light Print: A quick, inexpensive film print made with a single printer light setting for the whole roll, without shot-by-shot color correction.
On Location: Filming at a real place outside the studio, such as a street, house, or landscape, rather than on a built set.
Open Up: To widen the lens aperture to a lower f-stop, letting in more light and reducing depth of field.
Operator: The camera operator who frames and moves the camera during takes, working under the director of photography.
Optical Effects: Visual effects such as fades, dissolves, wipes, and composites created on an optical printer. Today usually done digitally.
Optical Flip: An optical printer transition in which the image appears to flip over to reveal the next shot. Today usually done digitally.
Optical House: A lab facility specializing in optical printer work such as titles, transitions, and composites. Today this work is done by VFX houses.
Optical Printer: A machine combining a projector and camera to rephotograph film frames, used for effects, composites, transitions, and blow-ups. Today replaced by digital tools.
Optical Zoom: A zoom effect created on an optical printer by moving the camera closer to the projected frame, enlarging the image after filming.
Original: The film actually exposed in the camera, the camera original, from which all prints and copies are made.
Original Film: The camera original negative or reversal film exposed during shooting, handled carefully because it is the source for all copies.
Out of Focus Dissolve: A transition where the first shot goes soft as it dissolves into a second shot that sharpens into focus.
Out of Sync: When picture and sound do not line up, so lip movements and actions do not match what is heard.
Out Take: A take or shot that is not used in the final edit.
Overcrank: To run the camera faster than normal speed so the action plays back in slow motion at standard projection speed.
Overcranked: Footage shot at a higher frame rate than playback speed, so it appears in slow motion on screen.
Over Development: Developing film too long or too hot, increasing density, contrast, and grain. Sometimes done on purpose to push underexposed film.
Over Exposure: Letting too much light reach the film or sensor, producing a bright, washed-out image with lost highlight detail.
Overlap: An edit where sound or picture from one shot carries over into the next, such as a split edit or L-cut.
Overlap Dialogue: Dialogue in which one actor speaks over another's line, which can make cutting difficult if not planned and recorded cleanly.
Overscale: Pay above the union minimum rate, negotiated for experienced performers or crew members.
Over the Shoulder Shot: A shot framed from behind one person's shoulder looking at another, common in dialogue scenes.

P

Pace: The speed and rhythm of a scene or film, shaped by performance, camera movement, and editing.
Paddle Plug: A flat stage plug with copper contacts on a fiber or wooden body, used in older stage power boxes. Mostly replaced by modern connectors.
Painted Matte Shot: A shot combining live action with a painting that fills in scenery or set extensions. Today usually done as a digital matte painting.
Pan: A horizontal pivot of the camera from left to right or right to left on a fixed head.
Pan Handle: The handle attached to a tripod head that the operator uses to pan and tilt the camera smoothly.
Parallax: The framing difference between what a separate viewfinder sees and what the lens records, most noticeable at close distances.
Parallel: A portable scaffold platform assembled from folding sections, used to raise cameras, lights, or crew above the set.
Par Light: A lamp with a parabolic aluminized reflector built into the bulb, producing a strong, fairly narrow beam. Lens choices change the spread.
Perforation: The evenly spaced holes along the edge of film that the camera's claws and sprockets engage to move and hold each frame.
Periscope (Lens): A lens attachment using mirrors or prisms to place the taking point low or in tight spots, often used for miniatures and tabletop shots.
Perspective: The sense of depth and spatial relation between objects, shaped by camera position and lens focal length.
Photoflood: A household-base tungsten bulb run at high output for brighter, roughly 3400K light, with a short life. Rarely used today.
Pick-Up Shot: A shot filmed after the main shooting of a scene, often to cover a missed moment, line, or insert.
Pilot (Register) Pins: Precisely fitted pins that hold the film perforations steady during exposure, ensuring each frame sits in exactly the same position.
Pitching Lens: A tilting periscope-style lens attachment that lets the view angle change without moving the camera, mainly used for low miniature and tabletop shots.
Play Back: Playing prerecorded music or dialogue on set so performers can sing, dance, or lip sync in time, or reviewing a recorded take.
Point of View Shot: A shot showing what a character sees, filmed from their position and eye line.
Polarizing Filter: A filter that reduces reflections and glare and can deepen blue skies, adjusted by rotating it on the lens.
Post Production: All work done after shooting, including editing, sound design, mixing, music, visual effects, color grading, and delivery.
Practical: A light source that appears in the shot and works, such as a lamp or sconce, often adjusted to give usable light.
Pre Production: The planning stage before filming, including script breakdown, scheduling, budgeting, casting, location scouting, and hiring crew.
Prescore: Recording music or songs before filming so performers can match the track during playback on set.
Presence: The natural background sound of a space, also called room tone or ambience, used to fill gaps and smooth edits.
Pressure Plate: A smooth plate in the camera gate that holds the film flat against the aperture so each frame stays in sharp focus.
Prime Lens: A lens with a single fixed focal length, generally faster and sharper than a zoom.
Print: A take the director wants processed and used, marked by calling "Print" and circling it on the reports. Also a positive copy of a film.
Printing Down: Printing a film darker than normal, usually to correct an overexposed negative or to deepen the look of a scene.
Process: Shots combining actors with background footage through rear projection, front projection, or blue or green screen.
Processing: Developing exposed film in a lab through chemical baths to produce a visible, stable image.
Production Unit: A complete shooting team with its own director and crew, such as a main unit or second unit.
Projector: A machine that throws film or digital images onto a screen for viewing dailies, screenings, or effects work.
Prompter: A device, usually a teleprompter, that displays scrolling script text near the lens so presenters can read lines while looking at camera.
Pull-Back Shot: A shot in which the camera moves or zooms back from a subject to reveal more of the surroundings.
Pyrotechnics: Controlled fire, explosions, and smoke effects handled by a licensed pyrotechnician following strict safety rules.

Q

Quartz Bulb: A tungsten-halogen bulb in a quartz envelope that stays at a steady color temperature and brightness over its life.
Quartz Light: A lighting unit using a tungsten-halogen quartz bulb, giving bright, consistent 3200K light from a compact housing.

R

Rack Focus: Shifting focus during a shot from one subject to another at a different distance, guiding the viewer's attention.
Reaction Shot: A shot showing a character responding to an action or line, often cut in to show emotion.
Reading: A rehearsal where the cast reads the script aloud, such as a table read. It also means how an actor delivers a particular line.
Rear Projection: Projecting background footage onto a translucent screen behind actors so both are filmed together. Today mostly replaced by green screen and LED walls.
Recording Studio: A soundproof facility where dialogue replacement, narration, music, and Foley are recorded during post production.
Red Light: A warning light outside a stage that signals cameras are rolling, meaning do not enter or make noise.
Reel: A spool of film, or a section of a film edited as one unit, traditionally about 1,000 or 2,000 feet of 35mm.
Reflectance: The percentage of light a surface reflects, which affects how bright it appears and how it reads to a light meter.
Reflected Light: Light that bounces off a subject or surface toward the camera, which is what the lens actually records.
Reflected Light Meter: A meter that measures light bouncing off the subject from the camera position, giving a reading for an average middle gray.
Reflector: A board or panel with a shiny or white surface used to bounce sunlight or lamp light onto a subject as fill.
Reflex Camera: A camera that lets the operator view directly through the taking lens, usually via a mirror shutter or prism.
Reflex Viewfinder: A viewfinder that shows the image through the taking lens, removing parallax and showing exact framing and focus.
Reframe: Adjusting the camera's composition during a shot to keep subjects well framed as they move.
Register Pins: Pins that engage film perforations during exposure to hold each frame in a precise, steady position.
Registration: How accurately each frame is positioned in the gate, which determines image steadiness, critical for effects work.
Resolution: The amount of fine detail a lens, film stock, or sensor can capture, measured in lines or pixels.
Retake: Shooting a shot or scene again because of a mistake, technical problem, or a need for a better performance.
Reveal: A camera move or action that uncovers something previously hidden from the audience.
Reversal Film: Film that develops directly into a positive image on the original, like slide film, without needing a separate print.
Reverse Angle: A shot taken from roughly the opposite direction of the previous shot, such as cutting between two people talking.
Reverse Motion: Action that plays backward on screen, made by running the camera backward, printing frames in reverse, or reversing digitally.
Reverse Printing: Printing frames in reverse order so action runs backward on screen. Today usually done digitally.
Rewind: A hand-cranked spindle on an editing bench used to wind film from reel to reel for viewing and cutting.
Rigging: Setting up mounts, pipes, clamps, and hardware to hang lights, cameras, or flags before shooting begins.
Rim Light: A light behind the subject that outlines the head and shoulders with a thin edge of light, separating them from the background.
Riser: A block, platform, or extension used to raise the camera, a set piece, or an actor to the needed height.
Roll Camera: The call to start the camera running for a take, followed by the operator or assistant confirming "rolling."
Roll Sound: The call for the sound mixer to start recording, answered with "speed" once the recorder is running properly.
Room Tone: A recording of a location's silent background sound with everyone still, used to fill gaps in the dialogue track.
Rotoscope: Tracing over live-action footage frame by frame to create animation or mattes. Today usually done in compositing software.
Rough Cut: An early version of the edit with scenes assembled in order, before fine trimming, sound mixing, and effects.
Running Shot: A shot in which the camera moves alongside or ahead of a moving subject, keeping pace with it.
Run Out: When the film in the magazine runs out during a take, or the remaining short end at the end of a roll.
Run Through: A full rehearsal of a scene with cast and crew to check blocking, camera moves, and timing before shooting.
Run Up: The brief time a film camera needs to reach full running speed before usable footage is exposed.
Rushes: Footage from the previous day's shoot, viewed by the director and crew to check results. Also called dailies.

S

Safe Action: The area inside the frame where important action will not be cut off on screens that crop the edges.
Sand Bag: A heavy canvas bag filled with sand used to weigh down stands, flags, and equipment to keep them stable and safe.
Saturation: The intensity or purity of a color, from vivid and rich to muted gray.
Scene: A section of the story taking place in one location and continuous time, usually made up of several shots.
Scene Dock: Storage area next to a sound stage where flats, set pieces and scenery are kept between uses.
Scenery: The painted flats, backdrops, and built set pieces that create the setting where action takes place.
Scenic Artist: Art department painter who finishes sets with paint, aging and textures such as wood grain, marble or brick, and paints backdrops.
Scouting: Visiting possible locations before the shoot to check look, light, sound, power, access and permits, usually with the director, DP and location manager.
Scratch Track: Temporary audio, such as rough narration, guide dialogue or temp music, used while editing until the final recording replaces it.
Screen: The surface a film is projected onto; also used to mean showing a film (a screening) or the film industry as a whole.
Screen Direction: The left or right direction a subject moves or looks in frame. Keeping it consistent from shot to shot, by respecting the 180-degree line, keeps the audience oriented.
Scrim: Wire mesh screen placed in front of a light to reduce its intensity without changing color or softness; a single cuts about half a stop, a double about one stop.
Script Clerk (Script Supervisor): Crew member who tracks continuity and records takes, timings and script changes in notes for the editors. Script Clerk is the older title; today the job is Script Supervisor.
Second Unit: A separate, smaller crew that shoots material not needing the principal actors, such as stunts, establishing shots and inserts, often at the same time as the main unit.
Selected Takes: Takes the director marks as good to print or use, circled on the camera report and script notes. Also called circled takes or print takes.
Selective Focus: Using shallow depth of field so only one part of the frame is sharp, guiding the viewer's attention while the rest falls out of focus.
Senior: A 5,000-watt Fresnel spotlight, also called a 5K, commonly used as a key light or to push light through windows.
Sequence: A series of scenes or shots that form one continuous section of the story, such as a chase. In editing software, also a timeline of assembled clips.
Set: The built or dressed environment where a scene is filmed, on a stage or on location; also the active shooting area, as in "quiet on set."
Set-up: Each new camera position with its lighting arrangement. The number of set-ups per day is a common way to plan and measure a shooting schedule.
Sharpness: How clearly fine detail and edges are rendered in an image, affected by lens quality, focus, film stock or sensor resolution, and processing.
Shoot Around: To film other scenes or angles when an actor, prop or location is unavailable, so work continues without them.
Short End: Unexposed film left on a roll after part of it was shot, removed and canned for later use or resale. A film-era term.
Short Focal Length: A lens with a short focal length, giving a wide angle of view and deep depth of field; on 35mm, roughly anything under 35mm.
Shot: A continuous piece of film or video recorded from the moment the camera starts until it stops; the basic building block of a film.
Shotgun Microphone: Highly directional microphone with a long interference tube that picks up sound in front and rejects sound from the sides; usually boom-mounted for dialogue.
Shot List: Written list of every shot planned for a scene or day, with size, angle and movement, used by the director and camera team to plan and track the shoot.
Shutter: The mechanism that controls when light reaches the film or sensor. Film cameras use a rotating disk; digital cameras use mechanical or electronic shutters.
Shutter Angle: The open portion of a rotary shutter, in degrees, which sets exposure time per frame. 180 degrees is standard, giving 1/48 second at 24 fps.
Shutter Speed: How long each frame is exposed to light, written as a fraction of a second. Slower speeds add motion blur; faster speeds make motion crisper.
Side Light: Light coming from the side of the subject, at about 90 degrees to the camera, which reveals texture and creates strong modeling.
Silk: White silk or synthetic fabric stretched on a frame to diffuse and soften light, often flown overhead to soften sunlight on exteriors.
Single: A scrim or net with one layer of mesh that cuts light by about half a stop. Single wire scrims are usually marked with a green rim.
Single Frame Exposure: Shooting one frame at a time instead of at running speed; used for stop motion, animation and time-lapse.
Skip Framing: Printing that drops frames at regular intervals so action looks faster on screen. Once done on an optical printer; today usually done digitally.
Sky Light: Soft, bluish light from the open sky rather than direct sun. On stage, also a fixture or bank of lamps hung overhead to imitate it.
Sky Pan: Large open-faced floodlight with a wide pan reflector and bare bulb, often 5K or 10K, used to light cycloramas and backdrops or give broad fill.
Slate: Board filmed at the start of a take showing production, scene, take and roll; its clapsticks give a sync point for matching picture and sound. Also called clapperboard.
Slow Motion: Action that appears slower than normal on screen, made by shooting at a higher frame rate than playback, such as 120 fps played at 24.
Slow Speed: Shooting at a lower frame rate than normal so action looks faster on playback. Also describes film stock with low light sensitivity.
Snoot: Tube or cone attached to the front of a light to narrow the beam to a small circle, keeping light off the surrounding area.
Snorkel: Periscope-style lens system, also called a probe lens, that lets the camera shoot from very low or tight positions, such as inside miniatures or tabletop sets.
Soft: Not sharply focused, as in "that take was soft"; also describes diffused light that makes gentle, gradual shadows.
Soft Cut: A very short dissolve, only a few frames long, used to smooth an edit without reading as a dissolve.
Soft Focus: A deliberately diffused, slightly unsharp image made with diffusion filters or special lenses, often used to flatter faces or add a dreamy look.
Soft Light: Light with gentle, gradual shadow edges from a large or diffused source; also a fixture that bounces light off a white reflector to produce it.
Sound Camera: A film camera quiet enough, through blimping or self-blimped design, to shoot sync sound without its motor noise being recorded. A film-era term.
Sound Mixer: Head of the production sound department who records and balances dialogue and other sound on set. Also called the production sound mixer.
Sound Speed: Called out when the audio recorder is running and stable, telling the camera team it can roll. Also refers to 24 fps, the standard rate for sync sound film.
Sound Stage: Soundproofed building or large room where sets are built and filmed, giving full control over noise, lighting and weather.
Source Lighting: Lighting that appears to come from a visible or implied source in the scene, such as a window, lamp or fire, so the light looks motivated and natural.
Special Effects: Practical effects created physically on set during filming, such as rain, smoke, fire, explosions and breakaway props. Distinct from visual effects done in post.
Speed: Called out to confirm the camera or sound recorder is running and ready to record. Also used for frame rate, lens aperture, or film sensitivity.
Spider Box: Portable electrical distribution box that splits a feeder cable into several outlets or circuits for powering lights on set.
Spill: Unwanted light falling outside the intended area, controlled with flags, barn doors, snoots and cutters.
Splice: A join between two pieces of audio tape or magnetic film, made by cutting and taping them together. Today sound edits are made digitally in an audio workstation.
Split-Field (Diopter) Lens: Half close-up diopter covering one side of the lens, so a near object on one side and a distant object on the other both appear in focus.
Split Reel: Reel with two flanges that unscrew, so film wound on a plastic core can be mounted and removed for editing or projection. Film-era equipment.
Split Screen: Two or more separate images shown on screen at once, side by side or in sections; also used to combine takes, such as one actor playing twins.
Spot Light: Fixture that produces a narrow, concentrated beam, such as a focused Fresnel or ellipsoidal; also a follow spot used to track performers.
Spot Meter: Reflected light meter that reads a very narrow angle, often 1 degree, so the camera team can measure the brightness of one specific area from camera position.
Spreader: Folding brace that holds tripod legs at the base so they cannot slip or splay out. Also called a triangle or spider.
Sprocket Holes: Perforations along the edges of film that sprockets and claws engage to pull film through cameras, projectors and printers and hold each frame steady. Also called perfs.
Spyder Dolly: Lightweight, compact dolly with four adjustable legs that can be set in different positions to fit tight spaces, running on track or a smooth floor.
Stage: A sound stage, or the floor of one, where sets are built and filmed; in theater, the performing area.
Stand-in: Person of similar height and coloring who takes an actor's place during lighting and camera setup so the actor can rest or rehearse.
Standing Set: Set left built for repeated use over time, such as the recurring rooms of a TV series or a street on a studio backlot.
Steadicam: Body-worn camera stabilizer with a vest, articulated arm and balanced sled that isolates the camera from the operator's steps, giving smooth moving shots. Invented by Garrett Brown in the 1970s.
Still Man: The set photographer who shoots production stills for publicity and records. Today called the unit still photographer.
Stock Shot: Existing footage licensed from a library or archive rather than shot for the production, such as city skylines or historical events. Also called stock footage.
Stop Motion: Animation in which objects or puppets are moved slightly and shot one frame at a time, creating the illusion of movement on playback.
Story Board: Series of drawings showing each planned shot in order, with framing and action notes, used to plan scenes before shooting. Usually written storyboard.
Story Board Artist: Artist who draws the storyboards from the script and the director's ideas, showing shot sizes, angles and camera movement.
Straight Cut: A simple, direct cut from one shot to the next with no transition effect; also an edit where picture and sound change at the same point.
Strike: To take down and remove a set, light or piece of equipment. A struck set is cleared away once shooting on it is finished.
Strobe Light: Light that fires in very short, regular flashes; used for effects and high-speed work, and can flicker on camera if not matched to the shutter.
Strobing: Jerky, stuttering motion on screen, especially in fast pans or across vertical lines, caused by the frame rate and shutter being too slow for the movement.
Stunt Man: Performer trained to do dangerous action, such as falls, fights and car work, in place of or with an actor. Today called a stunt performer.
Subjective Camera: Camera placed to show the scene from a character's point of view, so the audience sees what the character sees. Also called a POV shot.
Sun Gun: Portable battery-powered light, handheld or camera-mounted, used for news, documentary and run-and-gun shooting. Classic sun guns were tungsten-halogen; today most are LED.
Superimpose: To lay one image over another so both are visible at once, as with titles over picture or a double exposure. Often shortened to super.
Swing Gang: Set dressing crew members who place and remove furniture and props, often working off-hours to dress the next set and strike the last one.
Swish Pan: A very fast pan that blurs the image between its start and end points, often used as a transition. Also called a whip pan.
Synchronization: Matching picture and sound so they play in step, such as lip movement with dialogue; also keeping cameras and recorders locked to the same timing.
Syncing Dailies: Matching each day's picture with its separately recorded sound, using slate claps or timecode, so the director and editor can review takes with sound.

T

T-Stop: Lens aperture setting based on the light actually transmitted, unlike the calculated f-stop, giving consistent exposure across lenses; standard on cinema lenses.
Tail: The end of a shot, clip, roll or reel; the opposite of the head.
Tail Away Shot: Shot in which the subject moves away from the camera, showing their back as they exit or recede into the distance.
Tail Out: Film or tape wound with its end on the outside of the reel, so it must be rewound before projection or playback.
Tail Slate: Slate filmed at the end of a take instead of the start, held upside down to show it is a tail slate.
Take: A single recording of a shot. Each time the shot is repeated, it gets a new take number.
Take Number: Number on the slate and in camera and sound reports that identifies each attempt at a shot, so editors can find a specific take.
Take Up: The side of a camera magazine or projector where film is wound after passing through the gate; also the reel or spool that collects it.
Take Up Spool: Empty reel on a rewind, editing bench or projector that film is wound onto as it runs off the feed reel.
Taking Lens: The lens actually photographing the image, as opposed to a separate viewfinder lens, on cameras with separate viewing and taking optics.
Talent: The performers on camera or on mic, such as actors, hosts, presenters and voice actors.
Talent Agency: Company that represents actors and other performers, finding them work and negotiating contracts in return for a commission, typically 10 percent.
Tank Shot: Shot filmed in a large water tank, often with miniatures, for sea scenes, storms or underwater action. Today often combined with or replaced by digital effects.
Target Audience: The specific group of viewers a film, show or commercial is made to reach, defined by age, interests or other traits.
Tele-Extender Lens: Optical attachment fitted between lens and camera that multiplies focal length, typically 1.4x or 2x, at a cost of one or two stops of light.
Telecine: Process and machine for transferring motion picture film to video, usually with color correction. Today largely replaced by high-resolution film scanning.
Telephoto Distortion: Apparent compression of depth with long lenses, which makes objects at different distances look closer together and backgrounds look larger.
Telephoto Lens: Long focal length lens with a narrow angle of view that magnifies distant subjects and gives compressed perspective and shallow depth of field.
Television Cut-Off: The outer edges of the frame that older TV sets cropped, so operators kept key action inside a safe area. Safe-area guides are still used today.
Tenner (Ten-K): A 10,000-watt Fresnel spotlight, used as a large key light, to punch light through windows, or to imitate sunlight.
Thin (Negative): An underexposed or underdeveloped negative with low density, giving weak shadow detail and grainy, muddy prints.
Thread: To load film along its proper path through a camera, projector or other machine, past the gate, sprockets and loops.
Three-Quarter Front Key: Key light placed about 45 degrees to the side of the camera and a little above the subject, giving natural, flattering modeling.
Tight Shot: Shot framed closely around the subject with little space around it, such as a close-up.
Time Code: Time-based address in hours, minutes, seconds and frames recorded with picture and sound, used to sync, log and edit footage precisely.
Time Lapse Photography: Shooting single frames at long intervals, then playing them at normal speed so slow events, like moving clouds or growing plants, appear sped up.
Timer: Lab technician who sets printer lights to balance color and density from shot to shot when making prints. Today this work is done by a digital colorist.
Timing: Lab process of adjusting color and density scene by scene when making film prints. Today it is handled through digital color grading.
Tracking Shot: Shot where the camera moves with or alongside the subject, usually on a dolly riding on track laid by the grips.
Transition: The way one shot or scene changes to the next, such as a cut, dissolve, fade or wipe.
Traveling Matte: Matte that changes shape frame by frame to follow a moving subject so it can be composited over another background; usually made with blue screen or green screen.
Triangle: Three-armed spreader placed on the floor to hold tripod legs in position and keep them from slipping.
Trim: The unused part of a shot left over after the selected portion is cut into the film; also to make a small adjustment to an edit.
Trim Bin: Bin with a rack of pins where film editors hung trims and shots while cutting. Today the equivalent is a bin or folder in editing software.
Tripod: Three-legged adjustable stand that supports the camera at a chosen height. Also called sticks or legs.
Tripod Head: Mount between the tripod and camera that allows smooth pans and tilts; most are fluid heads or geared heads.
Trucking Shot: Shot where the camera moves sideways, parallel to the subject, on a dolly or other mount. Often used interchangeably with tracking shot.
Tulip Crane: A small, lightweight camera crane or jib that a small crew can move and operate, used for rising, falling and sweeping shots.
Tweenie: A 650-watt Fresnel spotlight, sized between a small Inky and a 1K Baby, used for small key, fill and accent lighting.
Two Shot: Shot framing two people together, commonly used for conversations so both reactions are seen in one frame.
Two Wall Set: Set built with only two walls meeting at a corner, enough to cover shots in one direction.
Tyler Mount: Gyro-stabilized camera mount for helicopters, made by Tyler Camera Systems, that reduces vibration for aerial shots. Today drones and remote gimbal systems are also common.

U

Undercrank: To shoot at a lower frame rate than playback so action looks faster on screen. The name comes from hand-cranked cameras.
Underexposure: Too little light reaching the film or sensor, giving a dark image with lost shadow detail and more noise or grain.
Upstage: The area of the set farther from the camera; to move upstage is to move away from camera. Also, to draw attention away from another actor.
Utility Man: Crew member who helps wherever needed; in sound, the person handling cables, wireless mics and boom backup. Today called a utility or utility sound technician.

V

Variable Opening Shutter: Rotary shutter whose angle can be adjusted to change exposure time and motion blur, or to make fades in camera.
Video: Electronic recording and playback of moving images as analog or digital signals, rather than on film.
Video Assist: System that feeds an image from the film camera's viewfinder to monitors and recorders so the director and crew can watch and replay takes.
Video Editing System: Hardware and software used to edit video. Today almost always nonlinear editing (NLE) software running on a computer.
Video Tape: Magnetic tape used to record video and audio signals. Today largely replaced by file-based recording to cards and drives.
Visual Effects: Imagery created or altered in post production, such as CGI, compositing and set extensions. Distinct from special effects done physically on set.
Voice Over: Narration or dialogue heard over picture from a speaker not seen talking on screen, recorded separately. Abbreviated V.O.

W

Walla: Background crowd murmur, recorded by group voice actors so no words are clearly understood, added in post for scenes like restaurants and parties.
Wardrobe Call: Scheduled time an actor reports to the wardrobe department for a costume fitting or to dress for the day's shoot.
Warm Image: Image with an orange, red or yellow tone, created by low color temperature light, filters or color grading.
Western Dolly: Large flatbed dolly with pneumatic tires that carries the camera and operator over rough ground; also used to move heavy equipment.
Whip Pan: A very fast pan that blurs the image between its start and end points, often used as a transition. Also called a swish pan.
Wide Angle Lens: Short focal length lens with a wide field of view and deep depth of field; it exaggerates depth and can distort subjects near the frame edges.
Widen: Direction to frame looser by zooming out or moving the camera back to include more of the scene.
Wide Open: Lens set at its largest aperture, the lowest f-stop or T-stop, letting in the most light and giving the shallowest depth of field.
Wild Lines: Dialogue recorded without the camera rolling, usually right after a take, to replace lines spoiled by noise or to add new lines.
Wild Motor: Variable-speed camera motor without crystal sync, so it cannot be used for sync sound shooting. A film-era term.
Wild Track: Sound recorded without picture, such as room tone, ambience or effects, for use in editing.
Wild Wall: Set wall built to be removed or moved easily to make room for camera, lights and crew.
Window Filter: Large sheets of gel, such as ND or color correction, taped over windows to balance daylight with interior lighting.
Wind Screen: Foam or fur cover over a microphone that reduces wind noise; outdoors, often a full blimp or zeppelin with a furry cover.
Wing It: To improvise a scene, shot or plan on the spot without preparation or rehearsal, often when time or conditions change.
Wipe: Transition in which one image replaces another as a line or shape moves across the screen.
Wireless Microphone: Microphone, usually a small lavalier, with a transmitter that sends audio by radio to a receiver, letting performers move freely without cables.
Wrangler: Crew member in charge of animals on set; also used for other specialized handlers, such as a data wrangler who manages and backs up footage.
Wrap: The end of shooting for the day or the whole production, as in "That's a wrap."
Wrong Set: A set other than the one currently being filmed, such as one being dressed or lit for an upcoming scene.

Z

Zoom Lens: Lens with a variable focal length, so the image can change from wide to telephoto without changing lenses, during or between shots.
Zoom Motor: Small electric motor that drives a zoom lens for smooth, controlled zooms, run from a variable-speed hand control.

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35mm Film: Standard professional motion picture film, 35 millimeters wide with four perforations per frame on each edge, used for features since the early days of cinema.

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