Descriptionary

production manager a budget supervisor in charge of purchase orders and the hiring of crew.

product placement an appearance of a commercial product, such as a name-brand soda or beer, in a motion picture as a passive paid advertisement and prearranged by the producer and advertiser.

prompter a person who helps the actors with their lines.

prop any object used in a film, for example, a chair, table, inkwell, gun, or elephant.

property a film story.

prosthetic appliance a fashioned piece of latex or gelatin attached to an actor's face or body, as when playing an alien.

rough cut the first cutting and splicing of a film by the editor, in which scenes are placed in the correct general order according to the script.

rushes see dailies.

scenic artist a set artist who paints, textures, plas­ters, letters, creates signs, and more.

score the music composed for a film.

screening the showing of a movie on a screen or in a theater.

screenplay a film story, with dialogue and descrip­tions of action in the script.

screen test an audition of an actor in front of a camera.

screenwriter a script writer.

script supervisor the person in charge of film con­tinuity, for example, making sure details in one shot (such as which side the actor's hair is parted on or whether a jacket is zipped or unzipped) match those in another shot, even though filmed days or weeks apart. Formerly known as the script girl.

Sensurround a gimmicky movie sound system in which stereo speakers are placed in front, in back, and sometimes on the sides of a theater.

set the location where a film is being shot.

shooting script a script having directions for cam­era angles, shots, and so on, as well as dialogue.

slate see clapper.

sound effects all sounds, other than music or dia­logue, added to film after shooting.

sound stage a building in which sets are built and dismantled for filming.

soundtrack the optical or magnetic track on the side of a film; it contains the music, dialogue, and sound effects.

spaghetti western a European western, usually made in Italy or Spain, popular in the 1960s.

spec script a movie script written on speculation, as opposed to an assignment, with the hope of landing a sale to a producer or studio.

splice to join two pieces of film.

spotting session a meeting in which the director, composer, and editor decide where the music will play in the film.

stand-in a person who takes the place of an actor on a set while a shot is being set up.

Steadicam a special, handheld, waist-supported camera that provides smooth, shake-free shots on a par with dolly shots.

still a photo or enlarged frame from a film, used for publicity.

stock footage existing film borrowed or purchased from a film library and used in a new film.

storyboard a series of captioned drawings showing planned camera shots.

streamer a long line drawn on a film to cue an actor that a scene to be dubbed with dialogue is coming up. Also used to cue conductors for accurate placement of music.

sword and sandal slang for biblically based movie epic, named after the costumes and props used.

sword and sorcery slang for a fantasy epic.

take a recording of scene. The director may order several takes of the same scene to make sure every­thing works as planned.

test screen to screen a movie in front of a test audi­ence to measure reaction. If reaction is poor, parts of the movie may be reshot before nationwide release.

track the rails on which the camera rides in a track­ing shot.

treatment a detailed description or outline of a film idea, as given by the author.

turnaround a process in which a script that has been purchased and has gone through preproduction fails to get made and is made available for sale to other studios.

typecasting the casting of a character type to fit a specific character role.

walla a sound effect of a murmuring crowd.

wild shooting shooting a film without simultaneous recording of the sound.

wild sound sound recorded apart from the actual filming.

wild walls on a set, temporary walls that can be assembled and disassembled quickly.

wrangler an animal handler. Also, a handler of all kinds of nonanimal items. The person responsible usually has a certain amount of expertise with the item.

wrap the end of shooting for the day.

Special Effects and Camera Techniques

animatronics electronically or radio-controlled puppets of animals, humans, monsters, etc.