Media studies
Back story
The history of the events and characters that is not depicted fully
in a film, book or story, but which explains the situations, actions and motivations
that are shown.
Casting
The process of choosing a particular actor to play a particular role in a drama.
Character
An imaginary person represented in a work of fiction.
Composition
The arrangement of shapes and forms, colours, light and dark and the
placement of characters and objects within a frame.
Counterpoint
Two characters whose attitudes contrast strongly – this is from the idea in music of two different sounds being played simultaneously.
Dialogue
Conversation between two or more characters in a drama.
Dolly
A support for a camera with wheels.
Drama
A story or event told through the actions of characters and their dialogue.
Frame
A single, still image in the sequence of images which together make a moving film.
Genre
The category in which a story fits, for example, thriller or comedy or romance.
Grip
A film worker who moves the camera around while filming.
Improvisation
Unplanned performance that is developed without preparation.
Indie
A small film, music or recording company that is not owned by a larger company.
Journey
The changes that take place to a person or an element in the story, during the course of that story.
Kernel
The central, most essential part of an idea for a story.
Mediate
To explain, interpret or be a channel of communication between two people
or institutions.
Metaphor
The use of one word, phrase or object to represent another, for example,
'All the world's a stage.'
Narrative
The sequencing of events in a story across time and space.
Observer
A character who becomes aware of things as the plot unfolds, often a device for describing the course of events.
Pitch
The description of a story idea to a potential media buyer, such as a television or film company.
Plot
The sequence of events as arranged by the author of a book, play or film.
Protagonist
The central character in a drama who becomes the focus for the themes and incidents that take place within it – and the character that the audience principally identifies with.
Remix
Rearranging and reworking existing sounds to make a new sound.
Rushes
The first, unedited print of a film scene.
Score
The written form of a musical composition.
Screenplay
The script for a movie, including descriptions of scenes and some camera directions.
Script
The written text of a play, film or radio or television broadcast.
Shoot
What is filmed by the camera.
Take
The uninterrupted running of a movie or television camera or recording
equipment in filming or recording music.
Thriller
Usually a fast-paced, high-stakes crime story, where the protagonist is frequently in danger.
Treatment
A scene-by-scene description of a screenplay, without the dialogue.
