Mis – en – Scene

What is Mis – en – Scene ?

Mis – en – Scene is everything that is included in a scene, on the set/in the studio. This is everything from props used, the background of the scene, characters and their body language/facial expressions/costumes/ hair and makeup, lighting, location, colours used etc.

Lighting

High key lighting: Bright and well lit scene with very little shadows used. This is often used to make a location or a character look safe, feel happy and friendly. By making an image or footage look this way but not having bright backgrounds and windows or natural light, high key lighting can be done by using different lights, umbrellas and flashes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUvkWkxFb2M

Low key lighting: this is a scene that has very little lighting and is very dim but has quite a few windows in the background. This kind of lighting is mostly found in scenes that can give quite a scary, dangerous or unsafe feeling for the location or character. By making an image or footage look this way but not having a dark location or a dark background on a set is by changing the settings and effects on the camera and using flashes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91gU93J2Q8k&feature=relmfu

Chiaroscuro Lighting: this kind of lighting makes a scene very well lit and bright which can also contain a lot of shadows. This kind of lighting is used to make the location or character seem dramatic or unusual. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__bWpyLn83c

Characters

Body language: the way the characters body is positions and how they hold themselves e.g. confident, slouching. From a characters body language we can tell what their personality is like or how they could be feeling in a specific scene.

Facial features and expression: this is the way a characters face looks and how they show emotion, e.g. Shocked, sadness, happiness, love, anger. Facial features can also be things such as bad teeth, shape of their face, any scars or damage to the face or just how the person looks in general. From these features and expressions we can see what type of person the character is.

Props: these can be items that a character possesses or uses which can tell the audience a lot about that person or the narrative or they can be placed or used in the background of the scene.

Costumes: these are the items of clothing the characters wear. The audience can tell what type of person the character is by looking at the style of the clothing that the character is wearing which can also tell us more about them and their personality. Clothing brings out stereotypes which can be viewed in many TV dramas/films.

Characters

Hair and makeup: hair and makeup is used on many characters for us to see what type of person they are e.g. If a woman is wearing very little makeup they could come across as being rather innocent. Another way of using makeup when filming is due to the lighting and how the characters look on screen.

Voice/Tone: the way someone speaks can tell us a lot about them. Their language and vocabulary used can tell us about them and their upbringing. Their tones of voice in conversations can tell us how they are feeling e.g. Shouting and anger, stuttering and nervousness.

ColourThe colours used in a scene can represents different things and emotions, e.g. Red can show anger, passion, love whereas colours such as whites and blues and represent calm and peace or can be quite sad.

LocationThis is where the scene is set. This can tell us about the people in the scene due to if it is where they live or places they visit. If the location is a rough area which is dirty and vandalised, this shows the people don’t care and don’t take care of things and the area around them. If the location is a very tidy bedroom, we see the person as being clean and organised that likes to take care of themselves and their belongings.

Breaking the Fourth Wall (Direct Address) This is very rarely used in films or TV dramas but when it is it is when the scene seems to stop for a few seconds and one of the characters (preferably the main character) looks directly at the camera and speaks to it as though it is talking to the audience. This makes the audience feel more involved with the characters and the story.