The term Mise-en scène means “placing on stage” translating from French. It is essentially a phrase for the process of choosing what should be placed on the stage. Mise en scene is the core of filmmaking since it is ubiquitous and something that every filmmaker does, whether they recognize it or not.
Tarantino, famed for his attention to detail, brilliantly crafts this key scene using mise-en-scene. Mise-en-scene includes a variety of aspects that help to mold the audience’s perception of the story action, and it is an important tool for filmmakers in establishing realism as well as generating fantasy. Georges Méliès, an early film pioneer influenced by the Lumière brothers, devoted himself to cinematic conjuring, creating a beautiful and surreal world at his “Star-Film” studio by rigorous planning and control over every detail in the frame. His work exemplifies the use of mise-en-scene to generate fantasy and transport spectators to visionary realms.
In contrast to theater, the setting in film plays a dynamic function, often becoming a significant aspect of the plot. Setting manipulation strategies used by filmmakers include choosing existing locations, developing purpose-built settings, stressing realism, and reducing settings to minimum aspects. These decisions impact the audience’s understanding of the story’s action and may be strengthened with color and objects that become themes throughout the narrative. Also, costumes play just as crucial of a role as the setting. Costume in cinema has several purposes, from advancing the story to improving characters and showing changes in mood. Costumes’ visual features are frequently harmonized with the backdrop in order to showcase personalities against neutral backgrounds. Makeup for performers complements clothes by emphasizing facial expressions, while digital technology, such as computer-generated imagery (CGI), has broadened makeup options, enabling virtual outfits and significant bodily changes.
Lighting is essential in filmmaking for establishing visual impact, composition, and texture in each shot. It shapes shot composition, changes the impression of space, and leads the spectator’s attention. From high-key to low-key lighting settings, filmmakers alter lighting quality, direction, source, and color to produce desired visual effects.
Mise en scène also refers to the positioning of objects on the screen. Film acting involves visual and aural components that can range from realism to stylization and are impacted by the tone and situation of the movie. Performances must adjust to various camera angles and distances, emphasizing any necessary facial emotions or physical actions. The chapter focuses on how individualization and stylization are two aspects along which cinema performances vary. Films can have larger character types with performances that range from very lifelike to overdone, even though realism frequently maintains a balance between developing distinctive characters and avoiding excessive exaggeration. The context of a film, which includes editing and general cinematic form, is extremely important for how viewers view performances.
Similar to a painting, the mise en scene in a movie displays a two-dimensional multitude of hues and forms. To direct the audience’s attention and provide a feeling of depth and volume in the frame, filmmakers employ strategies including balancing the shot, contrast principles, depth cues, and movement. Movement gives energy to compositions, while depth signals like overlap and linear perspective aid in the sense of three-dimensional space. In movies, mise-en-scène affects a scene’s pacing and dynamics in addition to its static compositions. In order to pique viewers’ interest and provide dramatic effects, directors can adjust the pace, direction, and timing of motions within a shot. A scene’s emotional effect may be shaped by using techniques like frontality, deep-space composition, and denying frontality to direct viewer attention, create tension, and shape the scene.