Glossary
Comprehensive glossary of filmmaking terms, concepts, and techniques.
Showing 41 terms
A
5Antagonist
The character or force that directly opposes the protagonist's goal, generating the story's central conflict.
Anti-Climax
A narrative moment that deflates built-up dramatic expectation by resolving conflict in a trivial way.
Allegory
A narrative in which the characters and events systematically represent a parallel set of meanings beyond the literal story.
Anti-Hero
A protagonist who lacks conventional heroic virtues but retains audience identification through vulnerability or moral complexity.
Archetype
A universally recognised character pattern that recurs across cultures and storytelling traditions.
B
2Backstory
The history of a character or world that occurred before the story begins, shaping present behaviour and conflict.
Beat
The smallest unit of dramatic action in a scene, representing a single change in character intention or emotion.
C
12Climax
The moment of maximum dramatic tension where the protagonist confronts the central conflict.
Catharsis
The emotional purging or release an audience experiences through witnessing a story's dramatic events.
Chain of Title
The documented legal history of a film's ownership rights from original creator to current rights holder.
Character
A fictional person whose actions, decisions, and desires drive the story of a film.
Character Study
A narrative focused on the psychological interior of a character rather than external plot mechanics.
Chiaroscuro
The strong contrast between light and shadow used as a primary expressive tool to create depth and drama.
Cliffhanger
An unresolved ending at peak tension that forces the audience to return for resolution.
Coda
A brief closing passage after the story's resolution, providing a final emotional or thematic beat.
Coming-of-Age Film
A film centered on a young protagonist's growth from childhood or adolescence into adulthood.
Composition
The deliberate arrangement of visual elements within a film frame to guide attention and convey meaning.
Continuity
The maintenance of consistent spatial, temporal, and physical details across shots in a scene.
Cut
The instantaneous transition between two shots in editing, and the act of assembling a film from those transitions.
D
3Deus Ex Machina
A plot resolution where an unestablished external force suddenly solves a conflict the story has not earned.
Denouement
The narrative resolution following the climax, in which consequences are settled and a new equilibrium is established.
Dialogue
The spoken words exchanged between characters in a film, written by the screenwriter and performed by actors.
E
2Epilogue
A closing scene after the main story ends, showing what happened to the characters later.
Exposition
Background information delivered to the audience that establishes story context, character history, and world rules.
M
3Melodrama
A dramatic mode that heightens emotional intensity through exaggerated conflict, moral polarisation, and expressive music.
MacGuffin
An object, goal, or piece of information that motivates the plot but whose specific nature is unimportant to the story's meaning.
MPAA
The trade association representing major Hollywood studios that administers the voluntary US film rating system.
P
3Pre-Production
The planning and preparation phase of filmmaking that occurs after greenlight and before principal photography begins.
Prologue
An introductory section preceding the main story that establishes context, tone, or a prior event.
Protagonist
The central character whose goal drives the story forward and with whom the audience most closely aligns.
S
3Screen Test
A filmed audition in which an actor performs a scene under production conditions to evaluate their suitability for a role.
Subplot
A secondary narrative thread running alongside the main plot with its own arc, complicating the protagonist's journey.
Subtext
The unspoken meaning beneath dialogue and action, communicated through behaviour, silence, and context.
T
2Three Shot
A shot framing three subjects within the same frame, establishing their spatial relationships simultaneously.
Two Shot
A shot framing two subjects within the same frame at roughly equal prominence.