Planning - Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene is everything that is seen in a shot. It takes into consideration 5 different elements:

• Setting and props
• This includes all of the objects seen in the shot. Such as furniture, pictures on the wall, etc. It also takes into account the setting which the scene was taken in. This is used brilliantly in Psycho during this scene between Marion and Norman in his parlour, as the birds in the background are used to great effect.

Another example, if it was taken in a desert - such as 'Wild West' movies - it becomes almost another character.

• Costume, hair and make up
•  This is important as it is much more character-specific. It not only tells us an incredible amount about the character, but it also tells us about the mood of the character which could be influential to the story. For example, if a character was to wear a black jacket, it could connote mystery with a sort of noir-ish effect. Whereas if a character was to wear red lipstick, it could connote passion and danger.

• Facial expressions and body language
• This is more down to the actor's performance. It provides an insight into the the character and how they're feeling - a lot like the costume aspect of mise-en-scene.

• Lighting and colour
• This aspect looks at how the lighting and colour effect the way in which the scene is represented. For example, if the scene has very Low Key lighting, the film's feel will to contrasting to that which uses very High Key lighting. These are two contrasting images, one with low key lighting and the other with high key lighting.





• Positioning of character/objects
• Again, this aspect of mise-en-scene is important. It can reflect the a lot of things about a character, such as how they're feeling. The rule of thirds is a great example of character/ object positionimg.