Today in class, Professor Diaz came and spoke to us about the movie Manhattan. She told us very common and useful film terminology. I thought it was interesting to think of one part of a movie as the “film space.” To me, a film is a moving object. It’s different to me to think that there is also a film frame. The camera’s viewpoint is also very thought about. Manhattan is in 2:85:1 because Woody Allen wanted to show the entire Manhattan skyline. Each shot is thought about in the film as well to show different things. For example, when Isaac broke up with Tracey, the camera zoomed in to her face to show her emotions. I never thought so deeply about movies in this way. Each frame and scene is very calculated and analyzed because the director wants to give off a message. The angles are very important in the same way. Each angle expresses a certain idea about the people, places, or things in the frame. Even the lighting has a very important effect on the movie because it highlights and lowlights certain relationships, dialogues, or even objects in the film. The movement of the camera helps to tell the story as well. Pan is when the camera “turns its head.” Tilt is when the camera’s “head” swivels up or down. This is how Professor Diaz described it. This is interesting to me because when watching A Bronx Tale I thought that the camera had a point of view that is its very own. In Manhattan, this was done to make the viewer feel as if he or she was with the characters. The camera’s viewpoint was the viewpoint of the audience. This was done successfully. I felt like I was with the characters in the movie and feeling the things that they were feeling. The 180 degree rule is when the camera turns its axis and stays on one side of the shot. The camera stays on one side of the characters. This also contributes to the idea that the viewer is part of the shot. When the characters were sitting in a restaurant, I felt like I was in a chair sitting with them because the camera’s view was from one side. It stayed in one place, like a person would in a chair. Even the sound was specifically chosen for a film. The sounds were very specifically picked to create a certain feel for the scene. I feel like I learned so much today about film and the different styles that cinematographers use. I am going to see every movie I watch very differently. I am going to be more aware of the choices the director made and try to figure out why they did what they did.