Core terms covering how films are written, planned, photographed, edited, and completed as finished works.

This discipline currently includes 19 entries. Browse the entries below to move through the CINEXIS library by topic rather than alphabetically.

Entries In Filmmaking Fundamentals

19 entries
Back-to-back Film Production
Back-to-back film production is the practice of scheduling two films so they are shot one after the other with overlapping planning, locations, crew, or ca
Beatscript
A beatscript is a planning document that breaks a story into major dramatic beats before or alongside a full screenplay draft.
Cinematographer
A cinematographer, often called the director of photography or DP, is the head of the camera and lighting department.
Cinematography
Cinematography is the art and practice of photographing moving images.
Film d'auteur
Film d'auteur, often translated as auteur cinema or author's film, refers to cinema strongly marked by the personal vision of a director.
Film Editing
Film editing is the process of selecting, arranging, and refining shots so they function as a scene, a sequence, and ultimately a complete film.
Film Editor
A film editor is the post-production specialist who shapes recorded material into a coherent dramatic experience.
Film Production
Film production is the organized process of turning a script or concept into a finished motion picture.
Film Score
A film score is the original music composed to accompany a movie.
Filmmaking
Filmmaking is the art, craft, and industrial process of creating moving-image works for audiences.
Guerrilla Filmmaking
Guerrilla filmmaking is a low-budget production approach that relies on speed, minimal crew, limited permits or resources, and highly flexible problem-solv
High-Concept Filmmaking
High-concept filmmaking describes projects built around a premise that can be understood, pitched, and marketed very quickly.
Screen Production Research
Screen production research is the study of how moving-image works are conceived, produced, and finished, with particular attention to practice, workflow, d
Screenplay
A screenplay is the written blueprint for a film or television project.
Screenwriting
Screenwriting is the craft of building a story for the screen through scenes, dialogue, visual action, and structure.
Scriptment
A scriptment is a hybrid document that combines elements of a treatment and a screenplay.
Step Outline
A step outline is a scene-by-scene or beat-by-beat breakdown of a story prepared before the screenplay is fully drafted.
Storyboard
A storyboard is a sequence of drawn or digitally created panels that visualizes how scenes or shots are expected to play on screen.
Student Film
A student film is a motion picture made primarily in an educational context, usually by film-school students or by learners in related media programs.