Staging: a group of elements that make up a film scene and how they are arranged within the frame. This includes the positioning of characters, lighting, pacing, and juxtaposition of shots, visual composition, camera movement, 
acting/characterization, set design, costume design, and makeup.

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Artistic direction: closely related to staging, this department is responsible for the aesthetic and visual aspect of a work, including designing and building the set design, costumes, and all visual elements that appear on screen. Together 
with the cinematography department, they have a huge influence on the film’s overall aesthetic, defining the colour palette and creating a suitable atmosphere for the story.

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Cinematographer: responsible for the artistic and technical decisions related to the film’s visual image, including camera work and lighting. The cinematographer works closely with the film’s director to establish the visual style of the work, defining how each scene should be lit, what camera movements should be used, and what lenses and camera techniques are appropriate.

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Shot: an uninterrupted narrative film unit consisting of an image captured by the camera that can last from a few seconds to several minutes. There are various types of shots according to the angle and framing: wide shot, medium shot, American 
shot, close-up, extreme close-up, and detail shot.

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Off-screen/Off-camera: elements that are not visible within the frame of the shot, but are suggested or heard.

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Take: the act of recording a scene at a particular moment. A director may repeat the same shot multiple times in search of the right staging. During the editing process, suitable takes or parts of a take can be selected.

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Scene: a basic unit of the narrative that can have different durations and include one or several shots to tell actions that take place in a specific space and time.

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Sequence: a combination of related scenes that define a specific action within the work and can include several locations and different situations.

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Diegesis: the narrative world created by a film, which includes all the visual and sound elements that are part of the movie’s story.

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Ellipsis: the omission of part of the story that is being told, which is either not necessary to understand it, or which can be recovered later through flashbacks.

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Flashback: a narrative technique that interrupts the chronological order of events by depicting an event or scene that took place before the current point in the story.

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Flash Forward: a narrative technique that jumps ahead in time and shows events or scenes that will happen in the future.

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Parallel Editing/Cross-cutting: the technique of intertwining two or more scenes that are happening simultaneously in different locations.

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Diegetic sound: sound that comes from a source that is present in the narrative world of the film.

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Non-diegetic sound: sound with a source that does not come from the narra￾tive world of the film, and thus cannot be heard by its characters, such as the soundtrack or sound effects produced to create a certain atmosphere.

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Subjective camera: a technique that shows what the character is seeing from their point of view, i.e. we see through the character’s own eyes.

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Subjective listening: a technique in which the viewer hears the same sounds that the character is hearing from their perspective

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Voice over: a technique in which we hear the voice of a character who is not on screen.

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“The hero’s journey”: mythologist Joseph Campbell points out how the same narrative structure is repeated in many popular stories, novels, and films, where a hero/heroine initiates an adventure, overcomes a series of obstacles and conflicts, and 
meets characters who will help or hinder them until they return transformed.

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Artistic cannon: a set of works considered the most important and representative of a certain period or artistic movement by experts and art critics. The canon varies depending on the culture, period, and critical perspectives, which often 
leads to questioning due to the exclusion of certain works or the lack of diversity.