Mise-en-scene

Mise-en-scene

 Mise-en-scene is the design aspect of the film industry. It is a french term meaning "visual theme" or "telling a story". It is the word that describes anything in front of the camera e.g the props, costumes, sets, lighting and actors. Mise-en-scene sets the mood. Everything that is included in the scene has an effect on the mood. If the props are correctly laid out and perhaps objects that show darkness such as in "Psycho" where Norman Bates is in his office and he is surrounded by taxidermy which is stuffed birds. This is a strange hobby to have and it is a dark one too. Then if you have black clothes then it makes the character look gothic and dark. If the set is in a graveyard then it will work well with the rest of the scene. The lighting is vital as if it's dark then it could be night time, meaning that this once again the scene will come across as dark. Finally, if you have a good set of actors then they will be able to make the scene even darker and influence the rest of the scene.