A stop-motion animation process devised by the American animator and special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen. British films featuring the process include Jason and the Argonauts (1963) and One Million [..]

Generally dismissive term applied to a kind of British costume drama particularly associated with the 1980s and '90s, typically adaptations of classic literary texts, as in Merchant-Ivory's [..]

A form of drama relying on an unrealistic, exaggerated style, often involving heightened emotion. Melodrama is often despised by critics for its deliberate avoidance of realism, but it can be immensel [..]

The standard film gauge for films intended for television, though it is often used by low-budget and amateur filmmakers because of lower film and processing costs. The smaller negative area means that [..]

The standard film gauge for films intended to be shown in cinemas. Depending on the film stock being used, 35mm film is capable of producing an image of sufficient detail to fill even a large cinema s [..]

The largest film gauge for films intended to be shown in conventional (i.e. not IMAX or other specialist) cinemas, 70mm offers potentially far greater picture definition and multi-channel surround sou [..]

Just as 16mm is roughly half the size of 35mm, so 8mm formats are half the size again. Although the cheapest method of shooting on film, the picture definition makes it unsuitable for professional wor [..]

A term coined to describe films made more for artistic reasons than commercial ones, often as a personal statement by the filmmaker.

A term used to define the shape of the screen, presented in the form width:height. Virtually all pre-1950s films and all standard (non-widescreen) televisions have an aspect ratio of 4:3 (also describ [..]

Despite the 'director' tag, this is more of a logistical than an artistic role: the assistant director is primarily responsible for ensuring that everything runs smoothly during the shooting [..]