ASUN CUESTA
English Teacher
Vocabulary
FILM= MOVIE= PIC= FLICK
Types of films:
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Action films: a film with fights, car chases, etc.
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Adventure film: a film with travelling, adventures,…
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Animated film: The characters are computer-animated.
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Biography/biopic: a film based on the events of someone’s life.
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Blue movie: A film that shows a lot of sexual activity.
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Cartoon: A short humorous film in which the characters are drawn.
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Comedy: A film that tries to make the audience laugh.
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Costume drama: a play or film about a particular historical period in which the actors wear clothes typical of that period.
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Detective film: a film with police, detectives,…
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Documentary: A film that gives facts and information about a subject.
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Drama/ melodrama: A film that tells a true story, often shown on TV.
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Fantasy film: a film with unreal characters, settings,…
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Historical: a film based on historical events.
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Horror/Scary movie/Chiller: It frightens the audience.
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Musical: a film with songs and dance.
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Romance/love story/soap opera (culebrón): a film about a romantic relationship.
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Rom com= Romantic comedy: A film that combines comedy with a love story.
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Series: several programmes which are part of the same story involving the same characters or events (a crime series, a comedy series).
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Sci-fi (science fiction): A film that is set in the future and there are some imaginary scientific developments.
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Silent film: a film in which voices and other sounds are not heard, especially a very old film.
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Thriller (de suspense): A very exciting story that often involves a crime.
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War: a film based on war.
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Western: a film about the western United States in the 1800s, usually with cowboys.
Other films:
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Blockbuster: A very popular and successful film or play.
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B-movie: A film that is made cheaply and is of low quality.
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Chick Flick: a romantic film that attacks women.
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Feature film: (largometraje): A full-length film that has a story and is acted by professional actors, and which is usually shown in a cinema.
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Flop: a film that is a failure at the box-office.
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Home movie: an informal film that someone makes themselves, often about their own life and family.
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Miniseries: a film made to be shown on television in several parts on different days.
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Newsreel (noticiario) is a news report on a film that was shown in cinemas in the past.
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Premiere: the first public performance of a play or movie.
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Remake: – the second version of a film's narrative.
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Sequel: a part added to a book or film that continues and extends it,
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Short film. Cortometraje.
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Spoiler: information about the plot of a book, movie, or television show that spoils the surprise or suspense for a reader or viewer.
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Tearjerker: a book, film, play, etc. that has a sad story intended to make people cry or be sad
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Trailer: a series of short extracts from a film, used to advertise it in a cinema or on television.
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Trilogy: a group of three films that together compose a larger narrative and are related in theme.
Film elements:
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Award (countable noun) is a prize given out for some form of merit or achievement. The word award can also be used as a verb, when awarding prizes for being good at things. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) gives out awards called Oscars every year for excellence in film and cinema.
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Budget (presupuesto): The money spent.
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Cameo: Short appearance in a film or play by a well-known actor.
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Camera shots: high angle shot/ full or long shot/ medium shot/ extreme wide shot/low angle shot/ wide shot/close up.
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Clapboard (claqueta): a small black or whiteboard that displays identifying information for each shot in a movie, and is filmed at the beginning of a take.
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Costumes: the clothes worn by actors.
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Credits (opening/closing credits): The list at the start of the film that tells you the name of the film, the actors, and the director; the words on the screen at the end that tell you who played who, and who was the cameraman, set designer, etc.
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FX=Special effects: an unusual image or sound in a film, created artificially using various technical methods.
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Prop – an object used by the actors performing in a film
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Reel: carrete o bovina de cine.
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Review (crítica): A critical article or report about a film.
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Rush: The first, unedited print of a movie scene.
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Screenplay/script (guion cinema/theater): – a script or text for a film production written with all the dialogues and the essential actions.
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Screen test: Short scene filmed to find out if the actor is good in a particular part
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Subtitles: Translation of the dialogue of a foreign-language film shown at the bottom of the screen.
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Set/Setting: the site where the action takes place in a film.
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Soundtrack: The recorded music from a film.
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Synopsis: a sketchy summary of the main points of an argument.
At the cinema:
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Box-office (taquilla): the place in a theatre/cinema where you can buy your tickets
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Multiplex (multicine): A big cinema with many screens.
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Screen: a flat surface in a cinema on which pictures or words are shown.
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Seats: a piece of furniture that has been designed for someone to sit on.
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Stage: the area in a theatre that is often raised above ground level and on which actors or entertainers perform.
People:
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Actor/Actress: a performer in theater, television, or film.
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Cameraman/woman: Someone who operates a camera for films or television.
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Cast (elenco): a collective term for all of the actors/performers appearing in a particular film
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Character (alien, wizard, monster, cowboy, ) is the fictitious or real individual in a story, performed by an actor.
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Director: the person who directs the making of a film and gives instructions to the actors, cameraman, and other people working on a film or play.
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Double = Stuntman: a person replacing the actor in dangerous situations.
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Extra: An actor in a film who does not say anything but is part of a crowd.
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Film producer: Someone whose job is to control the preparation of a play, film, or broadcast in general, but who does not direct the actor.
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Usher (acomodador): Someone who shows people to their seats at a theatre, cinema, wedding etc.
Adjectives:
Absorbing – very interesting, keeps your attention for a long time
Action-packed – with a lot of thrilling incidents
Amazing
Boring
Captivating – very exciting
Controversial – causing a lot of discussions or disagreement
Convoluted – overcomplicated
Disgusting
Dreary – dull and uninteresting
Dubbed: having the sounds/speech on a film changed to a different language
Educational
Enjoyable
Exciting
Frightening
Gripping – very interesting
Hilarious – very funny
Interesting
Intriguing– very interesting in a way that arouses your curiosity
Moving – causing strong emotions (usually in a good way)
Outstanding: extremely good
Overrated – overvalued
Predictable – pretty obvious what is going to happen in each scene
Realistic
Riveting – keeps you glued to the screenSilly
Second-rate – mediocre, unexciting, nothing to write home about
Slow-moving – developing very slowly
Special
Spine-tingling – enjoyably frighteningUnusual
Spooky – frightening and ghostly
Thought-provoking – stimulating you to think about something, often something you haven’t thought of before
Thrilling – exciting, action-packed
Underrated – much better than what people believe
Uplifting – making you feel happy and cheerful
Weepy (a film that makes you cry)
Verbs:
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book the seats/tickets = to reserve the tickets in advance
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bring out – to release a film, music album, or book
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buy some popcorn
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buy tickets
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catch a movie
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get a drink
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give thumbs up= give positive reviews
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go to a movie theater
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pan something= to severely criticize something
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read a movie review
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reveal
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see a movie
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sit in an aisle seat
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supporting
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take a seat (at the front/ in the middle/at the back) = to find your row and number and sit down
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wait in line
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watch a movie trailer/ the credits/ the previews