Question 1

An actor's popularity is judged primarily by box office receipts and

Accepted Answer

A)  award nominations. 
B)  award wins. 
C)  popularity polls. 
D)  social media followers. 
E)  film reviews. 
A)  award nominations. 
B)  award wins. 
C)  popularity polls. 
D)  social media followers. 
E)  film reviews.

Question 2

Explain why great acting is said to look effortless.

Accepted Answer

Great actors completely inhabit a charac

Question 3

Actor Franklin Pangborn, while never a household name, became instantly recognizable because

Accepted Answer

A)  he made many appearances with Jack Russell terriers. 
B)  he made hilarious cameos. 
C)  he performed many dangerous stunts. 
D)  he repeatedly played distinctive types as a character actor. 
E)  his unusual eyes were always featured prominently. 
A)  he made many appearances with Jack Russell terriers. 
B)  he made hilarious cameos. 
C)  he performed many dangerous stunts. 
D)  he repeatedly played distinctive types as a character actor. 
E)  his unusual eyes were always featured prominently.

Question 4

How does Michelle Williams primarily convey the thought process and feelings of the character she plays in Blue Valentine (2010)?

Accepted Answer

A)  with her choice of wardrobe 
B)  by varying her vocal quality 
C)  with makeup 
D)  through gesture and physical movement 
E)  by her handling of props 
A)  with her choice of wardrobe 
B)  by varying her vocal quality 
C)  with makeup 
D)  through gesture and physical movement 
E)  by her handling of props

Question 5

What was unique about the production process for the low-budget, independent Blue Valentine (2010)?

Accepted Answer

A)  It was shot in three stages according to the state of the characters' relationships. 
B)  It was shot over the course of the three years. 
C)  The majority of the film is done in long takes. 
D)  The film is a combination of naturalistic and non-naturalistic acting styles. 
E)  The film contains a number of two-minute long close-ups. 
A)  It was shot in three stages according to the state of the characters' relationships. 
B)  It was shot over the course of the three years. 
C)  The majority of the film is done in long takes. 
D)  The film is a combination of naturalistic and non-naturalistic acting styles. 
E)  The film contains a number of two-minute long close-ups.

Question 6

How did Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly satirize the film industry in Singin' in the Rain (1952)?

Accepted Answer

A)  It critiqued the growing production design budgets. 
B)  It made fun of the dueling studios. 
C)  It mocked how self-centered movie stars can be. 
D)  It poked fun at the difficult transition from silent to sound production. 
E)  It made fun of our reverence for auteurs. 
A)  It critiqued the growing production design budgets. 
B)  It made fun of the dueling studios. 
C)  It mocked how self-centered movie stars can be. 
D)  It poked fun at the difficult transition from silent to sound production. 
E)  It made fun of our reverence for auteurs.

Question 7

How did director Werner Herzog create what he called "an atmosphere of hallucination, prophecy, visionary and collective madness" on the set of Heart of Glass (1976)?

Accepted Answer

A)  His contempt for actors was so great that the cast threatened to quit almost every day. 
B)  He hypnotized the entire cast each day. 
C)  He articulated each actor's unconscious needs to the entire crew. 
D)  His insistence on thousands of takes drove his actors insane. 
E)  He directed on location of a circus. 
A)  His contempt for actors was so great that the cast threatened to quit almost every day. 
B)  He hypnotized the entire cast each day. 
C)  He articulated each actor's unconscious needs to the entire crew. 
D)  His insistence on thousands of takes drove his actors insane. 
E)  He directed on location of a circus.

Question 8

Why might a director choose to employ nonnaturalistic performances?

Accepted Answer

Nonnaturalistic performances can be used

Question 9

When actors are repeatedly given particular kinds of roles based on their looks rather than their talent or experience, they are

Accepted Answer

A)  screen tested. 
B)  pigeonholed. 
C)  typecast. 
D)  stereotyped. 
E)  gambled on. 
A)  screen tested. 
B)  pigeonholed. 
C)  typecast. 
D)  stereotyped. 
E)  gambled on.

Question 10

What distinguished Cary Grant from other Hollywood actors during the studio era?

Accepted Answer

A)  He was the first actor to have his own production company. 
B)  He signed only two-year contracts with studios. 
C)  He was not under any studio contract. 
D)  He was one of the few top actors to not work with Alfred Hitchcock. 
E)  He won the most Academy Awards. 
A)  He was the first actor to have his own production company. 
B)  He signed only two-year contracts with studios. 
C)  He was not under any studio contract. 
D)  He was one of the few top actors to not work with Alfred Hitchcock. 
E)  He won the most Academy Awards.

Question 11

What sound innovation did Rouben Mamoulian introduce in Applause (1929)?

Accepted Answer

A)  He used one actor's voice to replace another. 
B)  It was his brainchild to hide microphones in flowerpots. 
C)  He was the first to use the blimp when recording. 
D)  He had his sound technicians record overlapping dialogue with multiple microphones. 
E)  He concealed microphones in the bodices of actors' gowns. 
A)  He used one actor's voice to replace another. 
B)  It was his brainchild to hide microphones in flowerpots. 
C)  He was the first to use the blimp when recording. 
D)  He had his sound technicians record overlapping dialogue with multiple microphones. 
E)  He concealed microphones in the bodices of actors' gowns.

Question 12

What is a film actor's most basic skill?

Accepted Answer

A)  understanding how to reveal him- or herself to the camera during a close-up 
B)  developing a rapport with the audience 
C)  collaborating with the actors on the set 
D)  communicating with the director 
E)  translating the screenwriter's vision of the character 
A)  understanding how to reveal him- or herself to the camera during a close-up 
B)  developing a rapport with the audience 
C)  collaborating with the actors on the set 
D)  communicating with the director 
E)  translating the screenwriter's vision of the character

Question 13

Which of the following performances is an example of method acting?

Accepted Answer

A)  James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause (1955) 
B)  Cary Grant in The Philadelphia Story (1940) 
C)  Elizabeth Taylor in National Velvet (1944) 
D)  Greta Garbo as Queen Christina in Queen Christina (1933) 
E)  Bette Davis in All About Eve (1950) 
A)  James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause (1955) 
B)  Cary Grant in The Philadelphia Story (1940) 
C)  Elizabeth Taylor in National Velvet (1944) 
D)  Greta Garbo as Queen Christina in Queen Christina (1933) 
E)  Bette Davis in All About Eve (1950)

Question 14

Charlie Chaplin created his Tramp character

Accepted Answer

A)  by building it "brick by brick." 
B)  out of instinct. 
C)  through meticulous preparation. 
D)  starting with the costume. 
E)  using Stanislavsky's emotional recall technique. 
A)  by building it "brick by brick." 
B)  out of instinct. 
C)  through meticulous preparation. 
D)  starting with the costume. 
E)  using Stanislavsky's emotional recall technique.

Question 15

Director Sidney Lumet believed that great performances depended on

Accepted Answer

A)  the ability of actors to reveal themselves on-screen. 
B)  actors' understanding of the characters they are playing. 
C)  an intuitive sense of the character's needs within the screenplay. 
D)  sharpened skills of observation and strong instincts. 
E)  a passion for synthesizing research with personal experience. 
A)  the ability of actors to reveal themselves on-screen. 
B)  actors' understanding of the characters they are playing. 
C)  an intuitive sense of the character's needs within the screenplay. 
D)  sharpened skills of observation and strong instincts. 
E)  a passion for synthesizing research with personal experience.

Question 16

Who was responsible for inventing the art of screen acting?

Accepted Answer

A)  Mary Pickford 
B)  Sarah Bernhardt and Clément Maurice 
C)  Lillian Gish, under D. W. Griffith's guidance 
D)  the Art Film Society 
E)  F. W. Murnau 
A)  Mary Pickford 
B)  Sarah Bernhardt and Clément Maurice 
C)  Lillian Gish, under D. W. Griffith's guidance 
D)  the Art Film Society 
E)  F. W. Murnau

Question 17

Which of the following is considered to be a component of improvisational acting?

Accepted Answer

A)  actors' ability to stop performing if they stumble on their lines 
B)  an isolation between actors and directors 
C)  preprogrammed performance 
D)  strict adherence to the screenplay 
E)  sense of discovery, which comes from the unexpected 
A)  actors' ability to stop performing if they stumble on their lines 
B)  an isolation between actors and directors 
C)  preprogrammed performance 
D)  strict adherence to the screenplay 
E)  sense of discovery, which comes from the unexpected

Question 18

The method (or method acting) did not make a major impact on Hollywood until the 1950s because

Accepted Answer

A)  the studios were reliant on the star system and were not interested in the process of acting. 
B)  the Moscow Art Theater would not share its secret approach to acting. 
C)  the experimental Group Theater denounced its tenets. 
D)  Stella Adler was developing a rival approach to acting. 
E)  Hollywood was fearful of anything associated with the Soviet Union. 
A)  the studios were reliant on the star system and were not interested in the process of acting. 
B)  the Moscow Art Theater would not share its secret approach to acting. 
C)  the experimental Group Theater denounced its tenets. 
D)  Stella Adler was developing a rival approach to acting. 
E)  Hollywood was fearful of anything associated with the Soviet Union.

Question 19

Without ________, Travis Bickle would not say, "You talking to me?" in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976).

Accepted Answer

A)  screenwriter Paul Schrader 
B)  improvisation by Robert De Niro 
C)  Martin Scorsese's suggestion 
D)  the production designer's idea to use a mirror in the scene 
E)  the cinematographer's lens choice 
A)  screenwriter Paul Schrader 
B)  improvisation by Robert De Niro 
C)  Martin Scorsese's suggestion 
D)  the production designer's idea to use a mirror in the scene 
E)  the cinematographer's lens choice

Question 20

American screen actor Joan Crawford's statement, "A movie star paints with the tiniest brush," suggests that

Accepted Answer

A)  painters and screen actors approach their art similarly. 
B)  a close-up will never provide the intimacy of an actor's performance on stage. 
C)  the primary artist of a film is an actor. 
D)  the camera captures an actor's most subtle facial expressions. 
E)  screen actors have complete control of details. 
A)  painters and screen actors approach their art similarly. 
B)  a close-up will never provide the intimacy of an actor's performance on stage. 
C)  the primary artist of a film is an actor. 
D)  the camera captures an actor's most subtle facial expressions. 
E)  screen actors have complete control of details.

An actor's popularity is judged primarily by box office receipts and

Explain why great acting is said to look effortless.

Actor Franklin Pangborn, while never a household name, became instantly recognizable because

How does Michelle Williams primarily convey the thought process and feelings of the character she plays in Blue Valentine (2010)?

What was unique about the production process for the low-budget, independent Blue Valentine (2010)?

How did Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly satirize the film industry in Singin' in the Rain (1952)?

How did director Werner Herzog create what he called "an atmosphere of hallucination, prophecy, visionary and collective madness" on the set of Heart of Glass (1976)?

Why might a director choose to employ nonnaturalistic performances?

When actors are repeatedly given particular kinds of roles based on their looks rather than their talent or experience, they are

What distinguished Cary Grant from other Hollywood actors during the studio era?

What sound innovation did Rouben Mamoulian introduce in Applause (1929)?

What is a film actor's most basic skill?

Which of the following performances is an example of method acting?

Charlie Chaplin created his Tramp character

Director Sidney Lumet believed that great performances depended on

Who was responsible for inventing the art of screen acting?

Which of the following is considered to be a component of improvisational acting?

The method (or method acting) did not make a major impact on Hollywood until the 1950s because

Without ________, Travis Bickle would not say, "You talking to me?" in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976).

American screen actor Joan Crawford's statement, "A movie star paints with the tiniest brush," suggests that

Looking at Movies

Principles of Film Form

Types of Movies

Elements of Narrative

Mise-En-Scène

Cinematography

Editing

Sound

Film History

How the Movies Are Made

Filters

Exam 7: Acting

An actor's popularity is judged primarily by box office receipts and

Explain why great acting is said to look effortless.

Actor Franklin Pangborn, while never a household name, became instantly recognizable because

How does Michelle Williams primarily convey the thought process and feelings of the character she plays in Blue Valentine (2010)?

What was unique about the production process for the low-budget, independent Blue Valentine (2010)?

How did Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly satirize the film industry in Singin' in the Rain (1952)?

How did director Werner Herzog create what he called "an atmosphere of hallucination, prophecy, visionary and collective madness" on the set of Heart of Glass (1976)?

Why might a director choose to employ nonnaturalistic performances?

When actors are repeatedly given particular kinds of roles based on their looks rather than their talent or experience, they are

What distinguished Cary Grant from other Hollywood actors during the studio era?

What sound innovation did Rouben Mamoulian introduce in Applause (1929)?

What is a film actor's most basic skill?

Which of the following performances is an example of method acting?

Charlie Chaplin created his Tramp character

Director Sidney Lumet believed that great performances depended on

Who was responsible for inventing the art of screen acting?

Which of the following is considered to be a component of improvisational acting?

The method (or method acting) did not make a major impact on Hollywood until the 1950s because

Without ________, Travis Bickle would not say, "You talking to me?" in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976).

American screen actor Joan Crawford's statement, "A movie star paints with the tiniest brush," suggests that

Looking at Movies

Principles of Film Form

Types of Movies

Elements of Narrative

Mise-En-Scène

Cinematography

Editing

Sound

Film History

How the Movies Are Made

Filters