Film Tone and Style: How to Create Film Tone

Film tone refers to a filmmaker’s point of view about their film’s subject matter, conveyed through filmmaking techniques such as cinematography, camera movement, editing, music, dialogue, and atmosphere. There can be a mixture of tones in a movie. A romance movie can be either comedic or dramatic, or a combination. On the other hand, an action movie can be both comedic and suspenseful.

Though tone and mood are similar in definition, in filmmaking, they are distinct. Mood refers to what the audience feels as they watch a film, which can change from scene to scene. Conversely, tone refers to the attitude of the filmmaker about the film’s subject. A consistent tone shapes the audience’s overall experience of the film.

Film tone has some crossover with a film’s genre, although tone is generally broader in scope. Tone typically falls within one of three categories:

1. 1. Comedic: A comedic tone is lighthearted, and the overall intention is to make the audience laugh.
2. 2. Dramatic: A film with a dramatic tone centers around conflict, realistic emotion, and heavy themes.
3. 3. Suspenseful: A suspenseful tone creates anxiety and anticipation about a specific outcome, as seen in many horror films. Learn more about horror movies.

Different filmmakers often develop signature styles using tone, for example:

1. 1. Dunkirk: Christopher Nolan often uses the Shepard tone in his films to create suspense and drama. The Shepard tone is an audio illusion that creates a feeling of infinite rising and falling by fading in and out at the end of each octave. Nolan uses this most notably in the movie Dunkirk to create a feeling of anxiety and tension.
2. 2. Get Out: In his movie Get Out, Jordan Peele uses lighting and contrasting color palettes to create tension. At the beginning of the film, when Chris Washington (played by Daniel Kaluuya) arrives at his girlfriend’s parents’ house, the lighting is warm, bright, and inviting, lulling the audience into a false sense of security. As the film progresses and the threat of danger gets revealed, the lighting and colors become darker and more ominous. Learn more about film lighting.
3. 3. Something’s Gotta Give: Nancy Meyers is known for her romantic comedies and frequently uses set design to create a pleasant, light-hearted comedic tone as a backdrop. In Something’s Gotta Give, Meyers gives Erica Berry (played by Diane Keaton) a bright, large, comfortable home in a pleasing cream-colored palette, helping flesh out the main character as someone who is self-sufficient and stable in her life before she falls in love.
4. 4. Reservoir Dogs: Quentin Tarantino creates a suspenseful tone in his films by using contradicting film elements. For example, in Reservoir Dogs, he uses a lighthearted piece of music (“Stuck in the Middle with You”) to accompany the disturbing act of Mr. Blonde (played by Michael Madsen) cutting off a police officer’s ear.
5. 5. Rushmore: Wes Anderson utilizes many cinematic elements to add a comedic tone to his films, including symmetry, a bright flat color pallette, character-specific eccentric costumes, and quirky music. He also uses slow motion as a tonal device in all of his films to highlight scenes that contain emotionally symbolic moments for the characters. For example, at the end of Rushmore, the main character Max Fischer (played by Jason Schwartzman) and the entire cast dance in slow motion, with individual shots suggesting the conclusion of each character’s emotional journey.

Follow these steps to create a specific film tone in your movie or short film:

1. 1. Choose the tone of the film. The screenwriting and subject matter of the script may suggest the tone, or you may choose to convey a different tone that fits your artistic vision.
2. 2. Choose a lighting and color palette that matches the desired tone. Lighting and color templates are important elements in creating tone. Are you going for a film noir look with lots of dark shadows, or is your film a light, bright, colorful comedy? Get Mira Nair’s tips for using color in film.
3. 3. Edit with tone in mind. Work with an experienced editor to use quick cuts, slow-motion, appropriate music, and sound effects to shape the overall tone of your film. Learn more about film editing techniques with Jodie Foster.
4. 4. Plan camera angles that reflect the tone. Use storyboards and shot lists to plan the most effective camera movements and angles. Storyboarding is particularly helpful for horror movies that depend on camera movement and quick reveals to startle the audience. Learn how to make a storyboard.

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