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Film & Television vocabulary · On Set: The Shoot

Clapperboard

Meaning in film & television, with examples

/ˈklæpəbɔːd/nounCommon term

In film & television, clapperboard means: A small board with a hinged stick, held in front of the camera at the start of a take to show the scene and take number and to make a clap for syncing sound and picture.

In Turkish: klaket

How it is used

Also called the slate or the sticks. The clapper loader (second camera assistant) calls out the numbers and claps it: the editor lines up the sound of the clap with the frame where the sticks meet. A tail slate is done at the end of a take.

Example sentences

  1. The clapperboard says scene 18, take 4, but the sound report says take 5.

  2. Hold the clapperboard closer to the lens; I can't read it.

Common collocations

  • hold the clapperboard
  • clapper loader
  • slate
  • mark it
  • tail slate
  • takeOne attempt at filming a shot. If something goes wrong or the director wants a different version, the crew does another take.
  • shotOne continuous piece of film recorded from the moment the camera starts until it stops, or the piece of it that appears between two cuts.
  • continuityKeeping details consistent from shot to shot, such as costumes, props, hair, positions and actions, so that the edited scene looks like one continuous moment.
  • dailiesThe raw, unedited footage from a day's shoot, prepared quickly so the director, producers and editor can check it.

More terms: On Set: The Shoot

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