It's Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 30th.
Today's word is mise en scène, spelled as three hyphenated words as they would be in French.
M-I-S-E hyphen E-N hyphen S-C-E-N-E.
There's a grave accent rising to the left on the first E of the word sen.
Misan Sen can refer to the setting of a play or a movie,
or it can refer to the physical or social setting in which something real occurs or develops.
Here's the word used in a sentence from the Chicago reader by Cat Sacks.
The mise-en-scene is sumptuous,
with rich colors and intricate production and costume design filling the widescreen frames with visual splendor.
In French, mise-en-scene literally means the action of putting onto the stage.
The term originated in stage drama,
where it refers to the way actors and scenery props are arranged.
As its usage expanded into other narrative arts, its meaning shifted.
In film production, mise en scène refers to all of the elements that comprise a single shot.
That includes but is not limited to the actors, setting, props, costumes, and lighting.
The director of a play or film is sometimes called the metteur en scène,
literally one who puts on the stage.
In general use, mise-en-scène can refer simply to one's environment or milieu,
as in, we spent our vacation enjoying the mise-en-scène of the Tuscan countryside.
With your Word of the Day, I'm Peter Sokolowski.