History Main / Chiaroscuro

* ''Film/ForcedVengeance'' has a different take on this trope when Creator/ChuckNorris is shown fighting in silhouette against a giant neon billboard.

** Available as a photo mode color filter in ''VideoGame/MiddleEarthShadowOfWar''.

* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}} 3''. You use a handheld flashlight, but not along with your firearm[[labelnote:*]][[MemeticMutation there's no duct tape on Mars]][[/labelnote]]. The very first GameMod for the title, aptly named "{{Duct Tape|ForEverything}}", gives a gunlight to a few of the marine's guns; others that come later expand on the concept. The ''[[UpdatedRerelease BFG Edition]]'' does away with the headache by mounting the lamp on your armor. [[TenSecondFlashlight It only lasts for 30 seconds or so before needing a recharge]], but that's far less annoying than [[ScrappyMechanic having to swap weapons while under attack]] when [[PersonalSpaceInvader a monster inevitable pops up right in your face]].

* The Big Reveal in ''VideoGame/{{BioShock|1}}'' does this.

* The front cover for the ScissorSisters' album ''Ta-Dah''.

* The music video for ''In the Air Tonight'' [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkADj0TPrJA&ob=av2n]] by Music/PhilCollins which also includes FaceFramedInShadow.

* The music video for ''In the Air Tonight'' [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkADj0TPrJA&ob=av2n]] by PhilCollins which also includes FaceFramedInShadow.

* Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio liked to use this.
* When paintings darken over time due to bleaching of colours and dirt sticking to the canvas, this is seems to be in play. For example, Creator/RembrandtVanRijn's ''Night Watch'' was originally a day scene.

* TheAgonist has a song named this.

A visual trope, using a stark contrast between dark and light in an image, usually for dramatic effect. Generally uses directional lighting and sharp shadows. Developed in the Renaissance for painting and became very popular among Baroque painters, all the way to the school known as "tenebrism". And never quite vanished since. (Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} has more [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiaroscuro here]].)

Not to be confused with the [[AdvancedAncientAcropolis ancient desert city of glass]] from the tabletop RPG ''{{Exalted}}''. Or that rat from ''Literature/TheTaleOfDespereaux'' (though he was named for this trope as a joke by his parents).

* During the roof scenes (and nighttime ones), the lighting is very like what would later be used for FilmNoir, so much so that taking these shots isolated from the entire movie, they look like they could’ve come straight out of a noir. However, for the tone of the film, it creates more of a romantic mood.

* ''{{RWBY}}'' uses this several times in Volume 4, most notably in the episode "Family" when Qrow is meeting [[spoiler: Raven]] in the tavern. The former is surrounded by brighter, warmer yellow light from a furnace, while the latter is seated in dimmer, poorly-lit shadows, reflecting each individual's nature. Emphasizing the effect is Qrow's white and gray clothing, contrasting [[spoiler: Raven]]'s black and red.

* Taken to the extreme in ''MadWorld'' for the Wii, where everything is either black or white (or [[{{Gorn}} red]]).

* ''AlanWake'' is built around this. Since the mysterious "Dark Presence" [[LivingShadow thrives in darkness and shadows]], the majority of the game is spend fleeing between the sparse lighting, and even battle sequences require weakening monsters with flashlights.

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

** In ''Film/BarryLyndon'', special lenses facilitated candlelight filming. The use of light in that film becomes very notable to anyone with knowledge in lighting or photography. Most films use a ton of artificial light in scenes that are only supposed to be lit with a few candles, thanks to the technological limitations on cameras. However, ''Barry Lyndon'' didn't use ''any'' artificial light, with the entire scenes sometimes being lit by a few candles. In order to achieve this, Kubrik had to use cameras intended for ''NASA during the Apollo moon landings.''

* ''Film/DarkCity'' uses chiaroscuro lighting in spots to achieve a DieselPunk / Film noir effect.

* ''Film/TheGodfather'' films love this trope. To the extent that in many cases it's so dark parts of the film remains un-exposed. This was why it has been problematic to transfer to DVD, as it's very hard for digital media to handle pitch black[[note]] MPEG-2 handles ''completely'' flat black very well. Where it tends to fall apart is when there's a little noise in the black - which tends to happen with under-exposed film or video.[[/note]].
* ''Film/TheSilenceOfTheLambs'' plays with this liberally, mostly in the introduction of Lecter, but rather frighteningly in the climax, where [[spoiler: Starling is illuminated through nightvision goggles, shown desperately lost in the darkness.]]

* Due to the low powered light sources and the pitch-blackness of the coffin, most, if not all of Film/{{Buried}} is shot like this.
* Peter Jackson pulled this off to a frightening degree of success during the scene that introduces Aragorn in his adaptation of ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRings The Fellowship Of The Ring]]''.

* The finale of Film/{{Skyfall}} is this, with [[spoiler: the burning ruins of Skyfall manor]] being the only light source.

* The {{novelization}} of ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' has a chapter called Chiaroscuro, and light and shadow come into the description a lot during it.

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', especially in the first two seasons, often had [[FaceFramedInShadow faces framed in shadow]]... even outside in the middle of the day.

* ''Series/PushingDaisies'' uses this occasionally, both as a {{Homage}} and AffectionateParody of FilmNoir movies.

* ''Series/TheXFiles'' would occasionally light the scenes in this way. Inevitable for a show featuring dark conspiracies and nasty monsters. A good example of the trope is a very squicky scene in "Leonard Betts". It is set in a storage locker where Betts uses his [[HealingFactor extreme regenerative power]] to create himself -- he creates another Betts. Only his body is lit and some bright, scary light comes through a door into the locker, and the rest of the scene is very dark.

* ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' is considerably DarkerAndEdgier than its predecessor, and tends to cover [[FaceFramedInShadow character's faces]] and environments in darker shadows. ''Mass Effect 3'' takes it even further, with the inside of the Normandy now looking like a hollywood submarine.

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* In ''[[WesternAnimation/{{Thundercats 2011}} [=ThunderCats (2011)=]]]'', this is used in "The Duelist and the Drifter" while introducing the Duelist, and during the Drifter's NamelessNarrative. The figures are backlit, but their fronts (or their head and shoulders) are near-totally concealed in heavy shadow.

Not to be confused with the [[IThoughtItMeant ancient desert city of glass]] from the tabletop RPG ''{{Exalted}}''. Or that rat from ''Literature/TheTaleOfDespereaux'' (though he was named for this trope as a joke by his parents).

* ''KingdomHearts'' uses this throughout the Port Royal world, with the live-action characters cast in realistic, murky, brown-and-black night tones while Sora, Donald, and Goofy remain lit so brightly and colorfully that it's like they're in the middle of the afternoon. The end result is a very stark contrast between the grimmer characters from one world and the much, much perkier heroes from others. In general, the series has pretty heavy use of this. Pure white backgrounds with characters with dark auras (Terra especially), or pure black backgrounds with intense colors (the Dive Into The Heart screen where Sora chooses his keyblade) are incredibly common throughout the game.

* ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'' uses this to provide atmosphere, light, and to tell players where to go, as humans tend to go towards the light because they can actually see what's there. According to the developer blog and commentaries, the maps in ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'' were changed to promote, rather than fight against, this natural inclination of ours ([[GameMod custom campaigns]] that [[WhoForgotTheLights don't follow this line of thought]] are considered notoriously hard to navigate through). For example, one of the maps that takes place in a city was originally designed to have most of the windows in buildings lit and bright, giving the impression that TheVirus wiped everything out quickly. Changing the buildings to be without power made people move faster and more efficiently to the goal, which remained well-lit. Plus, it's frickin' scary.

* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}} 3''. You use a handheld flashlight, but not along with the gun, because [[MemeticMutation there's no duct tape on Mars]]. The very first GameMod for the title, aptly named "{{Duct Tape|ForEverything}}", gives a gunlight to a few of the marine's guns; others that come later expand on the concept. The ''[[UpdatedRerelease BFG Edition]]'' does away with the headache by mounting the lamp on your armor. [[TenSecondFlashlight It only lasts for 30 seconds or so before needing a recharge]], but that's far less annoying than [[ScrappyMechanic having to swap weapons while under attack]] when a monster inevitable pops up right in your face.

* ''Zelda'' started using this for nighttime and cave areas in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', and then expanded upon it for ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', the latter of which uses shadow as a recurring motif. Your only decent light sources are the occasional torches and lanterns held by either the Moblins or Link; rushing through cave areas without carefully inspecting the lit-up path can lead to a tumble down a pit.
** Much of the artwork for ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' is drawn in this style, though it's not done like this in the game itself.
* Many a StealthBasedGame uses this when shadows are used as a hiding tool by the protagonist, notably VideoGame/{{Thief}} and VideoGame/SplinterCell.

* ''Literature/VillainsByNecessity'': It's the name of the world, as chosen by Mizzamir. It makes sense with the book's moral message [[spoiler: GrayandGrayMorality, both good and evil are necessary for existence.]]