blue screen

American  

[bloo skreen] / ˈblu ˌskrin /

noun

Movies, Television.

1. an electronic special-effects system that isolates and removes a static plain blue background from the live foreground shot so that the background can be filled or replaced with another image or video in a composite with the foreground.

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blue screen British  

noun

1. a special effects film technique involving filming actors against a blue screen on which effects such as computerized graphics can be added later and integrated into a single sequence

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Etymology

Origin of blue screen

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

They had a thing where they’d pick a couple of tour guests and the guide would put you on camera in front of a blue screen and you’d reenact a scene from a movie.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026

To achieve the special effects of the solar eclipse, the house was reassembled on the largest blue screen sound stage in the world, constructed ad hoc at a hockey arena in Nova Scotia.

From Salon • Mar. 23, 2025

In small letters on the blue screen was the word “Winner.”

From New York Times • Jun. 10, 2023

Director Jon M Chu told the audience the movie does not include CGI or the blue screen filming technique, and it's "a fully immersive experience".

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2023

During ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’ on Sunday nights, when Roberta Peters or Licia Albanese would appear on the tiny blue screen, his head would jerk up alert.

From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez