Cutaway Shot

Hi All,

     Welcome back for a lesson on the cutaway shot. This technique is used to cutaway from the main action, hence the title “cutaway” shot. For example, two people are sitting in a park, feeding pigeons and talking. The first few shots obviously would be on the character that is doing the talking. To make things a little more visually appealing to the audience, you would use the cutaway shot to do a close-up on the pigeon or maybe a child chasing a Frisbee through the park. This way the audience now has a better grasp on the point of view of the main subject, on what the main subject is seeing. You are trying to make sure your audience is as closely emerged into the character’s surroundings as possible.

Cutaway shots can also be used to:

• Show action: say a character is talking on his cell phone through New York and up a head he spots someone being mugged. The camera does a cutaway shot to show the action that is taking place.
• Show reactions: the character is breaking the news to her husband that she is dying of cancer. This is a serious moment that demands a cutaway shot of her husband’s shocked and devastated face.
• Fix mistakes: say the audio of a character is still intact, but the shot is messed up for some reason, you could do a cutaway shot (possibly over-the-shoulder) of another’s reaction to cover-up the mistake.

Here is a good example of the cutaway shot that cuts away from the main scene and introduces a new plot point:

     Notice how Ted’s voice carries over into the next shot, but you don’t actually see him delivering the lines. For all you know, he could be recording them in the studio. Also note how they use the cutaway shot to tell a short recap of a story and then cut back to the main action.

     See you all back here next Friday at 7 p.m. for a lesson on filming exit and entrance shots! 

Split-Screen Technique

     The split-screen technique can be done in post-editing and it literally creates a visible divide in the screen (normally in half), showing two different points of view or images. It can be a fun, easy way to be a little more creative with your film. It’s only easy, however, when you do the necessary planning beforehand. The split-screen scene actually has to have significant meaning. Doing a split-screen just to do one isn’t going to cut it. There must be a purpose. Otherwise, the technique falls flat and becomes confusing to the audience. There are many advantages to the split-screen method:

• To create a foil between two subjects, such as showing two characters’ lives that contrast each other.
• To give different points of view at the same time, much like telling two sides of a story
• Aesthetic appeal
• To duplicate an actor (think Parent’s Trap with Lindsey Lohan playing both parts of the twins)

There are also some setbacks:

• They often become confusing. To avoid this, think of how it will look beforehand — always plan ahead!
• They become repetitive so use them sparingly. Surprise the audience — let it be your wildcard, not your calling card.
• They disrupt “reality,” or the natural flow of the film. This isn’t always bad, but if done too often, it can take the viewers away from the world you’re trying to create with your film.

     With these tips in mind, try your hand at a split-screen shot and see how it turns out. The key to success in film is practice, so don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t turn out how you pictured it — keep trying.

     Here’s an awesome example of a split-screen shot that falls heavily under the aesthetic appeal category mentioned above:

Here’s one that tells a story:

     Let me know what you think! Comment or email me at ljm7686@truman.edu. Like always, I’ll see you next Friday at 7!

     Next time: learn all about the cutaway shot!

Stop Motion!

Hi again! Ready to learn all about stop motion? Then you're in the right place—

     Stop motion is a style of film that entails physically manipulating everything within a scene so that it appears to be moving on its own. This takes a lot of time and a lot of patience because each object has to be moved in tiny increments and you must record each movement by taking many photographs. While stop motion usually involves some form of clay figures, it can be done with just about anything. And for those people like me, who don’t have the time, money or skill (yet!) to create a masterpiece such as Nightmare Before Christmas, we can start off small. To do this, you can create a short film much like this one: 

     Notice how in only three minutes they managed to convey a small story line without changing sets. The key to stop motion like this one is creativity. Without a specific idea in mind, it won’t work out. That’s why planning beforehand is the most important part in attempting a short like this.

     Hopefully, after testing the waters by making your own stop motion short, you can see if you’d want to undertake a much more highly orchestrated operation like Fantastic Mr. Fox, a stop motion animation film that was directed and written by Wes Anderson. This is possibly my favorite film of all time, stop motion or otherwise. There is such painstaking attention to detail and the amount of work that would have gone into just one snapshot must have been unbelievable. From every angle, the film truly is fantastic.

     Here’s a clip from one of my favorite scenes:

     For a better understanding on how they make this type of film, check out this video:

     For next time, be ready to delve into split-screen shots! As always, feel free to comment or email me at ljm7686@truman.edu

     See you here next Friday at 7 p.m.

High, Low, Eye-level and the Bird's-Eye View Shots

Hi there!

     Here’s yet another tutorial on how to use different camera angles such as the high and low angle, the eye level angle and the bird’s-eye view angle. All of these shots are used to connect directly to the viewers. It’s important to understand that what the camera sees is effectively the same point of view as the audience. This way, you can use these angles to your advantage while filming to influence your audience’s emotions as they watch.

     The bird’s-eye view angle is shot from above the action, giving the audience an almost “god-like” feel while watching the scene. This happens at the beginning of many movies during the opening credits to set the location of the story. It can also be used to track a character’s journey from a distance to show how far they’ve come and how far they still need to go.

     It’s also common to use the bird’s-eye view in battle sequences to emphasize the incredible size of the armies. Here’s a good example of how this angle works:

     The high angle shot is when you film slightly above the character. In this case, the character is almost looking up into the shot. This is used to make the character seem small and vulnerable.

     The low angle shot, as you would guess, is the opposite of the high angle shot. The low angle shot is when the camera is looking up at the character. This often makes the character seem powerful and superior.

     Both of these shots can be exemplified in this clip: 

     The eye-level view is perhaps the most common because of its neutrality. Unlike the high and low angle shot, the eye-level shot does not try to exaggerate the qualities of a character. Instead, the camera is placed at eye-level with the subject so the audience feels like they are on equal footing with them.

     Here’s an example of the eye-level shot, which also will be a nice teaser until next Friday’s lesson on Stop Motion — so get excited!

     See you next week — same Bat-time, same Bat-channel (Friday at 7 p.m.)!

Tracking Shots

Hi there, welcome back to another lesson on how to best use the tracking shot!

     Unlike setting up the camera and waiting for the action to pass in front of you, a tracking shot is where you literally track your subject’s movement with the camera. This either can be in front of the character or following behind the character. Because the point of view of the camera is virtually the same point of view as the audience, these are best used to help the viewers feel like they are apart of the action that is taking place on screen.

     Normally, a tracking shot involves mounting your camera on a dolly (a platform with wheels), which is designed to move your camera smoothly from one direction to another.  Since these can be pricey and we are not professional filmmakers (yet!), you’ll have to make do with a very steady hand while holding the camera.

     Using the tracking shot can be as simple or as complicated as you’d like. If you just want a short clip of your character walking to class, talking to a friend, you could track their movement by walking a little in front and to the side of them. This would be a simple tracking shot.

     More complicated ones can track the action for whole minutes. Before committing to a highly orchestrated tracking shot, make sure you’ve done all the necessary planning because they can be a lot of hard work getting all of the desired elements and timing down.

     Here are some examples of the best tracking shots in film today: 

Note that this almost tells a story and it gives you greater insight on the character’s lives and routines.

     Notice how all of this had to be perfectly planned before shooting because, otherwise, there would be no way to juggle around that many extras for one shoot.

     Here are some other great examples of tracking shots: http://www.filmcritic.com/features/2007/09/the-ten-best-tracking-shots-ever/

     Stay tuned for next week where you’ll learn all about different camera angles (high, low, eye-level etc.).

    Like always, feel free to leave comments or suggestions below or email me at ljm7686@truman.edu

See you all next Friday at 7 p.m.!

Long, Medium and Close-up Shots

Welcome back,

     Let’s jump right in! The three most basic shots that make up all film scenes are the long, medium and close-up shot.

     The long shot (or wide shot) is mainly used to give the viewer context by showing what’s going on around the subjects. For example, if you want to film a soccer match, you’d most likely want to include a few long shots that encompass the whole game, instead of following around just one player. 

     The long shot is often used to set up a location so the audience is aware of where the upcoming scene will be taking place. This is called an establishing shot. Think of all the times you’ve seen shots of the exterior of Monk’s Café from Seinfeld or the Central Perk coffee house from Friends. These are all examples of long, establishing shots.

     An extreme long shot, which can be shot from distances of over a quarter of a mile away, are used to emphasize the vastness of a region or show large-scale action scenes. One of the best examples of this is in Lord of the Rings, which is compromised of many long shots to show not only massive battles sequences, but also to show the enormity of the landscape in comparison to the size of the characters:

     Medium shots are by far the most common shots in film. While it can be difficult to distinguish between a medium shot and a close-up shot, the general rule of thumb is that a medium shot shows the full-length view of the subject. These shots are often used in simple dialogue scenes between characters and to emphasize body language.

     Here is an example (from one of the best movies of all time!) of a medium shot to help you gauge what the proper distance should be between the camera and the subject:

     Close-ups are used mainly used to express emotion during a dramatic scene. In this case, the emphasis is on the character. Close-ups can also be used to emphasize something of great importance in a scene. These shots mainly appear mere inches from the subject and are called extreme close-up shots. This is the cue to the audience that this object will be significant to the plot.

     For example, in Lord of the Rings, the camera does many extreme close-ups on the ring to bring the reader back to its importance. Here is an example of a scene from Requiem for a Dream with shots ranging from regular close-ups to extreme close-ups. Note how the emphasis is on the characters and the emotion between the two:

     If you have any questions or thoughts feel free to comment or email me at ljm7686@truman.edu. Tune in next Friday at 7 p.m. to learn all about tracking shots!

Welcome!

     So you want to make movies? If the answer is, yes, then this is the place for you. This blog aims to teach all you new, aspiring filmmakers the basics of filmmaking, including different shots and techniques that all beginners should know before taking their script to screen. 

     My name is Laurie Mattson and I plan to be your guide during your explorations of the world of cinematography. I'm currently a senior at Truman State University and President of Truman State Filmmaker's Club. While I have made some short films in the past, I, too, am a beginning filmmaker. That being said, I aim to learn just as much from this blog as hopefully you all will. 

     After a while, I hope that you'll start thinking in screen shots. Every room you walk into and every person you meet, I want you to ask yourself, "What is the best, most creative shot I can get out of this?" That's what being a filmmaker is all about. 

     To learn more about film techniques, check out this blog every Friday at 7 p.m.
     To tide you over, here is the trailer for one of my favorite films in terms of cinematography, Requiem for a Dream:

     Start exploring on your own now: check out http://www.empireonline.com/ for the latest movie news.