Storyboard Notes 2

8/18/2019 Storyboard Notes 2

1/84


2/84

STORYBOARD

OTES

REFERENCE

conr.)--..

THINK

FILM......

If

some

designs

are not avallable,

do

your

own

roughs.

Floor

plans

are

especially

helpful.Makesure hat rhedesign

department gets

a

copy

of

your

roughs.

It

will

also help

to refer to the

series

Bible'.

This

usually contains

a

profile

of each

major

character.

As the

storyboard ardst

you

are

acting

as

a

director,

cinematographer,

ontinuity

person

and art

director

all rolled into

one

You

are setting

the camera or the bestpossible

effect

to set the mood,

reveal

the

characters,

and

set up the

action...and

most

mportantly,..TFr

THE

STORY

R.

JAFELTCE,

AR.

6,

.86

(2)


3/84

STORY

BOARD

NOTES

SHOT=SENTENCE

SEQUENCE=PARAGRAPH

ACT=CHAPTER

THE

L/ 2 HOUR

ERIESHOW

S

A SHORT

STORY.

-

Read

lle original

outline.

-

Read

he final

approved

scnpt.

-

How

do they

compare?

-

Read

he

script

again.

-

Break

}re

script

down

into

sequences.

-

A

sequence

ocuses

on one idea.

SUMMARISE

HE DEA

OFTHE

SEQUENCE.

-

Who s

in the

sequence?

oes

t focus

on the

main

characters

r

secondary

ones?

-

Where

does

t

take

place?

-

What

s the

content

of the sequence?

What

happens

n iO

-

What

is the

mryrt

of

the sequence?

-

What s it's pace?

-

Zme

the

sequence.

ake

a note

of how ong

t is.

WHAT

STHE

FUNCTION

OFTHE

SEQUENCE?

-

Consider

wiere

the sequence

its in

the story.

-

What

comes

before

and

after

?

-

Is it

part

of t}le

main

plot

or is it

a secondary

story?

-

Is

it necessary

- Putall of sequencesn perspective.Seehow tlley relate

to

each

other,

and

to the

story

as a whole.

-

Is each

sequence

live

?

(1)


4/84

STORY

BOARD

NOTES

REGARDING

TUMBLING

BLOCKS

-

Does

he action

fit the

location?

s

there

enough

oom

for

the

action?

- Are designsavailable or you

to sufficiently

visualise

tre

action?

-

Are

the characters

in

character

?

-

Discuss,

with

your

director,

any

hesitations

or

suggestions

ou

might

have

at this

early

stage.

REGARDING

EQUENTIAL

BREAKDOWN:

- Script analysisentailsmarkingup the script itself.

-

Circle

or

colour

code

ransitional

deyices

such

as fades,

wipes,

dissolves,

nd soon.

-

Draw

a line

at the

point

where

one

sequence

meets

anotler.

You

can

now

scan

your

script for

sequences.

-

You

may

wish

to high{ight

locations,

characters,

ime

of

day,

and EFX.

-

Once

you've

marked

up

your

script,

any

descriptive

diagramsor plans,wordsconveyingmood,and rough

timings

can

be

added.

-

It

might

help

to

give

each

sequence

number

or

identiffing

n:rme.

-

If

you

are working

in

partnership

with

other

artists

on

the

same

story,

there

musf

be

a ist

of sequences

nd locations

drawn

up

so that

artists

can

be assigned

o

each

sequence

in

a logical

manner.

For reuse purposes,

t's

best o haveasingleboardartist handle

all

sequences

aking place

n a

particular

ocation.

Arna

Selznick

(2)


5/84

STORYBOARD

OTES

MoRE

N

SEQUENTIAL

REAKDOWNS:

irom

your

sequence

reakdown, ou cando a quickvisual scan

of

your

script.

you

know

how

much

time

to allocate

to each

sequence

nd

what

events

ake

place.

you

also

know

the

flavour,

or

mood,

ofa

sequence

nd

therefore

you

have

direction

on what

angles

o chose.

If

a sequence

s

packed

with

events,

or

contains

business

which

requires

a

great

deal

of time

to work

effectively,

you know you need o allot more ime to this sequence.ou

might

have

o

trim

time from

another

sequence.

ou

might

have

to

cut

an

en rre

sequence.

f

you

can,t

ose

ime from

a less

imporrant

sequence, ou

will

have

o

edit

your

over_lengti

one

instead.

You

cando

this

by trimming

dialogue

and

dropping

unnecessary

ction.

Try

to

do

tfiis

at

the

script

stage,

before

you

begin

boarding,

and

always

in

co-operation

with

your

director.

Then,with your storydownto time,and tlle main

action

specified,

eread

he

script.

Does

t

still

make

sense?

oes

your

sequence

reakdown

eel

right?

Did

you

leave

anything

out?

Did

you

trim

or cut

anytling

important?

f

you

need

o,

make

adjustnnents.

f ir

works....BEGIN

OBOARDI

Arna

Selznick

(3)


6/84

STORYBOARD

OTES

STORYBOARD

GLOSSARY

SIZEAND DISTANCE

tong

shot

(LS.)

Full

shot

Medium

shot

(M.S.)

Medtum

lose.up

M.C.U)

Close,up

C.U.)

Extreme

lose.up

EC.U.)

General

escriptions-

Wide

shot

Mid

shot

Tight

shot

DESCRIPTION

F

NUMBER

OF

CHAMCTERS

N

SHOT

Single

one

person)

Two shot

(two

people)

Group

shot

(three

or more)

Crowd

shot

(larger

han

a

group)

CAMERA

ANGLE

(ON

CHARACTER)

Straight-onshot (neutral)

3/4

shot

Side

shot

3/4 rear

shot

Rear

or

back shot

ANGLE

(ON

PERSPECTIVE)

low

angle

(upshot)

High

angle

(down

shot)

Stralght-on(not usuallyspecified)

(1)


7/84

STORYBOARD

OTES

MATCHING

ANGLES

Matching

.U. r

M.C.U.

Reaction

hot

C.U.

r

EC.U.

followed

y

p.O.V.)

Reverse ngle

Over

he

shoulder

.O.T.S)

SEqUENCE

ROGRESSION

Esrablishing

hor

est.

hor)

Exterior

hot

(ext.)

Interior

(int.)

Master

hot

. Cutaway

CAMERA

MOVES

Truck-in zoom

n

or

push

n)

Truck-out zoom

out

or

pull

out)

Snapin

(snap

oom)

Snap-out

Spin

clockwise

r counter-clockwise)

Pan

diag.,/vert./swish)

Hold

Taper

(up

or down)

ol-/Lt?t

-.-2i//1.1:

CAMERA

NSTRUCTIONS

OR

TMNSITIONS

Cut

(to

or

back

o)

Cut

n

action

Wipe

rype

&

lengrh)

X-Diss.

rype

& length)

Fade

up

(or

in)

from

black

Fade ut (or Fadeo black)

Ripple

issolve

from

or ro)

(2)


8/84

STORYBOARD

OTES

DTALOGUE

ERMINOLOGY

On screen

rarely

used)

Offscreen

O.S.)

Voice-over

V.O.)

In unison

Lip

sync

(breakdown)

COMPILED

Y

ARNA

SETZNICK

(3)


9/84

STORYBOARD

NOTES

THE ROLE

OF

THE

STORYBOARD

N PREPRODUCTION

THEBOARD

RTIST'S

IRST

CONSIDEMTIONS

EFOREENCIL

TOUCHESAPER

1) FORMAT....

How

ong s

the

fllm?

Who s

rhe audlence?

What kind

of

story ls

it? Is

there

an established

tyle,or is

the look

of

the

show being

developed

or the first

time? Are

tlere

samples

of

previously

completed

boards?What

is the

averagescene

ength?

How

many acts

are there?

Do the

acts have

standard

engths?

What ldnd

of camera

moves,

EFX, r

transltions

are

standard

in tlle serles?

What

are

the board

artist,s

goals

n

terms

of lirniting antmation?

2)REFERENCE...

s

therea series

Bible,

providing

nformation

about

character

background

and

seriesdevelopment?

Do

you

know

the

characters

and how

they

renct and lnteract?

What is rhe

history

behfnd

the

characters?

Why ls a

speclflc

character

n

the show?

Do

you

know

their

speech

patterns?

Are

there

voice

tapes

ava able

to llsten to?

Can

you

talk

to the

dlrector

or writer(s)

to

get

these

questlons

answered?

3)TIME.. .

4) BUDGET....

What

is the

duration

of the

entire

production?

How

much

time do

you

have

o

complete he

endre

board?Does

he

dlrector

want

to

see

your

roughs

and when?

How much

tkne do

you

have

or

cleanup?

How

much are

you

getting

paid,

and

how

does

t break

down hourly?

How

much

are

you

gettlng

paid?

Does

he board

artisr

get

paid

extra for

revislons,

and if

so, at what

stages

of

producuon?

What s the EFX udget,and is therea quota

of EFX

cenes?

ow

much

reuse

s required

in

each how?

Is tiere

a ceiling

or

the number

of scenes

er

show?

What

are

the

bo.rrd

ardst,s

goals

n terms

of limlthg

anlmation?

(1)


10/84

STORYBOARD

OTES

5) APPROVAL...

howrote

the scrlpt?

Can

changes

o it

be

dlscussed?

Who approves

he script

and when?Who

approves he

board and when?

Do speciflc

appointments have

to

be set

up to see hesepeople?Who are the deslgners?Who

approves

he designs?

s

there a

,Fun

Pack'?

Can

you

access he

design department?

f

questions

need

to be

answered,

can a

meeung

be set up with the head

designer

and the director?

Who

approves

your

revlslons?

ARNASELZNICK

JOHN

VAN BRUGGEN

(2)


11/84

-THE

STe,R{BoAJ=},

A5 A DIRE


12/84

sEP 28 ,

, 90

Long

sho t ,

vhen

do

you

use

v n a t

v e n e a n

d r a n a t 1 c

e a s o n s

CALL ING THE

med un

sho t /

c l ose

then

and vhy .

The

by these

va r i ous

beh lnd

the use

o f

S H O T S

up ; vha t

a re they rea11y ,

and

fo l I ov

l ng sess lons v l l - l

cove r

6ho ts

and

g i ve

some

o f

t he

each .

D E F I N I N C T H E

SH O T

Eve ry f i

each o f these

1dea to se t t l e

pao lec s

can

{

examp les

pg .

Ln

make rs

l dea o f vha t

ac tua l

f r an lng

cons t l t u teg

types

o f sho ts

may va ry

s l l gh t l y ,

so l t r s

a

good

on a s tanda ld

tha t

eve l yone

vho

l s

vo rk l ng

on

our

fo l l ov .

Tha t \ . , ay re ' r e

a I1 speak ing

the same

f i l n

2 )

DRAMATIC

EFFECT

Eve ry

type o f

sho t has

a spec i f i c

d l ama t i c

e f fec t and

pu rpose . You mus t be ava re o f the psycho log i ca l imp l i ca t i ons o f

each

sho t

you

choose

to use .

The ob jec t l ve

i s to suppo r t

t he

inbe ren t

d rama

in the s to ry

th rough

ba lance

and e rnpbas i s .

IONG

SHOTS

The LONG

SHOT and

EXTREHE

ONGSHOT

are used to c l ed te

a tnosphe re

and

nood and

to e9 tab1 l9h

the

env l ronnen t vh l ch

ou r

cha rac te rs

a re ex i s t l ng

in and

a re a f fec ted

by .

l l e

d l so ca l l

Lhese

ESTABLTSHTNG

HOTS.

They

a re

usua l l y the

open ing

sho ts

o f a shov o sequence ,

bu t no t

a l \ r ays , ve ' r1

d i scuss

a r te rna t i ve

aDDroaches l a te r

a f te r

ve rve

d i scussed

the

mosL co f i l noo

uses .

MEDIUM

SHOTS

As

ve

van t

to

i nvo l ve ou r

aud ience

no e i n \ {nd r

our

cha rac te l s

a re do ing

in the s to ry

ve cu t

i n

p rog ress i ve l y

c l ose r

to the

ac t i on

v i th the

WIDE SHOT

or the t , tED IU

SHOTdeDend inq

on

the deg ree

o f

ac t i on tha t

ve ' re cu t t i ng

in

to see .

I f t he ac t i on

i s b road , i f

cha tac te s

a re en te r i ng o

ex i t i ng ,

i f es tab l i sh i ng

a

g roup

se t t i ng

i s the i npo r tan t th i n9 ,

then the

WiDE sHOT

migh t

be necessa ry

to c l ea r l y

se t the scene .

I f t he

ac t i on

i s node la te ,

i f

i t ' s a s imp le d i a l ogue

s i tua t i on

and

the aud ience

i s mere l y

nean t to be an obse rve r

o f

vha t

i s

go ing

on ,

then the MEDIUM

SHOT

s as c fose as

you

need to

CTOSESHOTS

As the

d rama o f

the s to ry

p tog resses

and

you

van t

t o

i nvo l ve

you r

aud ience

no re l n tense l y v i th

the

emo t i ons and a t t i t udes

o f

the

cha rac te rs ,

you

need

to

90

in to

the CLOSE

UpS.

Re i ienber

tha t

the

EXTREME CLOSE

Up

crea tes the

mos t

d ra i na t i c

e f fec t .

I t c rea tes

the nax imum

tens ion

be tveen

you r

aud ience

and the

cha rac te rs

i n

the s to ry ,

the max lmum


13/84

i n vo l venen t

The

aud ience

i s no l onge l

s i rnP l y obse rv i ng

the

ac t i on

on the

sc reen bu t

i s

emo t i ona l l y

i nvo l ved and

lden t l f y i ng

' r i t h

the

p laye l s . Use

cLoSE UPs

to se t up PoTNT

oF

v IE l { SHOTS

rhe le the

camera

becones

the

v ie \ re t a t

home .

so fa r

ve rve

dea l t

v l th s l ng le cha rac te r

s tag lng ,

g oup

scenes

requ I r e s

i gh t 1y d i

f f e ren t t r ea tnen t .

( samp1es . pg .

3 & 4 )

Le t ' s

fu r the r exp lo re

bas l c uSage .

TENS ON

crea t l ng

tens lon

v i th

you r

aud ience

1s l nvo l v l ng

them

\ r l t h

the s to ry .

Tha t ' s

vha t f l lm tnak lng

1s a l l abou t .

I { l t hou t

tens ion the e

i s no i nvo l venen t .

v l thou t l nvo l venen t

the re 1s no

in te res t ,

l ose

you r

aud ience rs

i n te res t

and

you rve

los t

you r

and ience .

obv ious l y

you

can i t have tens ion

a l l t he t i ne ,

you

nus t

a11ov

you r

aL ld l ence

b rea th i ng space .

You mus t

r l se tens lon

ca re fu l l y .

1 f

you

ove rdo i t ,

you

can l ose

you r

aud ience

as eas i l y

as i f you don ' t do i t enough . The ba lance i s

the th i ng .

The

d rana t i c

monen ts

a re nuch

more e f fec t i ve

i f

p receded

and

fo l l oved

(sanp le , pg .

5 )

The

w IDE sHOT/PRoFILE

c rea tes the leas t

tens ion

' r i t h

the

v ieve r . Th i s

i s

vhe re body l anguage

and

ac t i ons

a re the

bes t

too l s

you

have

to convey

the eno t i ons

and /o r

a t t i t udPs

o f the

p laye rs .

Fac ia l

exp ress ion

i s

l eas t i t npo r tan t

because

you

can ' t

see

i t t ha t

ve l l .

The MEDIUM

SHOT/3 /4

c rea tes

no re tens ion

and

invo l venen t '

Fac la l exp ress lons

and d la l ogue have tno re i npac t . Hoveve r , unde

no r tna l

c I cums tances /

you

shou ld

keep the

ac t i on node ra te

fo r

these sho ts .

The EXTREME

LOSE

UPlSTRAIGHT

ON c ea tes

the mdx imun

tens ion

and

lnvo l vemen t

t i t h

the aud lence .

Fac ia l

exp ress lons

have

nax imum

inpac t .

Th i s

i s the SUBJECTM

CAMERA.

tbe

aud ience

Iden t i f i es

v i th the

pe rson

in

the s to ry be ing

Iooked

a t . Because

you

a re

push ing

the

d lana

to the max inun

v i th these

sho ts

they

shou ld

be used spa r Ing lY .

(

samp le

pg .

?

)

Take ca re

vhen

t r y i ng to se t

up a

Pov v i th an

EcU .

As I ' ve

men t i oned ,

vhen the

cha rac te r

i s

l ook ing

s t ra i gb i :

i n to the

camera ,

the aud ience

beco roes

he

pe rson

be ing

Iooked

a t To se t

up a

PoV hdve the

cha rac te r

l ook

s l i gh t l y

o f f sc reen ,

then

ve

don r t fee l

tha t the

cha rac te l

i s l ook ing

aL

us ,

bu t tha t be ' s

l ook

ing a t so l ne th i ng

o r

sonebody

e l se '


14/84

(

sanp le

pg

. 5

)

shovs b lza r re na tu re .

Ex t reme sho ts

vou ld fo r the mos t Da r t be

I n

gene ra f ,

use the WIDE SHoT fo r b road ac t l on and s t rong

body l anguage reac t i ons .

ex i t s and

en t rances ,

I t r s

a

good

dev i ce to se t up a fee l i ng o f i so l a t i on fo r a

cha rac te r

by see .Lng h Im d l l

a l one

in the b i g spdce .

No te the

conpos l t j . on o I Lhe s i ng ie chd rdc te r

i n

Fach

case ,

i t , s l npo r tan t

to l eave

na i u

i n the d i rec t i on tha t

the cha rac te r

i s fac l ng , 1 t

g l ves

the l np ress ion o f the o the r chd rac te r 1n the

Sequence .

I n

3 , /4 MEDIUH

SHOTS

nake

good

use o f the space a round the

chd ac te r .

Th l s t s a

good

s l ze fo r

reac t l ons

(espec la l l y

s t ong

ones

)

to so r i e th l ng happen lng o f f sc reen .

espec la l l y

vhen

lead Ing

up Lo Lhe

chd rdcLe r reach ing o f f

sc reen . I t r s a l so a

good

s i ze

to use fo r

no rna l en t rances o

ex i t s

( l ess

an ina t l on ) .

Aga ln , no te the

i ra l r ' i ,

When

na tch lng d l a l ogue sho ts , th l s

r ra i r r

i s essen t j a l t o

g . i ve

I he

imp ess lon o I Lhe o thp r chd rdc te

and to hp lp thF f l ov o f the eye

f rom shoL Lo sbo t .

(exanp le

md tch ing d i a l ogue scenes

)

BROADACTION

The na tu re o f the

ac t i on

and the deg ree o f i nvo fvenen t

you

van t the aud lence

to expe r l ence

a l so de te rn l nes hov

you

s tdge

ac t l on scenes . Whe eas ,

gene ra l l y

you

vou ld

go

fo r 9 IDE and

MEDIUM ONGSHOTS o r b road ac t i on ,

some t imes

you

migh t

uan t

to

- r ^ L : n l o ' h F

r i d h r . i

r h F d r h ^ F

o

v n d L e v e r

t he ac t I on l s .

(ex . l np les

f ron NAt - l s ICA l qh t sequeJ l ce )

(

examp le

pg .B )

EXTREMES

ND

STYLE

Obv ious l y . t he s ty l e o f the shov you r l e vo rk i ng on

has a

g rea t

dea l to do

v i th

the deg ree o f use o f

the more ex t rene t ypes

o f sho t and ex t reme comb ina t i ons . A shov

l i ke BEETLEJUICE as an

en t i r e l v d i f f e r€ |nL s tv l e

than a shov l i ke BABAR.

You

vou ld

use

ex t renes much no re ex tens i ve l y i n

BEETLEJUICE because o f the

kep t to a n i n imum in a BABARshov and

used on l y unde r the rnos t

d rana t i c c i r cums tances , I i ke a d redm

sequence o r a

ve ry

i nLense

s tua t l on ,

THE SEQUENCE

T h F

- p n I p n . c

i s a

- o n . i n u o u s

e v e n t v i t h i n

a s t o r v

I h ^ l

l i t p s

p lace 1n the sane loca t l on (a l though the dc t i on can nove f rom one

loca t i on

to ano the r

)

and

lnvo l ves the same cha rac te rs

(d l thouqh

c h d r a c t p a s c d n c o m e a n d

g o ) .

G F n - r a r 1 y , d s e q u e n c e h d s a d e f i n i t e

s L r u c t u r e .

I

t s ta r t s

v i th

an ESTABL ISHINGSHOT ha t te ] l s us vhe re

ve a re and vha t

the

mood o r a tmosphe re i s

l i ke , The re cou ld

be a nunbe r o f

es tab l i sh i ng scenes i f a l o t o f i n fo rna t i on

i s necessa y .

Fo r

i ns tance i i

ve

r . /an t

to es tab l j sh a ve ry

busy fac to ry l ocd t i on ,


15/84

t he l lm l t s o f

se r l es an lma t l on tn l gh t

number

o f sho ts .

. . 1 . The ex te r l o r o f

LONG

SHOT. Due to ou l lm l ta t l ons

you

abso lu te

n ln lmum

(

I f any ) l n

such

a

lns l de to a

number o f MEDIU I , I oNG

es tab l l sh the

bus lness .

make

i t

;ecessa ry

to

use a

the fac to y

l n an

EXTREHE

vou ld keep an lna t l on

to an

long sho t .

2 .

Then cu t

sHoTs

v l th an lma t l on

t o

once \ re ' ve es tab l i shed

the

loca t i on

and the a tnosphe re ,

ve

\ ran t to b r l ng ou r aud lence l n c l ose r to l n t roduce

the

cha ac te s

tha t a e ac t tng In

the s to ry . You vou ld no rma l l y

do th l s

v l th

MEDIUMLONGANd I \ ' IDE SHOTS.

Nov tha t ve ' ve

in t roduced ou r cha lac te rs

you

van t the

aud ience to

ge t

t o

knov r them be t te r and to becone i nvo l ved

v i th

vha t

the l r

do lng o r say ing by us l ng MEDIUM

o CLOSEUP

SHOTS.

I f

the ac t i on o d i a l ogue becones

more l n tense

you

' rou1d

tend to s tay v i th CLOSE

UP SHOTS

ven

nov lng in to EXTREME

CLOSE

UP I f va ran ted .

As the

sequence

v lna l s

dovn the

tendency vou ld

be to

g radua l l y

remove the aud lence

f ron th l s c l oseness

v i th

success i ve l y v i de r sho ts , c tos i ng v i th a LoNG sHoT as the p laye rs

ex i t ,

obv ious l y th i s i s

on l y a

gene ra l

gu ide .

L i ke

a l l L l 1es ,

they ' re made to be

b roken , bu t nake su e

you

unde rs tand

vhy

you r re

b eak i ng

them.

For

exanp le , many sequences

have been

s ta r ted

\ . r i t h an

EXTREME LosE UP fo r

d r ama t i c i rT lDac t . Jus t

remenbe r

tha t i f

You

s ta r t

, r i t h

you r

mos t d rama t i c sho t

you 'd

be t te r

have sone th i ng

p re t t y good

to fo l Iov

tha t up v i th . . . r naybe i t ' s

ex t reme ly

fas t

paced

ac t i on , o r

some th ing to ta l l y unexpec ted .

Don r t

chea t

you r

aud ience , don ' t se t

them up fo r sone th i ng

b ig and then

not

de l i ve r . A l so r don r t con fuse

you r aud ience . Un less you es tab l i sh

fa i r l y

qu i ck l y ,

a f te r

you r

s ta r t l i ng open ing ,

vhe re

you

a re and

vha t r s happen ing ,

you ' re go ing

t o

l ose the in .

EsLdb l

j sh . l ng

sho ts

a ren ' t a l vdys necessa y

j f

ve rvP

d l ready

been to the same l oca t i on a

nunbe r o f t imes i n the

s to y .

Jus t

make su re the l oca t i on

i s c Iea r ,

A NOTE ABOUTESTABTISHING

SHOlS

Rega rd less o f hov

you

, ran t

to hand le

a sequence ,

i t r s

a IL ,ays

good

to have an es tab l i sh i ng

sho t i n the boa rd .

You

can a l l ays

make a no te to the ed i to

to t l y the sequence

v i thou t i t ,

and

i t r s ve ry easy to take ou t . Bu t

the

ed i to rs

can ' t

cu t

i n an

es tab l i sh i ng sho t 1 f they need one and haven ' t 9o t one because

you

Ie f t 1 t ou t o f the boa rd .

RHYTHM ND PACING


16/84


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6

comPosrNo

Hors:

SPATIAT

GONNECTIONS

ShotSize

As we

all know,

the universai

units

of composition

are he

long

shot, he

medium shot,

and the

close-up.

Theseshots

are a developmentof the

continuity

system

nsofar

as they

are overlapping

portions of a

single

spaceand

only make

sense

n relation to

one

another. That is,

they are

used ogether

o create

consisrenl

patial/tempordl

rder.

ThouEh

hey

can be used o describe

paces

s arge

as the

solar systemor

as small as

the head

of a pin, we

always

know

approximately

how large an

area s

being framed when these ermsare used. That,sbecause he shots are

scaled

o the subject

nd related

o

one anotherproportionately.

A

long shot of the

World

Trade

Center ramesall

of the twin

towers

and a generous

ieceof

Manhattan;

a medium

shot of the

building

would

lop

ofl someof the

ower loors.

Moving

n for

a close-up,

single

win-

dow

might

fill the fnme.

There

are no absolute

mles

in the use of these

terms

and even he

terms hemselves

ary.

In

Figure

6.1on page'122

he

basic

raming

heights

are shown

for the human

figure.

The

change

f size rom

shot o

shotvaries

ut is

determined

y the

limits

of identification.

As long

as we recognize

hat

each

hot

s an

over-

lapping portion of the wide shot, the change n scale s permissible.

Actually,

even his

definition

must take

nto

account

hechanbe

n

editing

styles

over

severaldecades.

he

move ftom

wide

shot

to close-up

was

considered

oo radical

a

jump

for audiences

uring

the first

five

decades

of

motionpictures

unless

medium

shot was

usid in between.

ol ly.

wood editorswere

forbidden

o

juxtapose

wide

shot

with

a close-up

est

they

confuse he

audience

as to where

the

close,up

was

taking

place.

Today,

afterseveral ecades

f tamiliariry

with

Hollywood

onventions.

audiences asilyaccept

extreme

changes

n scale. If anything.

t

is Iikely

that

the conservativeediting

rules

of the past

iagged

behind

audience

understanding.

Visual recognitionbetweenshots,however, s only half the strategy

of the continuity

style.Most

often

he

relationship

between

hots s

one

of

tmplication

r

inference.

For

erample,

wp

cee

a

wide

shot of a

man

approaching door.Thrs

s followed

by a cui

to

an

eYtreme

Jose

p

of

the

man's

hand tuming

the

doork-nob.

Even

if

the

doorknob

was

too

small to

attract our attention

n the wide shot,

we

expecthat

it is

con-

nected

o the previous

shot

since t

makes

ogical

sense,

ven

though

we

could

be ooki ng t another

oorway n a

differenl

lace

nd ime.

Narra-

tive ogic

and the visual

connection

etween

hots

ooperate

o

create

l

)

ConposingShots: potiolConneclions l2l


24/84

Froming

eights

Extreme

lose-up

Medium

lose-up

Full

Close-up

WideClose-up

Close

hot

Medium

lose

hot

Medium

Shot

Medium

ull

hor

Figure

.1:

Bosic

rorin,

ulrho

or

+,Jion

fiJ

122

Shot

By

Shot


25/84

senseof continuous

space.

This pair

of ideas,

causeand effect and

spatial

recognition, provide

the

organizational

basis

of the

continuity style.

Long

shots.

medium shots.

nd close-ups

an describe ;y;ubject

or

location

but are

most often used to

describe the

human fisure. The terms

take on

special

meaning in this connection.

Here

the ihange

in scale

between

shots s not related

by logic

or

visual

tecognition alone. lnstead,

framing is

determined by

conventions of post-Renaissance

rt or

what

are

generally

considercd pleasing

and balancedcompositions.

TheClose-up

Televisionhas

greatly

ncreasedhe

use of the ciose-up. To compensate

for the small

size

of

the

screen,he

close-ups used o b ng us nto

closer

contactwith

the action. For

dialogue

sequenceshe

shoulder-and-head

shot has

become he predominant

raming.

CosFmindedproducers ike

the tighter

shots because hey

are

easier o light

and can

be

joined

to

almost any

other shot, reducing

he

amount of coverageneeded. The

preference

or the close-up

hasbeen

carriedover to feature ilms

as

more

and

more

ilm directorsgraduate

rom

television o the big

screen.

ln ti lm Iheeyeshave t. Jean,Luc odardoncesdiJ that he mosl

naturai cut is the cut

on the look.

The

powerful

suggestiveness

f

this

geshrrehelps explain

ilrn's love

affair

with winks,

qlances,

tares,

ears,

sgujnts,

lares

nd he

whole

ange

f language

hai theeyes ommand.

The eyes are perhaps the

most

expressive

eature

of the human face.

communicating

ilently what

the

mouth

must

do largely with words and

sounds.

A look

can ell us that an

obiect

out of

frame s

of

interest, nd lt

can

tell us in which

direction he

object

s located.

In the

same

way that

the focal engrhof the

ensand the

angle

of the

camera an

pla(c the

viewer in a definite

relationshipwith

the

subjects

n the screen,

he

eye-

line of a

subjectclearly determines patial reiations n the scenespace.

Viewers

are particularly

sensitive o

incongruities n the

sight

lines be-

tween

subjectswho are

ooking at

eachother and in most situations

can

easily detect when

the eye match

is slightiy off. The use of lens-axis

teleprompters

ascome

about argelybecause udiences reaware

when

a performer

s looking

at a cuecard that s only a few inchesoff

center.

The ciose-up

an bring us into a more intimate relationshipwith

the

subjects

n the

screen han we

would

normally

havewith

anyone

but

our

closest

riends

or

family.

Sometimes

his capacity or

inspection

an be

overdone,and the

close-upbecomes

violation

of

privacy

by forcing

a

degree f intimacy

hat should

only be shared

y consent.

he

camera,

however,does not requirc consent,particularly f it is equippedwith a

telephoto

ens.

Televisionnews cameramen

requently

pry

into

the lives

of families

uring moments f

grief,

using

extreme

lose-ups.

iewers

may find themselves

ncomfortabie atching

scenes

hat

they would

normallyhave

he act o tum away aom

n their

daily

ives.

ln

every

culture here

are

customs

f privacy,

hysical

ontact

nd

accepted ehavjor

ased n ihe distances

ermitted

etween

eople

n

var ruu \ .n lu . r t lonsf i lmmal ,e r

rn u .e

h(

. rmera

u cro rd

hn . "

6 . ; .11

distanccs

n sucha

way

thatwe react

o them

as

f thcy were

happening

Composing56ois:Spofial Connections 123


26/84

within

our own

personal

pace.

Not onlv can

the close-up eveal

he

intimate,

t can

make

us feel

as f

we are

ntrudinS

on moments

of

p vacy

or

sharing

a

moment

of

vulnerabilitv-as if the person

on

the

screenhas

opened

himself

up

to us.

We can

be

made

to feel

detachment

or an

emotional

nvolvement

with evenis and

subiects

on the screen

argely

through

the

manipulation

of

sPace

with

the ens

of the camera.

Figure6.2

eatures

series

f eight

close-up

ramings

n three

aspect

ratios, Academy aperture,which is the sameas 16mm and television

(1.33:l);

' ide

screen

1.85:1);

nd the

anamorphic

inemascope

rocess

Q.35:1).

The images

are shown

in pairs

as

they might

appear together

n a

sequence

ecause

he balance r imbalance

f any frame

s dependent

on

the shots

hat come

beforeand after t.

In

the irst two

frames

he subjects

are positioned

dead

center. If you

move

your

eyes

over these

rames,

"reading"

them as

hough they were

edited,

you

will

see hat there

s no

rhythm in

the shot change ince he

eyes

emain

ocused

on the center

of

the scrcen.

Compare

his with

frames

3 and

4.

Here

the

off-center

compositions

n altemate

close-ups

reates

left/right

eye motion

that is

dynamic. This effect becomesmore pronounced

as the width

of the

screen

ncreases.Here we have

a

good

example

of what

is meant bv

sequential

rt,since ompositions

le

nor

udgea

ndividually

ut by horn,

they

combine n a sequence.

Conventions n

westem

a favor

poftraits

that

position

the human

face lighty

off-centero

avord

disturbing

ymmetricJl

ompositions.

he

customary olution s to leave

\trd

space

n the

side

of ihe

screenhe

subject s looking at and

more

space

t the

bottom

of the frame

han

at the

Figure .2:

Close-upsn three

ospect

otios.

2

,.i

-

li.4Dn

4t

\ l

: ' l

\

,t{,r

\a

#,,z'*t'u

/fl'(t

Ga

I,k\A

htr'AD

i'ill

GA

it\-?

t

124

Shot

By

Shal


27/84

5

6

7

8

top. In film, the use of

off-center

compositions

becomes

more

common

as

the

screen

widens.

But don't let

this

stand n the way of

experimentation.

There is no reason or filmmakers to accept hese imitations

if

they

do not

suit their

sense f

design-

The

fol lowing

examples

l lustrate

ommon

and

uncommon

raming

proportions.

Extremeusc of screen

width

is

possible s shown

in

Fjgure

6.3, l lus

I

" / -

.r'Af

Et

\,rt

\a

.,,t\

fi

i

. |ir.

\

\N,

_ t

GA

\\

f l l r i

1

- . 4

' .f

-

\ia

E

\

,t'{r

\4

/ , ,

tr,#

l,t'

Composing

Shots:

Spoliol Conneclions

125


28/84

J;;;:;;;t"g

l;;"'.iutu

i.' ,,,y

.,p..t ratio

horlgh

h"

"ffJ;:.:;;.

more

pronouncedhe

wider the screen.

This

ype

of

composition

as

become

uitecommon n television ommercrals

ecently,

nfluenced

v

print

graphics n advert,sing.

This has

had

d

subtle

nfluence

n the

movies,

which

tend o absorb

echniques

rom

the

other

arts.

Theeyes,

mouth and

ears re

requently

6tven

extreme

lose,ups

f

theirown,

usually

o advance

ome

specjf ic

art

of

the

narrative.'For

example,

a shot

of a woman walking

home

alone

at night

on

u lon"iv

street

might be

followed

by an

extreme

close-up

of

h .

"u.,

u.

fuirit

footstepsreheard.

A similar etup

mjght

utihze

a

close_trp

f

her

eyes

indicating er fear.These re amjliardevices nd t"r" u."

-unu

_1..

ways hat you

can

util ize

macroclose_ups

f you

begin

o

""p"iirn"n,.hree

versions

f e\treme

and macro

close-ups

re

shoJvn

n

Figir*;.t;;

page128.

n all

cases,

he viewpoint

was

rom

the

front

or

sid"if

tf,"

i_"

Figure .3

z

J

126

Shot

By

Shol


29/84

4

5

6

favoring he features.This s

ust

onemore convention hat

neednot

limit

your

individual style. Unconventionai

iewpoints, raming and

shotsize

can be used o explore

portraiture hrough

exture,

ight and

the infinite

vaieties of form. This

doesnot mean hat you

have

o

Bive

up

tnditional

methods. They are

by no meansexhausted

nd can

be ascommunicative,

startling and

moving as

more experimental

echniques.

TheMedium

Shot

Belore elevisron eganemphasizrng he useof the close

uP

and

exlreme

close-up,hc medium shot

was

he

workhorse

or dialogue

cenes

hrough-

out the sound

period.

Combining

valuablequali t ies

of

the

ful l shot and

the close-up, it is still

wideli

employed in television

and

feature

films.

Like

the

ful l shot,

he medium

shot

captures n actor's

gestures

nd body

language,but is sti l l

t ight

enough

to include subtle

variations

n facial

exPressron.

The

medium shot

is

also

he gcnerai ange

n

which

gtouP

shotsare

.1..

, =

Composnq 9hots.

Spoliol Connections

127


30/84

Figure .4

.:;it*;:;#*T--;'ffi

}i*d:#;:il'

fri*lrri*li#[ff*,llix5=,

The

Full

Shor

***::'*f,,t[{*:iffi

*r*$.r#i

128

Shot

By

Shot


31/84

or

medium

shot

can be substituted.

One of the reasons

he

full

shot is

undemsed

s

that

it requires

dialogue

sceneso

be

played n long

takes.

This

s because

he

ull ihot

usually rames

all the speaking haraciersn

a

scene,

making

a cutting

pattem of medium and

close-up hofs unneces-

sary.

If

the

ong

shot

s used

with

these lvo tighter ramings, the

editing

Pattem

invariably

moves

n close

and

does

not retum to the

full shoi

While

the

medium and long

shotscan

encompasshe action n

a scene

without resorting o othershots o fulfill the narrative,a close.upgener-

ally

must be

accompanied

y

other closeups, medium or

full shots

to

fulfill

the

narrative

eouirements f a scene.

One

of

the full shot's

most

afhactive qualities s that

it allows

the

acto

to

use body language. Thjs

type

of

physical

expression as

all but

disappeared

rom the movies

since he silent period.

Again, television

and

tighFfisted

producersare o

blame

since

here s

nothing

as nexpen,

sive to

shoot

or to light as the

close-up.

This is most

clear n the way

dance

s photographed

n music

videos,which

rareiy

show the

full figure

in

extended

hots.

Compositionally,

he long

shot of a single figure

offers

many

of the

sameopportunities or asyrnmetdcalraming as theclose-up. The verti-

cal

line

of the

standing figure

easily its into desitns

that

stressgraphi(

pattems

particularly

n

the wider

formats.

Figure

6.5

on pate 130

eatures

wo full

shots llustratins

frame bal-

ance.

Slightly

off.center

raming

s

so common oday

thafa

centered

subject

s nearly

as powerful

asa dmstically

decentered

omposition.

lhe

Line

of Action

The general

approach

n

this book

is

to encourage

he development

of

solutions

hat

areadapted

o the

ndividualneeds f the ilmmaker.Manvof the

solutions

hat will

be

shown

are

part

of recognizable

tmtegies, rit

the filrrunaker's

peEonal

vision

can

at

any time

overrule

svstJms.

ac_

cepted

practice,

raditional

wisdom

or convention.

Having

sjid thut, -"

can ook

at the

most

basicmie

of camera

placement

hat

the continuitv

system

bcerves:

he

ine

of action.

The purpose

of the

ine of

action

s quite

simpler

It organizes amera

angles o preserve

consisteni

creen

direction

and

soace.lt,salso useful

for organizing

he

shooting

plan.

Because

hesethasio

be relit every time

the amera

s mowed

o

a new

anglc,

t

makes

ense

o gang

hots

shanng

a

similar angle

of

view

together,

o that

they

can

be

shotat one

ime. Thji

avoids aving o lightanycamera ositionmorc hanonce.

We

can think

of the

line

of ac8on

as an

imaginarypartition running

through

he space

n front

of the

camera.

t wis

orieinally

evised o

moke

sure hat f

multiple

angles

f

a s,enewere

hotlthey

couldbc

cLrt

together

wilhout

a confusing

eversal

of left

and right screen

pace.

This

way,

subjects

moving

through

he rame

n one shoi continue

n

the

same

direchon

n

a subsequent

hot.

The ine

of action s also

called

he

.,1g0_

degree

ule"

or the "axis

of aciion,"

llustratedn Figure

.6

on page

131.

To

maintain

onstant

creen

irection

f the wo

people

eated

ithe

taUle

lhc

on l inu i tv

ys lem

ropo . . \

hd t n rm. rg ind ryinn t a . r run

cdrawn

Comsnsing

Shols:Spoliol Connections

129


32/84

SIDRJBl5,lDIr'G

- -

t t

c('

m@oslrlofl

/

PExsPECTrl,'E

/

ElCciiil.ic

- -

BLO{ING PROBL+IS...I

jusi

wani io iouch

oi

one ev.erple

01

bad blccr:ing

--hal

can

ceuse

probl

si1s

all

aloig

"he

line irom

la)'oul

to final

erurat ior.

. - ' .he

sErarghL-on

bias

'

Nd-r

51

tlcQtN

r

gUT

DArr6@Jt

k40

otAto6u4

A

P€DF'

e<

A{e

HA€O

.To

M {e

L'W

looD

there aie tiies 'he.] a s'i:liaighi on shot can be

uged eiiectively

to orphasise

slDtion,

but those

tlmes

should

be ke.ot to

a mi.ninnr.

Usirq

s-.raight

on sho'6

ior nclrnaf

dialog]le

only

lea&

to

arbigNous

eye iirection

and

can

lead to

a

floppeC

5ias. Use

good,

solid

bias shots

ior

t}le

h > i ^ r i h r ^ ; ' , ^ , , r h l M L i M

(

'Yne?

gtAS

AA:|c+1v

BtA4.

J\Et

to illustlate

\"hat

probleJns cen a-rise frcm

a

boerd thai

used st-raj,ght

on sho'.s

.

. . there

was

ar iDciient

on D.roks

htlere even

tlrough f had cor-

resteC

the bias of

the scene

and

the anD.)ator

had originally

a,'ri,'rlated t

colrectly,

uhen the

a;ri:rat-ion checjier

looked at

the

storyboald

she

seJlt

the scene back

to the

anir'nator

to have

rt

rerised to nBtch tle storyboard paneMAl-RRGH


33/84

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41/84

the

line

of Acfion

The general

approach

n

this

book

ls to

encouEge

he

development

f

soluhions

hat

are

adapted

o

the

ndividuaf

,""ar.i

tt

"

flf_-"ki;.

'il;

or

rne

solunons

hat

w

i be

showr

are part

oI recognizable

tratesies.

ut

the fiirnmake:,spersonalvision .un it uny ti^"'""";;;;;;3*r;

;;-

cepted

practice,

raditional

wisdom

or conveniion,

Havine

s;id that, we

can

ook.at

he

most

basic

ule

of

camera

placement

h"?i;;;;;;

system

observes:

he

he

of action.

The

purpose

of

the

ine

of

action

s quite

sirnple:

It

oreanizes

amera

angles

o preserve

on.listent

creen

air .tion

uria

,pu.".:f,

"i_;;;;

or orgardzint

he

shooting

plan.

Because

heset

has'tobe

e[t

everv ime

rnecamera

s moved

o

a

new

angle,

t

makes

ense

o

gang

shots liarine

a

srmrrar ngle

t.view

ogether,

o hat

hey

canbe

shoiat-one

ime.

Thi

,"otl:

n"uTg.,o,

t.ht

any

camera

osihon

more

han

nce.

.

vre

can

runk

ot

the

line

of actionasan imaginarypartitionrunninpthrough

he

space

n

fronr

of rhe

camera.

t

*1.

ojgluffy

j"rtr"J-i8

Tif:

**.t}. l",

iJ

mulHple

ngle>

f

a scene

ere

hot, hey

coutd

be

cut

:o-8-:tl:i*l:not,

a

contusing

eversal

of

left and

right screin

space.

his

way,

suDjects

o\ring

hrough

he

frame

n

oneshoicontinue

n

the

same

orrecnon

n.a

subsequent

hot.

The

ine

of action s

also alled

he

,lgo_

:e8rT

rule

or the

"axis

of

action,,,

i lusrrated

n

Figure .5

on

pase

131.

r.o

maurtaLn

onstant

creen

irechon

f the wopeople

eatef

i

th-e

able

the

continuity

system

proposes

har

an imaginui firi"

of

u.Etn

b"

J.u*;

Compsing Shots: potiolConnections129


42/84

Figure

.5: Frome

bolonce.

between

hem.

The direction

of the

line

can be

an).where he

filmmaker

chooses,

ut

it is usually

the line

of sight

between

subiects

eatured

n a

scene.Once he ine s determined, worlcing pace f 1g0degreesthe

gray semicircle)s established_

or

any

scene r

sequence,

nly

camera

positionswithin

the

estabiished

emicircle

re

permitted

The

result is

that hescreen irection

f

any shots

btained

rom

oneside

of the

ine

will be consistentwith

each

other.

This

s illustrated

n Figure

6.7,which

shows he

shotsobtainedwith

cameras

, B

and

C of Fieuie

6.6. Camera

positions hat

are outside

he gray

workjng

.pu."

ur" .rid

tobe acrcss

he

liheor ooer he

ine. Figure

5.8

shows

what

happens

f we

edit

shots rom

bothsides

f the ine ogether,

n this

case,

ameias

and

F. The

esult

s

that he

man s

looking

af the back

of the

woman,s

head.

The

Triongle

System

When

the

ine

of action

s in use,

another

convention,

he triangle

system

ot

cameraplacement,

s

a shorthand

way

of describing

a*"rJ

poiitio.r,

on

one

side

of the line.

The

system

proposes

hat ;ll

the

ba;ic shots

possible

or any

subject

can be

taken

from

three points

within

the

lg0_

degree

working

space.

Connecting

he

hree

points,we

have

a triangle

of

130

ShotBv

Shot


43/84

Comero

r')

LJ-

r-1

JFb

Figure

.6

A

variable

shapeand

sizedepending

n the placement

f

the cameras.

Any

shot

can be

oined

to any

other

shot

n the

trianglesystem

of setups.

The

system ncludes

all the

basic

shot

sizes

and cameraangles

used

or

dia

logue

scenesn

thecontjnurty

ryle. he

ridngle ystem

s

employed

or

all type,

ol

situations,

ncir_rdjng

rrglesubjects nd actron cenes.

t

is

used

extensively

or live

televisionprograms

such as

quiz

shows,

sports

programs

nd

sit coms.

Even hough

hree ameras repictured

n

the

/ 11/

rJt

4

\'" ;

figrLre

6.7

./

,/,./

'rV

<

' 1

I

(,

1

Figure .8

Composing hots:

poliol

Conneclions

3l


44/84

io l lowint

e\amPles,

a

slnSie

ameld

\ ar l

oe

nlu\ rLr tu ed( n

Point

dlol 18 l lc

t Jnet"

ina

th;

dilrerent

etuPs

btarnedndjvidually.

This s

often he

.rse

n

feat.rre

i lms

However,

he friangle

System

ends tself

o the

mLtltiple

amera

etuP

as

ong

as

extenslve

tagrng

or camera

movement

is nol

requjred

I his

would_create

he

Probiem

i

onecamera

moving

n

front

of another.

There

re

lve basic

amera

etups

hat

can

be obrained

within

the riangle:

Angular singles

medium

shots

or close-ups),

master

two-shots,

ver-the-shoulder

hots, point-of-view

singles

medium

shots

or close-ups)

nd

profile shots.

In Figure

6.9,

camera

positions

A

and C are

angular

shots

of the

two

subiectsseatedat the table. PositionB is a two-shot. The framings

accompanying

ach

cameraposition,

of course,

ould

be varied,

and

the

shot

size or

cameras

and

C canbe any

size rom

an extreme

iose-up

o

a

tull shot.

Figure

5.10

s the second

riangle

setup or

over-the-shoulder

hots.

Cameras

and C

aremoved

nto the

over-the-shoulderosition.

Camera

="

Figure

.9

c

-t

132

Shor

y

Shol


45/84

51s

-

Comero

A

B always

obtains he wo-shotas n Figure

6.9and

so

s not

ncluded

n the

subsequent

xamples. Variations

are

only

obtained

with

the

outside or

wing

camen positions.

OVER-THE-SHOUIDER

HOTS

- )

Figurc

.10

In the setup pictured in

Figure

6.11,camens A

and C have been

moved

just

inside

the line of action

or, more

appropriately, he

line of

sight of the subiects.CamerapositionsA and C are now used to obtain

ciose-ups rom

eachsubiect'spoint

of view.

In this case, he

subiectnot

POINT

FVIEWCLOSE-UPS

L- --

-J,@

Comero

C

(J

Figure

.1

Composing hots: potiolConneclions

133


46/84

being

photographed

would

be moved

out

of the way

to place

he

camera

in

position.

This s

indicatedby

the

broken

ine.

Figure

6.12 hows

he astpossible

etup

within

the riangle

method_

profile

shotsusing

cameras and

C.

Naturally,

he

exaciangle

f the

shot,

composition

and shot sizeare

nfinitely

variable

within

the

triansle

as

ongas

he ineof action s not violated

PROFIIE

HOTS

A

C

(&

44q,

Figure

.t2

EstoblishingNew line of ActionWirh

o

New

Sighr

ine

lL" ?l]f

l t-:

t l t :

.:mera

rspermrtted

o

cross

he

rne

of action

s when

a

new

rne

s

established.

newav

to do

this

s

shown

n

figr."e.[.

l. t;i i

e\ample,

he

old ine

s

establi:hed

etween

he

couple

"l"a

", i f ,"

i" l i".

1

se:or]g

mal

approaches

he

tabte

and

rh"

seutej

mun

J;;i;;;;

tion

o

him.

This

new

jne

of

sight

establishes

** f_"

"i"", i . .

". i '"

orresponding

8o-degree

orliing

spac"

for

the

camera.

ih;;l;

tnd;

134

Shot

By

Shot

' . )

a


47/84

POINTOFVIEWCTOSE-UPS

\\uj

Figure .13

catedby the

gray

semicircle.

heestablishment f

a new ine s usually

set

up

with

a shot

of a person

who tums his attention o a netvarea

or

Person

within the rame.

This

piuoi

slol

ioins

he two linesof action.

Once he

new line of

action has been set

up, the cameracan

move

across he old line

of action

an)'wherewithin the new

working sPace

s

longas thesight ine

refiains

uith fhe uo men. \ot

will notice hat

this

spacealso

nciudes

he woman. Even

hough t is

Permissible

nder

the

180-degreeule,

a camera

will not be placed n

quadant X to

PhotograPh

the woman. The next

time she s seen n a shot,

he camera

will be ocated

according o the old

line of action. This is called

a reestablishing

hot.

Conventionalwisdom advocates eusing ines of actionand the cone-

sponding

camera efupsso

that a consistent ense

f sPace

s

reinforced

through repetition. Once

he basicediting

Pattem

and

shot

geograPhy)

has beenestablished,

retum

to an old line of

action

does

not have o be

motivated by the

pivot shot since

he viewer

has a

general

sense

f the

spatial

elationships

etweenactors.

The

businessof changing

ines

is considerably

ess comPlicated n

practice.The shooting

plan is arranged

o

that

all the shots rom a

Siven

angle are consolidated

even

if

dialogue

s shot

out of order. Later,

the

shotsare edited nto

the

proPer

dramatic

sequence.

n screen,he

chanS-

ing line of action may

appear

o follow

a far

more

compiexscheme

han

wasactually he case.

Esroblishing

New

Line

When

o PloyerCrosses

he Line

A secondmethod

ofestablishing

a new line is to have

one of the

players

in

a

scene

ross

his own

line

of action.

This s

shown n Figure

6.14on

Page

136.

As

before.

he ine

ofaction

s belween he seated

ouplei he

working

space or

the camera

s on the nearside of

the

l ine

(A).

In StepOne, the

actor

getsup from

the

ableand moves o a new positionover he ine into

Composing holsSpoliolConnections li5


48/84

Step

One

Figure .14

spaceB. As soon

as he man

reestablishes

yecontact

with

the woman

n

StepTwo, the

new line

of action s

established.

he

new ine

overrules

he

old line, which

is no longer

in

effect.Again,

a working

space

of lg0

degrces s

created.The

only requirement

or this

strat;qy

is that the

actor's elocation

ust

beseen

learlyn

a shot

hatpermitJihe

iewer

o

reo

ent himself-

Another factor to considerwhen establishinq ny new line is which

side o use

or the

camera.

igure

.15 n page

-37lir_rstrates

n

altema-

tive

sehrp

o the

one n Figure

5.14.

This time

the working

space

or the

camera s

on the

opposite

ideof the

ine.

Either hoice

s

permissible

s

otlg

as.t.he.fieu

ryce grees

Dith

hepiaot

shot akn

ftom

the

prmious

ine

of actioi.

This s

shown

n Figure

5.16.

Part

Oneshows he

ine

of action

und

.o.."-

sponding

semicircular

working

space or

the camera.

The line

bisectine

the

semicircle

s the

npw

ine

of act ion hat will

be established

hen

hi

l

ShotBv

Shol


49/84

@

v"

It

Pivor

Shor

ALTERNATIVE

ORKING

PACE

Figure

.15

PortOne

Figure

6.16

man moves o the standingposition o face he

woman

Cameras

A

and B

represent the choices for the pivot

shot

used

to

record

the man as he

moves to the new position. Part Two of

the

diagram shows

the

180

degreeworking

space hat you

would use

f camera

positionB

were

uscd

lYou''

hoi.")

Composing

Shols:

Spoliol Connecfions 137


50/84

for the

pivot

shot.

Part

Three shows

the

l80-degree

workinq

sDace f

camera

osition

A were

used or the pivot

shot.

As a

rule,

the working

area chosen or

each

new

line

of achon keeDs

the camera n the

centerof the group when

shooting

dialogue

siruations

at

a table or in a confined

space.

Moving

hq€omero

Over he

ine

Not

only

can a player

cross

he line

and

establish

a new

one,

but the

camera an pan, dolly or makea cranemoveto a new spaceand a new

ljne

of

action.This is.

easily

accompiished

s

Iong

as thi

camera

_oue_

ment

is

unintemrpted.

In this

situation,

an

eyelilne

oesnot

have

to be

estabLished

nd rhe

camera

can

move

from

oie

side

of th"

L";

";.isht

etween

wo players

o

the

other

without

confusion.

fieur"

g.f

Z.ho';..

Iinu

of

Arti

ComeroMoves

Across

he

Line

Figure

.17

n:ffii:i#:1::ltesv

with

curved

amera

ath

black

otted

ine)

Cutowoys

nd

Bridge

Shots

Another

way

to

cross

he

line

to

ano

:T ':TTtil.; ';*,,*:fi'"jTJ1ff

,',^:,::,;"

;:,:lJ;':frfj

i:[?.","t,1i:T",.r"Ti:j,tJJ:ff"":"*

"'

',"*..

r.

"uv

i*

*"

wo

"nr

o.,o.,

h-"

;.

ilffi

;.;i;T:;:l#:,.ii:T?T,::i"T:::l

previous

examples

will

work

within

the

action

oJ he

scene.

I"

,hi;;:;.

{i{'lFr#"i:n:i;:

";Ti:H*f

:'},

;,

,l:;

i"#*i

eturn

o

the

main

action,

he

cameri

cai

U"

*.""i

."".

in-"

^".r.J'i

t38sho,Bysho,l;::Ti{#:*,}H*;.J:::::;'."1***i


51/84

L"e

6.

8:

Line f

qction

ollowsdirection

/hon.

lheoline

f Action

or

Moving

Subiectsnd

ln my

opinion,

he ine

of action

s

most

usefulwhen

used

o

organize

he

photographyof mulhple-player

dlalotue

sequences.

hough

screen irection

would

seem

o

be cr"ucial

o

undelstandint the

relationship

of fast

moving

subjects;-for

nstance,

ars

n

a chase

sequence-unquestioning

bservance

f the

l.ine

of

action

may actually

stand r the

way

of

more

nter-

estrng

arrangements

f shots. For

one

hins,

conti-

nuity

editint

is

not the

only

way

of

organiz"ing

ilm

images:

Other

methods,

uch as dnetic

or analytical

editing,

may

be n

conflictwith

stnct

contiruity

and

yet provide

better

solutions to

creative

probiems.

Fora_nother,oday'sviewersaresovisuallysophisti-

cated hat

they

are able

to

,,read,,

unconventional

editint

patterns

with

lelative

ease. Be

aware

that

more d]'namic

results

may

be obtained

in

some se.

quences

f

the

line

is crossed

and screen

direction

is

reversed.

Later we'll

be lookint

at

othe types

of

editrng

more

closely,

ut

for

now, as we

continue o

'

explore he ine of action,

ke€p

n

mind

that thereare altemative

ways

of

nro :n iz ino chnrc

ActionSeouences

In action sequenceshere

s

frequently

no line of sighf

to

establish he

line

of action. In this

case, he

Iine

of action

ollows

the dominant

hotion

of

the subject f the shot.

If one

car s pursuing

another, he ine

s the path

of

the cars,as showr

in Figure

6.18. f the two carsare alongside

each

othet,

a additional

ine of

action

can be establishedbetlveen

he cars.

I

call

this the

npliedsigif line

because

ven

when

he driversof

the cars

are

not

prominent

in the shot,

the

carsbecome

he symbolsof

the drivers

and

their line

of sitht. This

situation

s peculiar

o cars,boats,

lanes

or any

other conveyance

hat

hasa

driver. Both

inesare shown

n

Fisure

5.19.

Shotsphototraphed rom bothsrdes f the ine of motion(camera osi-

tions A,

C and

B, D)

will

result

n

a reve$al

of screen ir.ection

when

cut

togethe ,

as shown

n the

accompanying

toryboardpanels.

The

nplied

sight ine s

a special ase nd

only overrides

he ine

of motion

emporar-

ily.

Otherwise,

he ire

of motion

s the prevailing

ule.

Whiie this

may

seem ike the

t)?e of situation

hat

the l8o-degree

ule was

devised

o

prevent, t is actually

a

corrunon

dithg

pattem even

n dialotue

scenes

where

here s

a line

of

motion

ndan

mplied ieht

ine.

This s thecasen Tft

GodJatho

a ll wh"n

h" yo,,ng Vito

C6'rleone

ComposingShots:Spo iol Connections 139


52/84

Figure .19,Porf : Twopossible

ines

f oction.

.s

SHOT

ROM

AMERA

POS|T|ON

SHOT

ROM

CAMERA

POSITION

Figure .19, Porf2

rs drivrng

a small

truck

along

crowded

New

york

slreets.

Fanucci,

he

local

crune ord,

s seated

exi

o Vi lo,

and

they

have

a conversation

s he

car

moves

along

Two

tracl ing

shots

are

used,

one

on each

side

of the

car,

Famlng

a good

deal

oI the

car

and

the

moving

background.

Cut


53/84

I

t

i

together he shots

orm a pair of very wide

over-the-shoulder

hots. Each

time there

is a cut during the conversation, he background reverses

direction.

The abruptness f the cut could havebeensoftenedf

theshots

were ighter,so

that Vito and Fanucci illed the ftarne. As it hrrns

out, the

shot change

s not bothersome nd so standsasan example

of

the atitude

possiblewithin the 18O-degree

ule.

Crossing e Line n ActionSequences

The strategies

or

"properly"

crossing

he line in nondialogue

situations

areessentially

he

sameas

hose llustrated or

dialoguescenes,

eginninS

with Figure6.13,

age

135.

The

only

differences that

he

Principal

ineof

motion is substituted or the sight

line. To recap, here

are three

basic

ways to establish new line of action/motion:

1) A subiect

car,

horse,peEon, etc.)can cross he

ine establishing

new

one by

the directionof his new line of motion.

2) The camera an cross he line either ollowing a subjecto a new scene

space

r merely raveling or graphicvariety o a new

viewpoint.

3) A new subject an enter

he frame

and

become

he dominant ine

of

motion n contrast o the first. This s

analogous

o the situation n FiSure

6.13

when a new character ntered he sceneestablishinq

new line

ot

sight.

€rossing

he -ine

While

on the Line

The closer he camera s to the line of action. he more

difficult it

is to

detectwhen the camerahascrossed he ine. ln Figure6.20 camera

Posi-

tions A and B are

on

the line

of

action,

so

when they are edited

together

there is a reversal

of screen

direction-

This type

of sequence

would

probably havebeenavoided 60

years

ago;but today, audiences

ave

no

problem understanding he geography

of the scene

pace n this

editing

pattern.This

eversal

s somewhdtmore

startl ing han

( sometimes

he

case

when

shootingon

the line

since he subiect s in

profile.

When

the

subiect's ight ine is the sameas he ine

of action,

we get

front

and

back

views, which help the viewer differentiate

he shots.

When

actually i lming, t usualiy urnsout that t

is rarely

necessary

to go throughelaborate taSin8 nd ogistical nalysiso find a way of

establishing

new

ineof action.My basic elief s

that

f the

ilmmaker

hasa solid

understandrng

f crnematrceography,

as

a

Sood

overview

of the scene, askept thoroughnoteson what he s

going

o shoot

and has

already hot, hen he will probably ot

encounter

ny

major

difficulties

with

continuity.

Conclusion

The 18O-degreeule is onlv a rule i f

you accePt

t

without question.

My

Compsing Shofs:

potiolConnections 4l


54/84

Ig:f

6.20,,

orr

I

: The

ine

of

ocrion.

hcn

dicd

yry,

"h.gb*jrcd

wirh

concros

ond

rwerse

rcreen

direclim-

till*:iil'*$flt*ifr+iifi'J"-'

*l+:**',;';lt.luli,lmt$


55/84

B

Figure

6.20, Port

2: Ihe line of oaim. Any of

the cqrnerc

positiars hown

obovecon

be edited oge$er without dircientirg

the viewer.

tors were

not

reactingagainst he continuity

style, and

their visual

solu-

tions to

thematicconcemsare more

varied and

Particular

han the

often

mannered

tyle of

the eft.

Ten years

ago a

defense f the

ine of action

would havebeen

consid-

ered

eactionary, ismissed

out of

hand by

virtually every ilm

movement

outside of mainstream

eatures.

t is probably still

too

soon

for

a

fair

reevaluation

f the continuity

style.

But after our decades

fconcenhated

criticism on

the eft analyzing

Storyboard Notes 2

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Transcript of Storyboard Notes 2