help with a sequence

[janin jay]

i need to do one long shot following a man through an empty nightclub into a back bathroom. the man will stop to read a flyer/poster promoting my client's 'party planning service'. the camera will view the flyer over his shoulder. then the man will return to the previously empty club to find a party in progress. to convey the idea that the party 'just appeared', i'd like to give the illusion that the sequence is one uninterrupted shot (think 'swingers' steadicam through kitchen.) but i'm having trouble conceiving of a way to match a cut or otherwise give the illusion of one continuous shot.

 

i greatly appreciate any ideas.

 

janin :)

[Gordon Highland]

The poster itself sounds like the most logical place for the match cut. When you're over his shoulder, just zoom or push in on the poster until it fills the frame, and start your second shot there, fixing it with motion matching in post (or use that onion-skinning frame-overlay feature if your camera has it). The continuous shot is novel, but once you establish your "product shot" on the poster, you could always cut to a reverse of the guy's face reading it, and then follow him back out. The viewer won't think twice, continuity-wise. Otherwise, there's the tried-and-true shot where he walks right into camera, overtaking it with black, and then cut to the 180 coming out from his back. Speed ramps or time-remapping can also help mask cuts.

[Jaan Shenberger]

if you wanna do this with minimal post work, there are generally five ways to visually marry two shots together...

 

1. a cut or very quick dissolve on a full frame of black or white (like the back of a character's black coat), or a little more difficult-- a solid color (like two blue skies). in my opinion, the illusion works best with black.

 

2. a good old-fashioned whip pan. you can get away with a lot with these.

 

3. a cut or dissolve on a static image.

 

4. flashes/lightning (a good example is in the retooled starwars when the cam flies into the deathstar trench-- the CGI wider first half and the second half of the old miniature barely look the same, but the movement and flash make it pretty seamless).

 

5. have someone/something pass by in the immediate forground and overtake the screen for one frame. just make sure to match the camera movement and the speed of the two passersby.

 

generally, i think #1 and #5 work the most invisibly. and the seam will be best hidden if it occurs during distinctive movement, whether it be the camera or subject.

 

hope this helps,

jaan

[Lars.Erik]

Go and rent "Rope" by Hitchcock.

 

The films basic idea is that it's all taking place in an appartement. One take. There are several places where he cuts the film. See it and you'll get some good ideas. Cheap, smart and basically great filmmaking. :D