30° of Separation?. The “Rules” of Coverage What are the shot size and angle “rules”? Which, if any, are correct? Did they change and, if so, why?

30° of Separation?

The “Rules” of Coverage

What are the shot size and angle “rules”?

Which, if any, are correct?

Did they change and, if so, why?

What, if anything, should we follow?

The “General Rule”

When you change the shot, change the size and the angle.

Size vs. Angle

The Technique of Film Editing Karel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953

Preferred: Change size “considerably,” match angle

Permissible: Change size and angle “considerably” (90°)

Avoid: Considerable size change, small angle change (45°)

The Technique of Film Editing Karel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953

The Technique of Film EditingKarel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953

0 Degree Change

The Technique of Film EditingKarel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953

90 Degree Change

The Technique of Film EditingKarel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953

45 Degree Change

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

Permissible: Change size, match angle (“concertina”)

Preferred: Change angle by 30+° (“30° rule”)

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

30 Degree Change

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

45 Degree Change

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

50 Percent Change

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

30 Degree and 50 Percent Change

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

15 Degree and 50 Percent Change

Film Production TechniqueBruce Mamer, United States, 2006

Avoid: Change size, match angle (possible jump cut)

Preferred: Change angle by 30+°

What Happened?

Cut-Ability vs. Storytelling

Life to those ShadowsNoël Burch & Ben Brewster, 1990

“. . . in a first stage the child can only conceive of its environment in a ‘frontal’ way. . . ” (268).

Life to those ShadowsNoël Burch & Ben Brewster, 1990

Axial match is the first change of viewpoint “discovered”

90° cut (30°-90°) is one of the last

“Axial Match”

“Put the Kodak Between Them”

Insert student sample or download sample from . . .http://www.vimeo.com/13329902

Dynamic Directing Decision vs. “Invisible” Editing Choice

Film Directing FundamentalsNicholas T. Proferes, United States, 2005

“In The Birds (1963), Hitchcock ignores the rule to “punch up” the discovery of a body of a man with a series of three shots from the same angle . . . ” (8).

The Birds

Insert clip of the discovery of the eyeless body.

30° of Separation

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Insert clip with the axial cut of Gandalf

confronting Bilbo about the ring after Bilbo’s birthday party.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Master

MS Gandalf

CU Gandalf

MS Bilbo

CU Bilbo

ECU Hands

Rev. CU Bilbo

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Master to coverage:

Considerable size change, slight to considerable angle change

Matching shot to reverse-shot coverage: Size and angle/eye-line match

Multiple coverage (MS and CU): Size change, angle/eye-line match

ABCs of Coverage

Master and Coverage: Match Scene, Change Shot

A. Master to Coverage: Change size and angle

B. Matching Coverage: Match size and angle

C. Multiple Coverage: Change size, match angle

Evolution of Style & Technique

ABCs of Coverage(Detailed)

Master and Coverage:Match Scene, Change Shot The “ABCs of Coverage” are basic guidelines—not rules—

meant to replace the inadequate “30° Rule” (which, in its simplest form says camera angles should change by at least 30° between shots).  The ABCs are a starting point—not a visual template—that stems from established conventions of cinema grammar for continuity editing.  They should not be confused with the art of directing.

Most importantly, typically let the concept organically lead to the script, the script lead to the performance, the performance lead to the blocking, the blocking lead to the master, and the master lead to the coverage—rather than imposing set patterns of shooting.  The coverage should then organically lead to the editing, while the editing should lead to the sound and music.

Typically, a scene and its action should match from shot to shot, but each shot should be different enough to justify its necessity and maximize cutting options.

Master and Coverage:Match Scene, Change Shot Typically, choose an appropriate focal length lens for each

shot first, and then place the camera at the distance and angle necessary to get the desired image.

For illustration, the diagram above places the camera for the master equidistant between two subjects, however, more often the master favors one subject or the other.

When shooting with multiple cameras, shots more similar in size and angle than described below might cut together invisibly but typically when cutting “live” (e.g., at the same instant in time), thereby limiting cutting options.

With the increasing use of deliberate jump cuts, quick cutting, and multiple cameras adding additional shots, “visible” cuts have become more acceptable in the “invisible” continuity editing described below, particularly when striving for a visceral tone.

A. Master to Coverage: Change Size and Angle

Size: For direct cutting from the master to tighter coverage typically increase the size of the shots by, perhaps, 50+% (i.e., from 10’ away to 5’ or from a 50 mm lens to a 100 mm or, better still, a combination of distance and lens).

Typically, the bigger the size change, particularly when the angle does not change, the less the image will “jump” on a direct cut.

Although it requires some additional setup time, it is typically better to move the camera rather than solely increasing the focal length.

Exceptions to the 50+% increase can include when there is also an angle change.

A. Master to Coverage: Change Size and Angle

Angle: Bring the audience out of their seats and into the story by typically shooting coverage at an appropriate angle and height closer to, but not over, the dynamic screenline (the “180° Rule”).

The bigger the angle change, the less small continuity errors will stand out on a direct cut.

It is typically better to change the angle and the image size between shots.

Exceptions to changing the angle can include coverage of forward facing or centered subjects.

When shooting shot/reverse-shot coverage, typically match the camera lens, distance, movement (if any), and relative eyeline for each subject.

Shot/reverse shot coverage of multiple subjects (i.e., intercutting two-shots) should typically be from opposing ends of the screenline.

B. Matching Coverage:Match Size and Angle

C. Multiple Coverage:Change Size, Match Angle For multiple shot/reverse-shot coverage of the same

subject (i.e., a MS and a CU), typically keep the same angle but change the size by, perhaps, 50+%.

If the angle does change, typically try to minimize the difference and give the tighter shot the placement closest to the screenline.

Coverage with multiple cameras will make mismatched angles more likely (i.e., head-on and profile shots of the same subject, sometimes of similar size), often in addition to matched angles.

Typically, mismatched angles of the same subject should be clearly different.

Quotes

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

Theory of Film Practice, 1969

Cahiers du Cinéma, 1967

Lecture, 1966

IDHEC (La Fémis), 1951+?

Theory of Film PracticeNoël Burch, France, 1966-69

“. . . the so-called thirty-degree rule. . . . any new angle on the same camera subject must differ from the previous angle by at least thirty degrees” (37).

“Film-makers had noticed that any angle change of less than thirty degrees (and thus not counting moving the camera closer or farther away with no change of angle--what the British call a ‘concertina’) resulted in a ‘jump’. . .” (37-8).

The Technique of Film Editing

Karel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953/1968

“. . . if a cut to a closer shot is desired, then it must be to a considerably closer image . . .” (183).

If the difference between two shots is too small then “. . . the dramatic point the editor is trying to make is, apparently, not really worth making” (185).

The Technique of Film Editing

Karel Reisz, United Kingdom, 1953/1968

“If the editor wants, for some reason, to cut to a close shot which is taken from a different angle, then the angle change must be made considerably more marked. A position where the camera has been moved through 90 degrees will produce an image entirely different from the mid-shot and will therefore not create momentary confusion. The actor’s face will be clearly seen in profile instead of head-on, and the spectator will therefore not expect to see the background in the same position relative to the head” (186).

The 5 C’s of Cinematography

Joseph V. Mascelli, United States, 1965

“Change the camera angle, the lens, or preferably both every time the camera stops shooting during a series of continuous shots.”

No “30° rule.”

Broader guidelines with more details and exceptions based on different types of shot relationships.

Life to those ShadowsNoël Burch & Ben Brewster, 1990

“. . . 90-degree . . . comprising a whole range of angles from 30 degrees to 90 and more. . .” (225).

“. . . the axial match is the first change of viewpoint ‘discovered’ by film-makers, whereas the 90-degree cut is one of the last” (268).

Film Production TechniqueBruce Mamer, United States, 2006

“Simply stated, the 30-degree rule says that if you want to cut to a closer shot of a subject or vice versa, the second shot should vary by at least 30 degrees from an axis drawn from the original camera position to the subject. The bottom line is that you should not move the camera toward the subject in a straight line; the possibility of a disagreeable jump is great if you do” (365).

Film Directing FundamentalsNicholas T. Proferes

“If we are going from one one shot of a character or object (Figure 1-7) to another shot of the same character or object without an intervening shot of something else, the camera angle should change by at least 30 degrees” (8).

Axial cuts can work “because of one of the following mitigating factors: the subject is in motion, the second shot includes a foreground object such as a lampshade, or the change in image size from one shot to the next is substantial” (8).

Total DirectingTom Kingdon

“Classical continuity suggests that every camera position be at least thirty degrees from the previous. . . . To avoid a jump cut, noticeably vary both the shot size and the camera position. . . . Another version of the jump cut is a ‘cut-along-the-line.’ This is usually an awkward effect.”

“In Fig. 21.4, positions “A” and “B” (which are both mid-2-shots) are from similar “frontal” positions. When cut together, they would produce a jump cut. Positions “X” and “Y” are preferable.”

Total DirectingTom Kingdon

Voice and Vision

“. . . we must change the shot size . . . by at least 20mm and the camera angle by at least 30°. . . . Essentially the principle is to avoid making the sizes of each shot too similar.”