Sequences are made up of scenes.

And scenes are made up of shots.

In our last episode,

we discussed the types of camera rigs

used to move the camera.

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But in this episode,

we'll be going over what those movements are.

And the stories they tell.

This is episode six of "The Shot List".

Camera movement.

There are countless variations of camera movement

each with their own language and purpose.

A filmmaker who understands this language

can create dynamic and compelling work.

We'll be examining different types of camera movements.

Along the way, we'll be updating a shot list of these camera movements

in a StudioBinder shot list.

Which you can download and reference in your upcoming projects.

Now, let's get moving.

Let's begin with a shot that has no camera movement at all.

This is the Static Shot.

Static shots are commonly captured

by locking the camera to a tripod in a fixed position.

The result is a shot with zero camera movement.

This is great for dialogue.

"- What business is it of yours where I'm from...

...friendo?"

Precise painterly compositions.

"- Redmond. Nice to see you."

Or shots that allow an actor's performance to shine.

"- I'm funny, how? Funny like a clown? I amuse you?

I make you laugh? I'm here to f*cking amuse you?

What do you mean, funny? Funny how? How am I funny?

- Get the f*ck out of here, Tommy.

- Motherf*cker! I almost had him! I almost had him!

You stuttering prick, you!"

Sometimes filmmakers use static shots to trap a character

and suggest their helplessness.

Like this moment from "Dunkirk".

In this scene from "12 Years of Slave",

the static shot holds on Solomon's lynching.

He is helpless

and we are not allowed to look away.

Its cruelty is amplified by stillness.

A moving camera

might've matched Solomon's panic,

but this static shot

with its neutral and cold perspective

is far more unsettling.

Let's move on to our next camera movement.

The Pan.

A pan rotates the camera horizontally,

Left or Right,

while remaining in a fixed location.

Pans can be used to follow a character's actions.

Or be used to reveal information.

Which is something, Wes Anderson does frequently.

"- 4 minutes, 48 seconds.

We're all dead. Burned to a crisp."

Moving on.

A slow pan builds anticipation.

While a rapid pan heightens the energy of a shot.

These are known as Whip Pans.

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Director Damien Chazelle uses whip pans

to create relationships between characters.

In "La La Land", he amps up the energy in the scene.

While underscoring the growing synergy

between Sebastian and Mia.

He uses the same technique

for a different effect in "Whiplash".

No pun intended.

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In the final scene, whip pans are precisely timed

with the give and take of the music.

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Accenting the combative relationship

between Andrew and Fletcher.

To learn more about whip pans,

check out our video,

where we break down how to use them to build energy

and transition through time and space.

Panning is ideal for horizontal movement.

But what about the vertical axis?

The tilt.

A tilt directs the camera upward or downward.

Filmmakers use tilts to capture the verticality of a film's world.

This can be used to give a character dominance.

Or vulnerability.

"- Yes, we're men.

Men is what we are."

Similar to a pan, a tilt can reveal information.

Like a character.

Setting.

Or scale.

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"- Who are the people?

- Projections in my subconscious.

- Yours. - Yes."

In "Inception", Ariadne tests how much of the dream world, she can distort.

"- My question is what happens when you start messing with the physics of it?"

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Nolan tilts up to capture the awe

and scale of this spectacular moment.

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The visceral effect of being on the street,

looking upward at such a spectacle

is accentuated with a simple camera tilt.

"- It's something, isn't it?

- Yes, it is."

Switching our attention from upward or downward,

our next camera movement takes us inward.

Push In.

The push in shot

moves the camera towards a subject.

Pushing the camera is all about emphasizing a moment.

"- Get our informers to find out where it's going to be held."

A visual cue to the audience

that this is important.

"- ...it's a public place. A bar, a restaurant.

Some place where there are people, so I feel safe.

But if Clemenza can figure out a way

to have a weapon planted there for me

then I'll kill them both."

You can push in on an external detail, such as an object.

Or text.

In doing so, filmmakers can direct our attention to a specific detail.

Or it can capture a character thought process.

Like in this moment from "The Post",

when Ben comes to terms

with exposing the infamous Pentagon papers.

A Push-in is an effective way to communicate internal conflict.

Like in the iconic restaurant scene in "The Godfather".

Michael Corleone is about to kill a man who tried to kill his father.

"- Your father is in bad shape."

It will be a life changing decision.

A point of no return into the underworld.

"- This fighting has to end."

A slow push in towards Michael elevates the tension,

as we watch him wrestle with the consequences

and gathering the courage to pull the trigger.

Which leads us to our next camera movement,

the opposite of the push in

is the Pull Out.

Unlike pushing in,

pulling the camera deemphasizes the subject.

A sort of signal to disconnect from the characters.

It can unveil the context of a scene.

Its setting.

Or its characters.

As subjects grew smaller,

a pull out can detach us from a scene.

Or the entire film.

Like in the final shot from "Catch Me If You Can".

The same movement can also emphasize

negative emotions like isolation.

Or abandonment.

In this scene from "Joker",

we see Arthur at his most vulnerable.

This camera movement away from him

highlights his helplessness

and rather than push in to help us sympathize with Arthur

director Todd Phillips pulls away, abandoning him.

Our next movement directs our attention

without moving the camera at all.

Enter the Zoom.

A zoom may not be a camera movement per se,

but there is movement created in camera.

Zoom shots change the focal length of the camera's lens.

To zoom in.

Or zoom out.

Similar to pulling back a camera

zooming out can reveal the context around a subject.

Like this opening shot from "The Graduate".

Zooms are unique

because there is no equivalent in the human experience.

Like a push in,

we can physically move closer to a subject,

but our eyes can't zoom

making this camera movement unnatural.

"- Shouldn't we give him to the authorities or something?

- No."

It can also draw our attention to a specific detail.

Many horror, thriller films

use a slow zoom to create uneasiness.

"- You said she's a conduit. - That's right.

- What does that mean?

- A very powerful demonic has latched itself onto her."

And Stanley Kubrick is a master of this technique.

This iconic shot from "The Shining"

slowly zooms in to highlight

Jack's descent into madness.

The use of a zoom doesn't stop there.

A fast zoom is known as a Crash Zoom.

Crush zooms can often be used for either dramatic

or comedic effect.

In "Django Unchained",

Quentin Tarantino uses the crash zoom repeatedly.

For comedy.

"- Just seems like a good bit of fun."

Drama.

Or both.

"- No! Calvin!"

Now what happens when you pair the in-camera movement of a zoom

with physical movements of a camera?

It's none other then the Dolly Zoom.

A Dolly Zoom utilizes both a dolly movement

and lens zoom

to create something called the vertigo effect.

Named after its dramatic use in Hitchcock's "Vertigo".

A dolly zoom can be done two different ways.

The first is by dollying in

while zooming out.

This causes the background to grow in size

while maintaining the scale of the foreground.

This is commonly used to portray conflict in a shot

either internal.

"- It broke my heart to put that tumor in her head.

- What?"

Or external conflict.

The second way is by dollying out

while zooming in.

This causes the foreground subject to become dominant over the background.

The dolly zoom can be used to highlight a growing relationship

between two subjects.

Like in this scene from "Raging Bull"

where Scorsese slows everything down.

"- Come on. Come on."

The Dolly zoom pushes the crowd further into the background,

as we occupy Jake's POV

and battered tunnel vision.

We are no longer watching a fight.

We are in it.

In "Bohemian Rhapsody",

the dolly zoom draws the audience closer to Freddy

as a way to create intimacy

between one musician

and his adoring fans.

DP Newton Thomas Sigel

explains why they chose to use the dolly zoom for this shot.

"- The camera continues to come around him

and we're still in this wide lens.

So as we come around,

you can see that the audience is very far from him.

But now, he's beginning to come into his own.

The audience is coming into it.

And by using the dolly zoom,

we're bringing the audience closer and closer and closer.

Freddie is not getting any bigger in the frame,

but the audience is getting closer

simply by changing the focal length of the lens

and the proximity of the camera to the subject."

A dolly zoom can be a versatile choice

in any shot list

to convey either positive

or negative psychological effects.

Our next camera movement is a rotation known as

The Camera Roll.

A roll turns the camera on its long axis

while maintaining the direction of the lens.

A camera roll is disorienting,

unsettling our equilibrium.

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Rolls can be used to match character movement

in moments of panic.

Or conflict.